BAGHDAD, Dec. 27, 2006

Saddam To Iraqis: Don't Hate The Invaders

Web Site Message Issued In His Name Says Hate Closes Minds; Timing Of Execution Unsure

  • Video Saddam Faces Hanging Death

    Saddam Hussein has exhausted all of his appeals and faces a death sentence that could be carried out within one month. His death would mark the end of a 24-year regime. Randall Pinkston reports.

  • Video Iraq Troop Deaths Exceed 9/11

    Six U.S. soldiers were killed this morning, with troop deaths now surpassing the Sept. 11 death toll. Randall Pinkston reports that improvised explosive devices seem to be the weapon of choice.

    • An Iraqi reads a newspaper with the front page dedicated to news of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's death sentence appeal rejection in Baghdad, Iraq, on Dec. 27, 2006.

      An Iraqi reads a newspaper with the front page dedicated to news of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's death sentence appeal rejection in Baghdad, Iraq, on Dec. 27, 2006.  (AP Photo/Samir Mizban)

    • Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein yells at the court as the verdict is delivered during his trial Nov. 5, 2006.

      Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein yells at the court as the verdict is delivered during his trial Nov. 5, 2006.  (AP)

    Previous slide Next slide
  • Interactive Saddam's Judgment

    Background on the former Iraqi leader's alleged crimes, his life and capture, plus video and photos.

  • Photo Essay Saddam Verdict

    Saddam Hussein sentenced to hang after conviction for crimes against humanity.

  • Interactive Iraq: A Turning Point?

    New Congress, change at the Pentagon, study group report; what does the future hold?

(CBS/AP)  Saddam Hussein urged Iraqis to embrace "brotherly coexistence" and not to hate U.S.-led foreign troops in a goodbye letter posted on a Web site the day after Iraq's highest court upheld his death sentence and ordered him hanged within 30 days.

A top government official, meanwhile, said Saddam's execution could proceed without the approval of Iraq's president, meaning there were no more legal obstacles to sending the deposed dictator to the gallows.

One of Saddam's attorneys, Issam Ghazzawi, confirmed to The Associated Press in Jordan that the Internet letter posted on Wednesday was authentic, saying it was written by Saddam on Nov. 5 – the day he was convicted by an Iraqi tribunal for ordering the 1982 killings of 148 Shiite Muslims in Dujail.

"I call on you not to hate because hate does not leave space for a person to be fair and it makes you blind and closes all doors of thinking," said the letter, which was written in Arabic and translated by the AP.

"I also call on you not to hate the people of the other countries that attacked us," it added, referring to the invasion that toppled his regime nearly four years ago.

Against the backdrop of sectarian killings that have dragged Sunni Arabs and Shiite Muslims into civil warfare over the past year, Saddam urged his countrymen to "remember that God has enabled you to become an example of love, forgiveness and brotherly coexistence."

But he also voiced support for the Sunni Arab-dominated insurgency, saying: "Long live jihad and the mujahedeen." He urged Iraqis to be patient and rely on God's help in fighting "against the unjust nations."

Saddam said he was giving his life for his country as part of that struggle. "Here, I offer my soul to God as a sacrifice, and if he wants, he will send it to heaven with the martyrs," he said.

Despite his calls for conciliation among Iraqis, Saddam's legacy is brutal. He put suspected foes to death without trial, oppressed Kurds and Shiites, waged war on Iran and twice fought U.S.-led armies. He left an impoverished nation now gripped by sectarian bloodshed and an insurgency against the U.S. presence.

In other developments:

  • Two soldiers and a Marine died in separate incidents across Iraq, the U.S. military said Wednesday. The Marine, assigned to Regimental Combat Team 5, died Wednesday from wounds sustained from combat in Iraq's western Anbar province. One of the soldiers, part of the 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary), died Dec. 23 from a non-combat injury. The other died from injuries sustained in a vehicle rollover on Tuesday.

  • CBS News correspondent Cami McCormick reports the top U.S. military spokesman in Iraq gave a gloomy assessment of the war on Wednesday. "There are still significant shortcomings in the ISF. Iraqi forces suffer from deficiencies in logistics, leadership, and in some cases, loyalty," said Maj. Gen. William Caldwell, according to a transcript provided by the military. "Significant challenges remain, and violence is likely to remain at unacceptably high levels in the near term."

  • President Bush meets Thursday about Iraq with his National Security Council. They'll be joined at the president's ranch by Vice President Cheney, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Defense Secretary Robert Gates, and others, reports CBS News White House correspondent Mark Knoller.

  • The Pentagon announced that the 2nd Brigade of the 82nd Airborne Division will be deployed from Fort Bragg to Kuwait to serve support U.S. forces in Iraq. Roughly 3,500 troops from the brigade will be deployed in "early January 2007," according to a Pentagon statement.

  • A top aide to anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr was killed in a raid by U.S. troops Wednesday in the Shiite holy city of Najaf, an Iraqi lawmaker said. The U.S. military, however, said American troops participated in a raid led by Iraqi forces that led to the death of a man with the same name as the aide, Sahib al-Amiri. The military described al-Amiri as a criminal involved in the use of roadside bombs.

  • A car bomb killed eight people near an Iraqi army checkpoint in eastern Baghdad on Wednesday, police said. They said all of the dead were civilians. Ten people were wounded.

    Continued



    ©MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
    Add a Comment See all 106 Comments
    by missamerica4 December 30, 2006 12:46 PM EST
    Do you understand that you are parroting Demo talking points.
    We did NOT PUT SADDAM IN POWER.
    Saddam was well on his way to power...without us.
    Yes in the on going battle against Communism we did help Saddam, as did many other countries.

    ""We spoon fed him arms and money to finance his war with Iran. We also armed and financed the Taliban to keep Russia out of Afghanistan""

    Yes we did. In the fight against world domination of communism we have helped many unsavory characters, in some cases it is a matter of evil and a little less evil.
    All in all.....your free , are you not? So somebody ..so far..... has made some difficult but right choices. It is really to bad that all in this world is not as simple as you would like..but maybe we can tidy it up for you...
    Of course you are the one with the crystal ball, and the expert judgment...maybe you will run things for us....
    Errrr... after you balance your checkbook and figure out how to set the time on the DVD player.
    Reply to this comment
    by notoole December 30, 2006 2:55 AM EST
    yep as i expected before i started reading through these comments... ITS BUSH's FAULT what a very disrespectful habbit
    Reply to this comment
    by kaiyo4u December 30, 2006 2:33 AM EST
    missAmerica4:
    Do you understand we put Hussein into power?
    We spoon fed him arms and money to finance his war with Iran. We also armed and financed the Taliban to keep Russia out of Afghanistan.
    So much rhetoric and so little truth...
    Pipeline deals in both countries currently...
    With all our wealth, we needn't depend on oil to power this nation. Once there is no dependency, the people "over there" will go back to cutting each others' throats, not ours.
    Reply to this comment
    by kaiyo4u December 30, 2006 2:28 AM EST
    For you bleeding hearts out there:
    Do what the high school kid did in the early seventies if you really want to change things.
    You remember the kid who burned the flag in Ohio in the early '70's?
    He was looking up federal laws for a class report and with what he found, he burned the flag. As he legally had right to do so.
    Find those early Federal Codes (which were written so they could not be changed) which are the cornerstones of our laws and you just might find a way to change things. Otherwise, quit your b**chen... They have to do with priviledge and Treason among other things....
    Reply to this comment
    by dmorg4 December 29, 2006 3:30 PM EST
    This war was unjust we had no right to go in
    there and take over this other country
    bush should be impeached without delay
    someday God kingdom will come and then and only
    then will there be peace
    Reply to this comment
    by missamerica4 December 29, 2006 2:26 PM EST
    mh4cbs

    If you insist on using my word 'sheeple' use it right. You are the sheeple, dumb libs who can't find their b;TT with both hands.

    "" DEATH and DESTRUCTION ""

    All wars are death and destruction idiot. If you were ever in one you would know that. History should teach you there are no war where they sit around singing kum-ba-ya.

    ""Such disregard for FACTS""

    Oh God, where do I start ?
    Here are some 'facts' for you that YOU have disregarded.
    --- The Iraq Liberation Act
    October 31, 1998
    http://www.library.cornell.edu/colldev/mideast/libera.htm

    --- ESTABLISHING A PROGRAM TO SUPPORT A TRANSITION TO DEMOCRACY IN IRAQ (Senate - October 07, 1998)
    http://www.fas.org/irp/congress/1998_cr/s981007-iraq.htm

    --- UN RESOLUTION 687 (1991)
    http://www.fas.org/news/un/iraq/sres/sres0687.htm

    go away and learn something
    Reply to this comment
    by missamerica4 December 29, 2006 2:09 PM EST
    clestes:
    ""It is our disgrace "

    Nope, YOU are our disgrace. Hard to believe there are still people as ignorant as you.
    Obviously English is not your first language so feel free to go back where you came from.

    ""Saddam's crimes were, and are NONE OF US BUSINESS.""

    Us Business ??
    I won't bother to explain the chain of events treaties and Resolutions that made it OUR business, To much for you to follow.

    ""George Bush is no different than Saddam ""

    Oh ***, did I miss seeing the 'mass graves'filled with American's who ran afoul of Bush and his bloody daughters? I missed the shredders ?...OH NO ! I missed the rapes...***.

    I wish you could have spent some time in Saddams Iraq. You deserve it. I would even pay for the ticket. Who knows Uday may fancy you.
    I think it's to late for you to spend time with Saddamn, but maybe we can work out something with
    Kim jung, or one of the other dictators, Mugbe maybe. Maybe then you would see a difference.

    ""He has ordered the death of hundreds of thousands of innocent people. He has hide behind position of "president"

    LOL...you are one stupid butch.


    Reply to this comment
    by clestes-2009 December 29, 2006 12:15 PM EST
    Saddam's crimes were, and are NONE OF US BUSINESS. By what right does dubya think he can decide who lives and who dies. Isn't that the same thing Saddam did? Make imperial decisions (remember the decider) about life and death.

    George Bush is no different than Saddam and deserves to hang along side him. He invaded Iraq for monetary reasons, just like Saddam invaded Kuit. He has ordered the death of hundreds of thousands of innocent people. He has hide behind position of "president" and used that position for personal gain.

    He is a common murderer and deserves the same fate. It is our disgrace that this criminal continues to wage war on false pretences and continues to kill wantonly.
    Reply to this comment
    by mh4cbs1 December 29, 2006 9:57 AM EST
    Hermit22:

    You ignore the FACT that BUSH agression and violence has KILLED MORE innocent civillians than Saddam and Osama COMBINED.

    Why are BUSH War Crimes less of a concern to you? You, like so many American Sheeple, have been led by the nose by our media to ignore the FACTS about why we are now fighting a NEEDLESS WAR of DEATH and DESTRUCTION in Iraq. Tiy need to read books by so many Republican CIA, Weapon Inspectors and former administration officials. Do you even know that Larry Wilkerson, chief of staff to Colin Powell, called the pre-War "intelligence" a hoax?

    Saddam was (even back when he was one of our many US-friendly brutal dictators) a violent despotic ruler. But why are you not concerned about the vilolent agressive ruler of your OWN NATION.

    Such penchant for WAR will lead to endless WAR. Such disregard for FACTS enables OUR corporate rulers to continue to exploit and abuse the people of the world, including our own middleclass and poor, for their own power and profit.
    Reply to this comment
    by hermit22 December 29, 2006 9:47 AM EST
    CBS needs to check out the PBS news on the thousands of people each week, who are offering to pull the lever on the butcher of baghdad!

    CBS needs to check out the man who said there is not one family in Iraq that hasn't had a funneral because of Saddam.

    Saddam droning on about "brotherly coexistence" etc. is like the fox's pep talk before the raid on the chicken coop. a joke.

    American translators should be careful to use the name "Allah" rather than God.Does he think his soul is a "sacrifice" to Allah, BECAUSE he killed so many people?Is he twisted so he thinks he is going to heaven BECAUSE he killed so many?What kind of a god did he worship?Was he his own god?

    When it came to duke ing it out with Saddam, both Clinton and Ford said: "Let George do it."
    and he dun it! God bless George!
    Reply to this comment
    by kjgal December 28, 2006 6:08 PM EST
    HumanCitizen
    Why is there so much hate in your heart? I will be praying for you.
    Reply to this comment
    by darkfyreaol December 28, 2006 4:33 PM EST
    Newster1: When one is hanged, it is intended for the neck to break, certainly. Though it is not always the case. In rare occasions the spine/neck doesn't snap, and the prisoner dies of strangulation/lack of blood flow to the brain. I'm sure the throat could be crushed as well in certain instances, and he/she would drown in their own blood.

    Death by hanging isn't always quick, and can sometimes be messy.
    Reply to this comment
    by darkfyreaol December 28, 2006 4:27 PM EST
    I believe the translation is accurate, minus the details of 'God' and 'Allah'.

    For one, it would serve our purpose if the message were to be one of general peace.

    It would serve his purpose as well, to be remembered as one who gave a message of peace in his final days.

    Whether the message was altered or not, anything remotely resembling a call for all-out war against the infidels would destroy the situation in Iraq.
    Reply to this comment
    by nothappyatall December 28, 2006 3:56 PM EST
    I don't buy his letter's translation, it was written in arabic and so far no actual copies have appeared and if it does who here can READ arabic? do we trust the Us Govt to provide an ACCURATE translation?
    He would say he gives himself over to ALLAH not "god" if the translation was accurate.
    Reply to this comment
    by nothappyatall December 28, 2006 3:54 PM EST
    clestes you've watched too many movies, when you are hung your neck is broken, you are dead and unconscious, any "kicking" is similar to turkeys when their heads are cut off, besdies, who cares! the guy gassed hundreds of people, I think they should do to him what they do to conscious live dogs in some countries over there- burn the skin off with a blowtorch.
    Reply to this comment
    by clestes-2009 December 28, 2006 12:34 PM EST
    What a disgusting sight to be sure. Saddam kicking on the end of a rope. I think some of the families of his murdered victims should be allowed to see him hang. Other than that, why would anyone want to see it?? Sounds perfectly gross to me!
    Reply to this comment
    by patriotic9 December 28, 2006 12:23 PM EST
    HumanCitizen
    Just wondering,are you Michael Savage?You sound like him.Dude you can compete with Bush in INSANITY.
    Reply to this comment
    by mh4cbs1 December 28, 2006 11:43 AM EST
    So Called HumanCitizen:

    Spoken like a true conservative. Thanks for sharing your insight and compassion.
    Reply to this comment
    by December 28, 2006 7:20 AM EST
    j2thek wrote:

    "On the contrary, visiting these sites has convinced me that we are facing a modern Crusade, and Europe has already fallen. It%u2019s too late for freedom to be saved on the Old Continent...Join me at antijihadmilitia.blogspot.com."

    Why? Is that where all the dangerous freako nut jobs hang out?

    Dude - you are an idiot. Do everyone a favor - end your own life.
    Reply to this comment
    by kjgal December 28, 2006 3:54 AM EST
    Like I said, God is perfect, We are not. He didn't make US to be perfect, He made us think for ourselves. If he had made us to be perfect, we would all be like HIM. He gave us the right to choose in what we want to believe. He wants us to know that with all the destruction that goes on in this world, we still have salvation. That's what Jesus died for. That's what I have been taught and believe. He gives us a CHOICE. And no matter what happens, I Choose HIM! I would love to believe that we could all live in peace an harmony, but that's not realistic. I know that when I'm done here on this earth, there is a much better place for me. I don't hate anybody. I hate what is happening in the world, but I know it wasn't born in us, it was taught. Not by God, by HUMAN. And not everybody feels the way I do, because God gave us the right to choose.
    Reply to this comment
    See all 106 Comments
  • 60 Minutes

    The secrets of tennis legend Andre Agassi; the growing threat of cyber wars; and more.
    Read More

    Latest News
    News in Pictures
    Scroll Left Scroll Right
    • Celebrity Circuit Celebrity Circuit

      Jimmy Fallon, Robert De Niro, Alicia Keys, Eva Longoria Parker, Jon Voight, Tom Hanks and More

    • The Fall Of The Berlin Wall The Fall Of The Berlin Wall

      Looking Back at the Wall that Once Divided Germany On the 20th Anniversary of Its Collapse

    • Patricia Clarkson Patricia Clarkson

      Television and Film Actress, Yale School of Drama Graduate and Academy Award Nominee

    • Day in Pictures Day in Pictures

      A Glimpse at the Day's News as Seen Through a Camera Lens

    • Andre Agassi Andre Agassi

      Former Top-Seeded Tennis Star, Gossip Column Favorite and Philanthropist

    • Yankees Victory Parade Yankees Victory Parade

      The Yankees Celebrate Their 27th World Series Championship with a Ticker-Tape Parade Up Broadway

    Connect with CBS News

    Stay connected with the CBS News using your favorite social networks and online news applications: