Saddam's trial divides Iraqi opinion

[JoFerret]

http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/BDE07C95-F791-49C3-A087-4569B9C68697.htm

....
I feel sorry that there are people willing to defend a person who committed crimes against humanity and genocide," al-Hakim said.

Voices of support

However, Baquba, the mixed Sunni and Shia Muslim city, witnessed several pro-Saddam demonstrations.

Although it was not branded as a pro-Saddam neighbourhood under his rule, the city has shown strong support for him after the occupation of Iraq last year.

It was reported that Saddam had hidden there for a considerable period of time before he moved to al-Dawr near his hometown Takrit where he was taken prisoner last December.

About 200 people guarded by masked men carrying machine guns and rocket-propelled grenade launchers demonstrated in support of their former president.

....
People inside Iraq have been confused whether to back the trial of a leader they say has let them down, or resent a trial they say is dominated by occupation authorities.

Abd al-Wahab al-Mumayaz, a London-based Iraqi businessman, told Aljazeera.net that Saddam’s execution may do more harm than good for Iraqis.

"I can say I am a victim of Saddam Hussein's era, but his execution will leave a deep scar in the body of Iraqi national unity."

<more>

[jean]

1. maybe someone will break him out of custody and bush can launch

a new war against terra - after all, Saddam on the loose would be a great threat to our national security!

[Must_B_Free]

2. Saddam Who

The aqctual leader of Iraq, or the boogey man created by the US as a boogey man to use.

They did the same thing to Noriega after he stopped working for them - remember they "discovered" is voodoo shrine and collection of kiddie porn?

Wikipedia reveals that Saddam was one of the western embracing progressive leaders of the arab world. Whether that absolute power he had eventually drove him crazy and led him to commit attrocities is another question. It is quite possible. But it seems that one can charge Bush with parallel crimes and even greater crimes than Saddam is accused of.

Saddam should be afforded every lame excuse that Bush used to hide his own crimes against humanity.