DUBAI - Lawyers representing Saddam Hussein plan to sue the British tabloid that published intimate photos of the deposed Iraqi leader, Al-Jazeera television reported Friday, quoting the head of the defence team. The photos in The Sun, one of which shows Saddam wearing only his underpants, are a "violation of human rights and in contravention of the Geneva Convention" on treatment of prisoners, Ziad Khassawneh was quoted as saying. Khassawneh said his team would "pursue all the necessary legal steps to see to it that those who commit such base acts against any prisoner, and especially against president Saddam, are punished."
"Analysis of the photos shows that they were taken inside the place where (Saddam) is being detained, he said, adding that their publication in The Sun "adds to a series of violations of the Iraqi people's rights committed by the American administration." US President George W. Bush said he did not fear a new fear a violent reaction in Iraq to the release of Saddam's photos wearing only his underwear in detention.
"I don't think a photo inspires murders. I think they (insurgents) are inspired by an ideology that is so barbaric and backwards that it's hard for many in the western world to comprehend how they think," Bush told reporters at the White House when asked about the impact of the photos on the Iraqi insurgency. Under the headline "Tyrant's in his pants," The Sun ran a front-page photo of a bare-chested Saddam standing in white underwear and holding an item of clothing as he appeared to be getting dressed. In the accompanying article, along with other intimate photographs of him, the mass-circulation daily quotes US military sources as saying they handed over the photos in the hope of dealing a body blow to the resistance in Iraq. | The fabled "un-named military source" |
"Saddam is not superman or God, he is now just an ageing and humble old man. It's important that the people of Iraq see him like that to destroy the myth," the source was quoted as saying. "Maybe that will kill a bit of the passion in the fanatics who still follow him," the source said. "It's over, guys. The evil days of Saddam's Baath Party are never coming back - and here's the proof." In Baghdad, a US military spokesman said the military was investigating the photos of Saddam to find out who took them and decide what kind of disciplinary action should be taken.
Al-Jazeera itself said that it chosen not to publish the photos for "professional and moral reasons." US tabloid newspaper, the New York Post, ran the same photo on its front page as did The Sun, under the banner headline "Butcher of Sagdad." The intimate photo, along with three other pictures, were billed as an "exclusive" borrowed from The Sun. Both newspapers are owned by Australian-born media tycoon Rupert Murdoch. |