bummer, eh, t ?
Saddam's leadership in question
by Robin Washington
Monday, March 24, 2003
With Saddam Hussein's whereabouts and condition a mystery since the bombing of one of his bunkers at the outset of the war last week, time may be running out for the Iraqi strongman to convince the world - and his own generals - that he remains in charge, analysts said.
``It's important to remember, in his leader-dominated society, the only thing holding many generals in check is the absolute terror with which he rules,'' Dr. Jerrold M. Post, a George Washington University psychiatrist, told the Herald.
The founder of the CIA's political profiling division and author of a just-released book on Saddam, Post said he doubted the leader who appeared on Iraqi television over the weekend was genuine.
``The voice has been authenticated but it certainly didn't look like Saddam to me,'' said Post, who suggested Hussein is either dead, incapacitated or, at best, operating under severe stress.
Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri said late yesterday Hussein ``is very well, in good condition and he is leading our people and our fight against this colonial aggression.''
Post said he was further convinced of Saddam's incapacity by Iraqi Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan's press conference yesterday, in which he denied the dictator had been hurt.
But, Post warned, even if Saddam is hurt, he remains a serious threat, both to the world and his own generals.
``If he survived but is under great stress, he has to be besieged by stories of who in his inner circle he can or cannot trust,'' he said.
``As he's going down, he could strike out quite dangerously and order the use of chem-bio weapons.''
That view is shared by Avigdor Haselkorn, the author of another book about Saddam.
``We think of him as a dictatorial guy who keeps all power in his hand. But we know before the Gulf War he delegated to his subordinates to use chemical weapons without additional authorization,'' he said.
Haselkorn said documents found after the war show the dictator drew a line between Basra and Baghdad, authorizing his forces to use the weapons if Americans crossed it - one reason why U.S. forces have traveled so quickly through the country in the current campaign.
But those soldiers' encounters with Iraqi troops has shown little evidence of control by Saddam's inner circle, said Ken Osbourne, a military history professor at Rhode Island's Roger Williams University. |
