Saddam Hussein by Efraim Karsh

Author:Efraim Karsh
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780802199546
Publisher: Grove/Atlantic, Inc.

Saddam's pragmatic maneuvering was sufficient for rallying the international community behind the Iraqi war effort. However, in his struggle to survive the window of extreme personal vulnerability to which he was exposed following Iraq's “voluntary withdrawal” from Iran in June 1982, Hussein had to exploit to the full his resourceful ruthlessness. In an attempt to inexorably implicate the Iraqi leadership in his policy, he took the unprecedented step of convening an extraordinary joint meeting of the RCC, the Regional and National Commands of the Baʿth, and the Military Command in his absence, which pleaded with Iran for a ceasefire.35 The predictably dismissive Iranian response provided a fresh reminder, if such were needed, of the fate awaiting the entire Iraqi leadership in the event of an Iranian victory. Yet Hussein did not trust his associates, even under these extreme circumstances. During the Ninth Regional Congress of the Baʿth Party, convened in late June 1982 after a lapse of eight years to reconfirm Hussein's absolute control over the Party and state, he reshuffled the country's major power centers. Eight of the 16 members of the RCC were removed, and seven of them also lost their seats at the Party's Regional Command. The cabinet was similarly purged, with eight ministers being replaced. The most symbolic change was the dismissal of General Saʿdun Ghaydan, the last of the officers who brought the Baʿth to power in 1968, both from the RCC and the cabinet.36

Interestingly enough, these reshuffles were not accompanied by the customary manifestations of violence. None of the victims was jailed or executed, and many of them were compensated by handsome positions outside the government. The only exception was the ill-fated Minister of Health, Riyadh Ibrahim Hussein, who was executed in the summer of 1982. The government claimed that the Minister was executed for profiteering from distributing tainted medicine. But the popular view in Baghdad was that the Minister paid the ultimate price for saying the unsayable. During a cabinet meeting he reportedly suggested that Saddam Hussein step down temporarily in favor of Ahmad Hasan al-Bakr, in order to pave the way to a negotiated cease-fire. The Iraqi President, the story goes, showed no sign of irritation at this heretical idea. “Let us go to the other room and discuss the matter further,” he suggested. The minister agreed and the two left the room. A moment later, a shot was heard, and Hussein returned alone to the cabinet as though nothing had happened. The question of his resignation did not come up again.37

Whether or not Hussein personally executed the Health Minister, the incident certainly reinforced one of the major components of his personality cult—his alacrity with the gun. In the highly macho Iraqi society, lack of military training or experience is a serious liability for would-be leaders. To overcome this persistent gap in his career and to build up his manly credentials, Hussein has skillfully nurtured the popular myth of his perfect mastery of the pistol and his unwavering readiness to put it to use.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.