Iraq may not have been conquered by an external government,
but Saddam's rise to power can hardly be considered
legitimate. The actions taken to overthrow the existing
government, then even more horrific acts to maintain a
stranglehold on his brutal dictatorship do not point to any
type of legitimate government.
It clearly appears to indicate that Saddam's recent removal
resulted in genuine liberation of the Iraqi people
regardless of how one wishes to parse words.
JMO
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.....In 1959, Saddam and a group of Baathist supporters
attempted to assassinate Gen. Kassim. The attack was
unsuccessful, but it helped place Hussein in a leadership
position in the Baath party. After the attack, in which
Hussein was wounded, he fled to Syria and then to Cairo,
Egypt where he would spend the next four years.
In 1963 Saddam returned to Iraq to take part in another
revolt against General Kassim. A group of Baathist army
officers tortured and assassinated General Kassim. This was
done on Iraqi television. They also mutilated many of
Kassim's devotees and showed their bodies in close up on
the nightly news.
Hussein rose quickly through the ranks, known for his
extreme efficiency as a torturer. He was appointed to be a
member of the Baath Regional Command. In 1964, Hussein was
jailed by some "rightist" military officers who opposed the
Baathist takeover. In 1966 he "escaped" from prison and
Saddam's older cousin, General Ahmad Hassan al-Bakr,
appointed him deputy Secretary-General of the Baathists.
Saddam set up the Baathist internal party security system
known as the Jihaz Haneen. It was to serve as the vehicle
for his rise to power in Iraq. In 1968, another major
upheaval in Iraq gave Hussein the greatest opportunity for
further advancement; his mentor, Gen. Bakr and the Baathist
seized the government......
Saddam was appointed Deputy Chairman of the Revolutionary
Command Council and built the Iraqi secret police network.
On July 16, 1979, President Bakr resigned, officially due
to health problems, but in reality a victim of Hussein's
thirst for power.
Saddam called a major Baathist meeting on July 22, 1979,
where various family members and other Hussein devotees
urged that the party be "cleansed". Hussein then read a
list of names and asked that they step outside. Once there,
they were taken into custody.
A high-ranking member of the Revolutionary Command, the
head of the labor unions, the leading Shiite member of the
Command, and twenty others were then systematically and
personally killed by Hussein and his top party officials.
During the next few days, 450 other military officers,
deputy prime ministers, and "non-party faithful" were
rounded up and killed. This purge insured Hussein's
consolidation of power in Iraq.
efreedomnews.com
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..... Some years ago a European interviewer nervously
quoted reports that the Baghdad authorities might, on
occasions, have tortured and perhaps even killed opponents
of the regime. Was this true? Saddam was not offended.
Rather, he seemed surprised by the naivete of the
question. "Of course," he replied. "What do you expect if
they oppose the regime?" .....
news.bbc.co.uk |
