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Former President of Iraq Saddam Hussein (April 28, 1937 – December 30, 2006) was executed by hanging after being convicted of crimes against humanity following his trial and conviction for the murder of 148 Iraqi Shi'as in the town of Dujail in 1982 in retaliation for an assassination attempt against him.

Saddam was president of Iraq from July 16, 1979 until April 9, 2003, when he was deposed during the 2003 invasion of Iraq by U.S.-led forces.

Trial

Held in custody by U.S. forces at Camp Cropper in Baghdad, on June 30, 2004, Saddam Hussein and eleven senior Ba'athist officials were handed over to the Iraqi Interim Government to stand trial for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. A few weeks later, he was charged by the Iraqi Special Tribunal with the mass killings of the inhabitants of the village of Dujail in 1982 following a failed assassination attempt against him.

On November 5, 2006, Saddam Hussein was found guilty of crimes against humanity and sentenced to death by hanging. Verdict and sentencing were both appealed but subsequently affirmed by Iraq's Supreme Court of Appeals.

Although the United States approved of the trial, an attempt was made to postpone, stay, or overturn the execution order. The U.S. government appears to have been concerned with the perception of the legal validity of the execution. Attempts were made to contact the Iraqi government to validate the legality of the execution under the new Iraqi constitution. The parliament, under the notion that the security issues presented a need to act swiftly, dismissed the request. Further attempts were made to get a stay of execution from the anti-death penalty President Jalal Talibani or a clearance that he had no objections. The Iraqi government determined that no clearance from Talibani was necessary.

Lawyers for Saddam Hussein sought unsuccessfully to block his transfer from U.S. custody to the custody of Iraqi officials in court documents filed on the afternoon of December 29, 2006, at a federal court in Washington D.C., meanwhile officials from the U.S. tried to delay the execution due to concerns the execution would be seen as Shi'ite retribution.

Execution

Prior to execution

Two days prior to the execution, a letter written by Saddam appeared on the Baath Party Web site. In the letter, he urged the Iraqi people to embrace unity, to hate not the people of countries that invaded Iraq but instead the acts of the decision-makers, and said that he was at peace with his death sentence.

In the hours before the execution, Saddam ate his last meal, chicken and rice with a cup of hot water and honey. He then said prayers and verses from the Qur'an.

Time and place of execution

Saddam was executed at approximately 06:00 local time (03:00 GMT) on December 30, 2006 by hanging, as Sunni Iraqis began celebrating Eid ul-Adha, Islam's most important holiday. The execution took place at the Iraqi army base Camp Justice in Kazimain, a north-eastern suburb of Baghdad. Camp Justice was previously used by Saddam as his military intelligence headquarters, then known as Camp Banzai, where Iraqi civilians were taken to be tortured and executed on the same gallows. Contrary to initial reports, Saddam was executed alone, and not at the same time as his co-defendants Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti and Awad Hamed al-Bandar, who are to be executed after Eid ul-Adha.

Execution proceedings

The last legal step, before the execution proceeded, was for Saddam to be handed a red card. This was completed by an official of the court with details of the judgment and a notice that execution was imminent. According to a senior Iraqi official, Saddam seemed "very calm and did not tremble" before his execution, although some reports claim he struggled slightly while being retrieved from his cell. Iraq's national security adviser, Mowaffak al-Rubaie, told Al-Arabiya television that Saddam refused to wear a black hood over his head and told him, "Don't be afraid." The former president recited the Shahadah, or Muslim profession of faith, but made no other remark as policemen escorted him to the scaffold.

A senior Iraqi official who was involved in the events leading to Saddam's death was quoted as saying, "The Americans wanted to delay the execution by 15 days because they weren't keen on having him executed straight away. But during the day the prime minister's office provided all the documents they asked for and the Americans changed their minds when they saw the prime minister was very insistent. Then it was just a case of finalizing the details." U.S. military spokesman Maj. Gen. William Caldwell told journalists in Baghdad that after "physical control" of Saddam was given to the Iraqi government, "the multinational force had absolutely no direct involvement with that (the execution) whatsoever." There were no U.S. representatives present in the execution room.

Reports circulated that Saddam's behavior was "submissive" and that he was carrying the Qur'an he had been keeping with him throughout his trial prior to his execution. Al Rubiae, who was a witness to Saddam's execution, described Saddam as repeatedly shouting "down with Persians and the Americans." Al-Rubaie reportedly asked Saddam if he had any remorse or fear, to which Saddam replied, "No,...I am a militant and I have no fear for myself. I have spent my life in jihad and fighting aggression. Anyone who takes this route should not be afraid."

Sami al-Askari, a witness to the execution, said, "Before the rope was put around his neck, Saddam shouted, 'Allah is great. The Muslim Ummah will be victorious and Palestine is Arab.'" Saddam also stressed that the Iraqis should fight the Americans and the Persians. After the rope was secured, guards shouted various rebukes including "Muqtada! Muqtada! Muqtada!" in reference to Muqtada al-Sadr; Saddam repeated the name mockingly and denounced the guards' shouts stating, "Do you consider this bravery?" A Shi'a version of an Islamic prayer was also recited by some of those present in the room, an apparent sectarian insult against the Sunni Saddam. One observer told Saddam, "Go to hell! Insha'Allah." Saddam replied, "The hell that is Iraq?" Another man asked for quiet, saying, "Please, stop. The man is facing an execution."

Saddam began to recite the Shahadah again, an act of faith performed by Muslims prior to the time of death (if anticipated). As he neared the end of his second recitation, the platform dropped. According to The New York Times, the executioners "cheer their Shiite heroes so persistently that one observer makes a remark about how the effort to rein in militias does not seem to be going well." After Saddam was suspended for a few minutes with a broken neck, the doctor present listened with a stethoscope for a heartbeat. After detecting none, the rope was cut, and his body was placed in a coffin.

Burial

Saddam Hussein's body was buried in his birthplace of Al-Awja in Tikrit, Iraq, near family members, including his two sons Uday and Qusay Hussein, on December 31 2006 at 04:00 local time (01:00 GMT). His body was transported to Tikrit by a U.S. Military helicopter. Saddam was handed over from Iraqi Government possession to Sheikh Ali al-Nida, head of the Albu Nasir tribe and governor of Salaheddin, to be buried. Sheikh Ali al-Nida said, "He was cleaned and wrapped according to Islamic teachings. We didn't see any unnatural signs on his body." He was buried about three kilometers (2 miles) from his two sons in the same cemetery. The Iraqi government said they are not worried about political pilgrimages to his gravesite.

Saddam's eldest daughter Raghad Hussein, in asylum in Jordan, had asked that "his body be buried in Yemen temporarily until Iraq is liberated and it can be reburied in Iraq," a family spokesperson said by telephone., and was also said by the family that his body might be buried in Ramadi, citing safety concerns.

Media coverage

The primary news source for the execution was the state-run Iraqi television news station Al Iraqiya. A scrolling headline read, "Saddam's execution marks the end of a dark period of Iraq's history." The BBC noted that a doctor, a lawyer, and various officials, were present, and that a video recording of the execution was made. Al Arabiya reported that Saddam's lawyer had confirmed Saddam's death. His death was also confirmed by Al Iraqiya. An announcer said, "criminal Saddam was hanged to death."

Major news networks carried official video of the moments leading up to Saddam's execution. Pictures of Saddam's dead body in a shroud were also released by the Iraqi government. Saddam's death was recorded in HDTV, but has not yet been released to the viewing public.

Mobile phone video

While officially released footage of the event stopped short of showing the actual execution, an amateur video shot using a mobile phone from a staircase leading up to the noose has since surfaced, containing low-quality footage of the entire hanging. The amateur footage was also notable for the fact that, unlike the official footage, it included sound: witnesses could be heard taunting Saddam. On January 3, 2007, the Iraqi government arrested the guard who they believe made the cell phone video. Iraqi National Security Advisor Mowaffak al-Rubaie later held a press conference where he announced that three arrests had been made in connection with the investigation into the video taping and leak.

Reaction

Reactions to Saddam's death were varied. Some strongly supported the execution, particularly those personally affected by Saddam's actions as leader. Some of these victims, however, wished to see him brought to trial for his other actions, alleged to have resulted in a much greater number of deaths than those he was convicted for. Some believed the execution would boost morale in Iraq, while others feared it would incite further violence. Many in the international community supported Saddam being brought to justice, but objected in particular to the use of capital punishment, which is now abolished throughout most of Europe, South America, and Australia. Saddam's supporters condemned the action as unjust.

"The world will know that Saddam Hussein lived honestly, died honestly, and maintained his principles. He did not lie when he declared his trial null," said Saddam's lawyers in a statement.

A spokeswoman for Saddam's daughters reported, "They felt very proud as they saw their father facing his executioners so bravely." In Amman, the capital of Jordan, Saddam's eldest daughter, Raghad Hussein, joined protests against her father's execution. Protesters expressed sentiment that Saddam is a martyr and that he was the only Arab leader who said no to the United States.

According to reports from an official, there was dancing and Shia chants around Saddam's body after the execution took place. Two days after the execution, the Iraqi government launched an inquiry into the taunting and the way the execution was filmed.

United States' forces are braced for a backlash of violence in Iraq due to the execution. President George W. Bush has stated that Saddam Hussein's death will not end the violence in Iraq. In Tikrit, Iraq, where Saddam was buried, police have barred entrances to and departures from the city for four days as a safety precaution.

Iraqi reaction

Politicians

In a statement, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said, "Justice, in the name of the people, has carried out the death sentence against the criminal Saddam, who faced his fate like all tyrants, frightened and terrified during a hard day which he did not expect." He also stated, "Your generous and pure land has got rid—and for ever—of the filth of the dictator and a black page of Iraq's history has been turned and the tyrant has died." He also said that Saddam Hussein does not represent any group or sect of the Iraqi people.

" have been waiting for justice to be executed, and I think that Iraqis have received the news that they've been waiting for too many years," said Iraqi Oil Minister Hussein Shahristani.

"The execution of Saddam Hussein is a big crime. Saddam Hussein was a prisoner of war and was arrested by the US forces, and not by the Iraqi government. It is a crime with which they wanted to cover up many things," a Sunni politician, Khalaf Al-Ulayyan said.

"I don't think it will make much difference because the situation has deteriorated to such an extent that very drastic measures have to be taken to confront the militias and restore law and order. Of course, he has some supporters in Iraq—some of them are armed and they may commit acts of violence and so on—but I don't think it will make much difference, frankly," said Adnan Pachachi.

The first chief judge who presided over Saddam Hussein's trial, Rizkar Mohammed Amin, has said the execution was illegal, citing the beginning of the Eid al-Adha festival for Iraqi Sunnis, during which executions are banned, and Iraqi law that executions may only be carried out 30 days after the appeal court's decision on the sentencing. The appeals court's December 26, 2006 ruling stated that the sentence was to be carried out within 30 days.

The execution will also deny opportunity for trials for other more important cases, including the chemical weapons attacks on Halabja in 1988. The Center of Halabja against Anfalization and Genocide of the Kurds (C.H.A.K.) disapproved of the execution, without having Saddam tried for other cases including the massacre of 8,000 Barzani Kurds in 1983, chemical attacks on Sardasht, the 1988 massacres on Anfal, and other crimes. At the time of his execution, Saddam was on trial, facing charges of genocide at Anfal, which resulted in an estimated 180,000 deaths. "Of course, Saddam has committed too many crimes. He deserves for those crimes capital punishment. But so quickly done, so quickly executed... and only in one case—it would leave the other cases and leave a lot of secrets without being known," said an Iraqi Kurdish politician, Mahmoud Osman.

Populace

Shias in Iraq celebrated the execution while some Sunni towns saw protests. In Sadr City, Basra, and Najaf citizens danced in the streets and honked their car horns with jubilance. In Tikrit, Samarra, and Ramadi, however, there are reports of protests. David MacDougall, a Fox News reporter located in Baghdad, has stated that there has been what is thought to be celebratory gunfire in Baghdad. However, the BBC's correspondent in Baghdad, John Simpson, indicated there had been no more gunfire than is normally heard on the city's streets.

People in Iraq expressed mixed sentiments, with some glad to see justice done. "Now, he is in the garbage of history," said Jawad Abdul-Aziz, a civilian who lost his father, three brothers and 22 cousins because of Saddam. Ali Hamza, a professor in the Shi'a town of Al Diwaniyah said, "Now all the victims’ families will be happy because Saddam got his just sentence." Some were content to see Saddam gone, but expressed concerns about the instability in Iraq. A 34-year-old candy store owner in Baghdad, Haider Hamed, a Shi'a who lost his uncle due to Saddam, commented, "He's gone, but our problems continue. We brought problems on ourselves after Saddam because we began fighting Shi'a on Sunni and Sunni on Shi'a."

Others expressed outrage and viewed Saddam as a martyr. "The president, the leader Saddam Hussein is a martyr and God will put him along with other martyrs. Do not be sad nor complain because he has died the death of a holy warrior," said Sheik Yahya al-Attawi, a cleric at a mosque. Protests occurred in Samarra, where Sunnis broke into the Al-Askari Mosque, and a riot broke out at Padush prison in Mosul.

Several hours after the execution was reported, a car bomb exploded in a market in the Shi'ite town of Kufa in southern Iraq, resulting in at least 30 fatalities; another bomb in a busy market of Baghdad killed another 36. It is unknown whether this is related to Saddam's execution.

World reaction

At the time of Saddam's capture in December 2003, U.S. President George W. Bush expressed his opinion that Saddam deserved "the ultimate justice," alluding to the death penalty. This put the United States at odds with European and other countries around the world, which have signed on to the European Convention on Human Rights (article 3) and other international treaties that prohibit the death penalty and extradition of suspects to countries where capital punishment may be carried out.

A 10-year old boy in Webster, Texas, United States (near the city of Houston) named Sergio Pelico hanged himself to death in his bedroom; Sergio's mother stated that the boy previously watched a news report about Saddam's execution and decided to hang himself as a form of experimenting. A 9-year old Pakistani boy named Mushbar Ali also died copying Saddam's execution; his 10-year old sister assisted his hanging .

Opposition

Following the execution of Saddam Hussein, leaders around the world issued statements. Some leaders of India, Cambodia, and Sri Lanka, as well as Brazil, expressed opposition to the execution. In India, some public demonstrations were held opposing Saddam Hussein's death sentence with demonstrators of some insignificant political parties (e.g. communists) carrying out rallies and burning effigies of U.S. President George W. Bush.

Leaders and governments of many European countries also expressed strong disapproval of using capital punishment in this and any case, including Austria, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands,, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The European Commissioner for Development aid Louis Michel stated that the execution of Saddam Hussein is against the fundamental principles of the European Union (EU). The EU is against the death penalty, regardless of the crimes committed. "It is not a big day for democracy," Michel stated to the RTBF. "The EU is in fierce opposition to the death penalty and there is no exception to that fundamental principle. Cruelty is not to be answered with cruelty. I believe that there were other possible means to revenge the cruelties committed by Saddam. The death penalty is not the right answer." He feared that the execution of Saddam will have a negative impact and that the former dictator will emerge as a martyr. "You don't fight barbarism with acts that I deem as barbaric. The death penalty is not compatible with democracy," he told Reuters. The Rev. Federico Lombardi, of the Vatican, expressed sadness and disapproval of the death penalty. Chile, Belgium, Russia, and Serbia expressed disapproval of capital punishment in this and any case, and also expressed concerns about implications of the execution on stability in Iraq.

Terry Davis, Secretary General of the Council of Europe, an international organization of which almost all European states are members, made an official statement condemning the execution: ”The trial of Saddam Hussein was a missed opportunity... It was an opportunity for Iraq to join the civilised world. The former Iraqi dictator was a ruthless criminal who deserved to be punished, but it was wrong to kill him. Saddam Hussein is no longer paying for his crimes; he is simply dead... The death penalty is cruel and barbaric, and I call on the Iraqi authorities to abolish it. It is late, but not too late, for Iraq to join the great majority of civilised and democratic countries in the world who have already abolished the death penalty.”

Perhaps one of the most vocal European leaders has been Romano Prodi, the Prime Minister of Italy, who announced that his Government would be campaigning at the UN for a worldwide moratorium on the death penalty. A number of Italian political figures and parties have expressed disgust at the execution, and Prodi plans to use Italy's recent admission as a temporary member of the UN Security Council to campaign the General Assembly to adopt a moratorium.

In Turkey, the leader of the main opposition Republican People's Party, Deniz Baykal, expressed sorrow over the execution of Saddam Hussein, saying, "It is impossible to understand the rejoicing of those who put pressure on every country, including Turkey, for years to abolish the death sentence."

The Palestinian Authority expressed opposition to the execution, and sadness over the demise of their steadfast ally. Hamas called the execution of Saddam a "political assassination." Saudi Arabia expressed "surprise and dismay" and regretted the "politicisation" of the trial.

A Reuters' reporter based in Afghanistan cited a top Taliban commander saying the death of Saddam Hussein "...will boost the morale of Muslims. The jihad in Iraq will be intensified and attacks on invader forces will increase." Fauzan Al Anshori, from the Islamic group of Majelis Mujahidin Indonesia, said Bush, too, should stand trial. "Given the crimes blamed on Saddam, it is unfair if George Bush is not also put before an international tribunal," he said. "Saddam was executed for killing 148 people, Iraqi Shi'a Muslims, while Bush is responsible for the killing of about 600,000 Iraqis since the March 2003 invasion."

Respect and concerns

Many other governments, including Canada, Indonesia, Pakistan, Thailand, and Greece, expressed concerns and wishes for stability in Iraq, without passing judgment on whether or not Saddam should have been executed. Respect for the Iraqi judicial process and the judgment in this case was expressed by many other leaders and government officials, including those of Afghanistan, the People's Republic of China, Japan, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand.

Support

The Peruvian president, Alan García, expressed approval for the execution of Saddam Hussein: "He deserved the maximum sentence in his country" and was "guilty of genocide" for using chemical weapons against other peoples for their religion or their racial origin. However, García disagreed "with the fact that the trial was made in an occupied country. I don’t know if he was hanged for his crimes or just by the occupying forces." Israel and Poland both expressed approval of the execution. A spokesman for Poland's president said, "justice has been meted out to a criminal who murdered thousands of people in Iraq."

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Hamid Reza Asefi stated, "With regard to Saddam's execution, it amounts to a victory of the Iraqi people as they were the winners by his fall Saddam's regime was overthrown because the Iraqi people did not support him. It is crystal clear that the United States should not misinterpret his fall and take the credit for itself. An investigation into the Iraqi invasion of Iran (1980-1988) and of Kuwait (1990) could have disclosed the US involvement in Saddam's crimes and therefore the Americans preferred to close the case earlier."

In the United States, President George W. Bush made a statement, "Bringing Saddam Hussein to justice will not end the violence in Iraq, but it is an important milestone on Iraq's course to becoming a democracy that can govern, sustain, and defend itself." Celebration in the United States occurred in at least one location in Dearborn, Michigan, at the corner of Warren and Greenfield, a heavily Shia Iraqi-American community.

Non-governmental organizations

• Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights: "All sections of Iraqi society, as well as the wider international community, have an interest in ensuring that a death sentence provided for in Iraqi law is only imposed following a trial and appeal process that is, and is legitimately seen as, fair, credible and impartial. That is especially so in a case as exceptional as this one." – High Commissioner Louise Arbour

• Human Rights Watch: "Saddam Hussein was responsible for massive human rights violations, but that can't justify giving him the death penalty, which is a cruel and inhuman punishment." "History will judge the deeply flawed Dujail trial and this execution harshly." – Director Richard Dicker

• Amnesty International USA: "The rushed execution of Saddam Hussein is simply wrong. It signifies justice denied for countless victims who endured unspeakable suffering during his regime, and now have been denied their right to see justice served." – Executive Director Larry Cox

• International Federation of Human Rights: "This death sentence will generate more violence and deepen the cycle of killing for revenge in Iraq. It is primarily a settling of old scores rather than any attempt at a just sentence; the whole process is an affront to the dignity and the rights of victims." – President Sidiki Kaba

Criticism

Human Rights Watch issued a statement that the "execution follows a flawed trial and marks a significant step away from the rule of law in Iraq." Amnesty International issued a statement that it "opposed the death penalty in all circumstances but it was especially egregious when this ultimate punishment is imposed after an unfair trial." Two days before the execution, the International Federation of Human Rights released a statement calling "upon Iraq's Head of State to ensure a moratorium on the death sentence pronounced against Saddam Hussein." The organization also said Saddam should be treated as a prisoner of war under the Geneva Conventions. Juan Cole said that the execution might lead to more sectarian turmoil: "The trial and execution of Saddam were about revenge, not justice. Instead of promoting national reconciliation, this act of revenge helped Saddam portray himself one last time as a symbol of Sunni Arab resistance, and became one more incitement to sectarian warfare."

Lawyers for Saddam called the trial "a flagrant violation of international law" and plan to continue "using all legal paths available locally and internationally until public opinion gets the truth about this political assassination." In a separate statement, Saddam's American defense lawyer called the execution "an unfortunate display of arrogant aggressor's injustice by the United States of America under the leadership of American President George W. Bush. It sets back achievements in international criminal law many decades and sends a clear message to people all over the world that the United States' aggression cannot be stopped by the law. It is truly a sad day for international justice and sad beginning to a new year."

Since the release of amateur video footage of the execution, several commentators have criticized the atmosphere of the hanging. John Simpson of BBC News stated that the execution "is shown to be an ugly, degrading business, which was more reminiscent of a public hanging in the 18th century than a considered act of 21st century official justice." Toby Dodge, an expert on Iraq, of Queen Mary College, University of London stated that the showing of the execution on television "conforms to a brutal logic that Saddam Hussein used himself" and went further by saying that "this isn't even victor's justice, this is the tawdry work of an insecure government," particularly since Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki forced through Saddam's execution just four days after the appeals court upheld his conviction. The Times, a London newspaper, commented in its online edition that, in the moments immediately preceding the hanging, "the scene had begun to resemble a medieval execution or a wild hanging in Texas" amid repeated instances of taunts hurled at Saddam that drowned out the lonely voice of an unidentified person calling for calm in the face of the gravity of the situation. The New York Times described the execution as "a sectarian free-for-all that had the effect, on the video recordings, of making Mr. Hussein, a mass murderer, appear dignified and restrained, and his executioners, representing Shiites who were his principal victims, seem like bullying street thugs." The Pakistani-born writer Tariq Ali denounced the proceedings, contrasting favourably the trials of Nazi criminals after World War II with the trial of Hussein, "Where Nuremberg was a more dignified application of victor's justice, Saddam's trial has, till now, been the crudest and most grotesque."

Following the leaking of a videotape of Saddam Hussein's execution, along with the detention on January 3, 2007 of a guard under the Justice Ministry headed by a Sunni Iraqi minister Hashim Abderrahman al-Shibli, suspicions have arisen that the ministry may have intended to inflame sectarian tensions.

See also

• Saddam Hussein
• Trials of Saddam Hussein
• Capital punishment in Iraq
• 2003 invasion of Iraq
• Iraq War

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External links

• Boy Hangs himself 12/31/06 -copying saddam execution
• Saddam died a Holy Martyr as he indicated in his last letter, on a most Holy day
• Application for Stay of Execution — (FindLaw) Filed in U.S. Federal Court on December 29, 2006.

• Interviews with Iraqi People — (Al Jazeera) video footage of Iraqi people reaction after Saddam's execution.

• Saddam Hussein
• 2006 in Iraq
• 2006 deaths
• Deaths by person