A new audiotape Monday purporting to carry the voice of Saddam Hussein denied involvement in the bombing in Najaf that killed 125 people, including a cherished Shiite leader.
| I actually don't think it was. If it wasn't Moqtada it was the Qaeda bunch, and the more I think about it, the more I believe it was them. They've got even more to gain from stirring the pot than Moqtada — though it's convenient one of his rivals is dead. Sistani had better keep a close eye on his car... |
The message was broadcast after the U.S.-picked Iraqi Governing Council named a new Cabinet in a step toward reclaiming some powers from the American occupation administration. Using Saddam's well-known rhetorical style, the voice urged the Iraqi people not to believe those who blamed the ousted dictator and his followers for Friday's attack on the Imam Ali Shrine in Najaf that killed Ayatollah Mohammad Baqir al-Hakim. "Many of you may have heard the snakes hissing, the servants of the invaders, occupiers, infidels, and how they have managed to accuse the followers of Saddam Hussein of responsibility for the attack on al-Hakim without any evidence," said the tape, which was broadcast by the Qatar-based Al-Jazeera satellite television station. "They rushed to accuse before investigating," the voice said. While he denied any role in the Najaf bombing, he made no mention of the Jordanian Embassy bombing on Aug. 7 or the U.N. headquarters attack 12 days later, which investigators suspect may have also been committed by Saddam's followers.
| Or by Qaeda buttinskies, or a combination of the two... |
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