Saddam Hussein Executed

Former Iraqi Dictator Hanged; U.S. Forces On High Alert For Surge In Violence

(CBS/AP)  Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein was executed by hanging after three years in U.S. custody, CBS News has confirmed. He died before dawn Saturday in Iraq, which was just before 10 p.m. Friday EST.

Saddam was convicted of murder in the killings of 148 Shiite Muslims from an Iraqi town where assassins tried to kill Saddam in 1982.

Clutching a Quran and refusing a hood, Saddam Hussein went to the gallows before sunrise, executed by vengeful countrymen after a quarter-century of remorseless brutality that killed countless thousands and led Iraq into disastrous wars against the United States and Iran.

In Baghdad's Shiite enclave of Sadr City, people danced in the streets while others fired guns in the air to celebrate the former dictator's death. The government did not impose a round-the-clock curfew as it did last month when Saddam was convicted to thwart any surge in retaliatory violence.

Ali Hamza, a 30-year-old university professor, said he went outside to shoot his gun into the air after he heard the news.

"Now all the victims' families will be happy because Saddam got his just sentence," said Hamza, who lives in Diwaniyah, a Shiite town 80 miles south of Baghdad.

"We are looking for a new page of history despite the tragedy of the past," said Saif Ibrahim, a 26-year-old Baghdad resident.

But people in the Sunni-dominated city of Tikrit, once a power base of Saddam, lamented his death.

"The president, the leader Saddam Hussein is a martyr and God will put him along with other martyrs. Do not be sad nor complain because he has died the death of a holy warrior," said Sheik Yahya al-Attawi, a cleric at the Saddam Big Mosque.

It was a grim end for the 69-year-old leader who had vexed three U.S. presidents. Despite his ouster, Washington, its allies and the new Iraqi leaders remain mired in a fight to quell a stubborn insurgency by Saddam loyalists and a vicious sectarian conflict.

CBS News correspondent Randall Pinskton confirmed Saddam's death from his defense attorney. It had been reported by Arab television stations in Iraq.

On his last night alive, Saddam sat alone on death row with his Koran, the Muslim holy book, Pinkston reports. As his time waned, Saddam received two of his half brothers in his cell and was said to have given them his personal belongings and a copy of his will.

The execution took place during the year's deadliest month for U.S. troops, with the toll reaching 108.

State-run Iraqiya television initially reported that Saddam's half-brother Barzan Ibrahim and Awad Hamed al-Bandar, the former chief justice of the Revolutionary Court, also were hanged. However, three officials later said only Saddam was executed.

"We wanted him to be executed on a special day," National Security adviser Mouwafak al-Rubaie told state-run Iraqiyah.

The Pentagon said that U.S. fighting forces in Iraq are ready for any escalation of violence there.

"U.S. forces in Iraq are obviously at a high state of alert anytime because of the environment that they operate in and because of the current security situation," said spokesman Bryan Whitman.

A statement from President Bush issued by the White House Friday night acknowledged Saddam's execution, calling it "the kind of justice he denied the victims of his brutal regime."

"Bringing Saddam Hussein to justice will not end the violence in Iraq, but it is an important milestone on Iraq's course to becoming a democracy that can govern, sustain, and defend itself, and be an ally in the War on Terror," the statement said.

CBS News national security correspondent David Martin reports that until being turned over to Iraqi control, Saddam remained in a jail cell in U.S. custody. The U.S. military had been prepared since early Friday morning to hand over Saddam to the Iraqi government, which wanted to execute the deposed dictator as soon as possible.

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Lara Logan reports on Saddam's legacy
Watch CBS News' special report on Saddam's death
The downfall of a dictator

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Anticipation built around Saddam's hanging after an advisor to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said it would happen some time before 6:00 a.m. Baghdad time. Official witnesses to the execution gathered in Baghdad's fortified Green Zone in final preparation for his hanging, as state television broadcast footage of his regime's atrocities.

The Iraqi government had readied all the necessary documents, including a "red card" — an execution order introduced during Saddam's dictatorship.

Saddam had been in U.S. custody since he was captured in December 2003.

A member of Saddam's legal team said U.S. authorities were maintaining physical custody of Saddam to prevent him from being humiliated before his execution. He said the Americans also want to prevent the mutilation of his corpse, something that has happened to other deposed Iraqi leaders.

"The Americans want him to be hanged respectfully," al-Nueimi said. "If Saddam is humiliated publicly or his corpse ill-treated," it could cause an uprising and the Americans would be blamed, he said.

Mariam al-Rayes, a legal expert and a former member of the Shiite bloc in parliament, told Iraqiya television that the execution "was filmed and God willing it will be shown. There was one camera present, and a doctor was also present there."

Al-Rayes, an ally of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, did not attend the execution. She said Al-Maliki did not attend but was represented by an aide.

Najeeb al-Nueimi, a member of Saddam's legal team in Qatar said he had requested a final meeting with the deposed Iraqi leader. "His daughter in Amman was crying, she said, 'Take me with you,'" al-Nueimi said late Friday.

Leading up to the execution, there was a religious issue that complicated the timing. The Muslim holy period of Eid begins this weekend, and there is some question whether Iraqi law permits a Muslim to be executed on a holy day. Martin reports that the Iraqi government reportedly consulted Muslim clerics.

Munir Haddad, a judge on the appeals court that upheld Saddam's death sentence, said he was ready to attend the hanging and that all the paperwork was in order, including the red card.

"All the measures have been done," Haddad said.

In the United States, just more than an hour before Saddam was executed, a judge rejected a request by his lawyers to delay the Iraqi leader's execution.

The attorneys had sought an emergency restraining order from a federal court in Washington to block Saddam's handover to Iraqi control. Earlier, a similar request made on behalf of Saddam's former chief justice was rejected by an appeals court. An appeal of the latest ruling is possible, but it's unclear if that will happen.

Saddam's lawyers issued a statement Friday calling on "everybody to do everything to stop this unfair execution." The statement also said the former president had been at the time transferred from U.S. custody, though American and Iraqi officials later denied that.

[drudge2]

So Mr. Bush will get his revenge.
I think Mr. Bush should ask Saddam how he managed to keep Al Qaeda out of Iraq.

[azman80]

Ok. I know that Saddam might actually be the devils brother, and I'm not a supporter of this man, but is what we are doing with him legal?? We go and rip out his government, hold him in our custody and give him back to the new U.S funded iraqi government that hasnt been in power for a long long time (kurds). He's being executed for killing kurds. They were enemies. The U.S knows that, so should we be partly liable for creating a bigger mess knowingly?? Just curious thats all.

[azman80]

When he does get executed! ( sorry, forgot to add that in on the last post )

[stompa1]

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED WITHIN 36 HOURS! VISUALIZE THAT!

[patriotic9]

singinrick
I agree with you.Saddam is both good and evil.Anybody whose Foreing Minister was a RADICAL CHRISTIAN is EVIL.Anybody who is nice with CHRISTIAN PSYCHOTICS is EVIL.Nobody was more privilaged at the time of SADDAM then Iraqi CHRISTIANS known as CALDIANS since he had no fear of power as he knew that in a MUSLIM COUNTRY nobody would like to see a CHRISTIAN PRESIDENT.
But at the same time he was good too.He was good because he killed his own people who were RADICAL MUSLIMS who wanted to establish a RADICAL EXTREMIST ISLAMIC STATE under the RELIGIOUS VERDICT of those AYATOLLAHs who call USA "The GREATEST SATAN".He was good because he made it mandatory for all the men and women to go to school and get education.He was good because he was fighting US war in his country against RADICAL ISLAMIST.I know whatever I say you won't understand it.When your GOD is incapable of understanding things and making right decisions accordingly,when your GOD has CHOSEN those who deny his SON "JESUS" as MESSIAH and his mother's "VIRGINITY" and accuse her of comiting fornication,and NEGLECTED those who believe in JESUS as MESSIAH and SON of GOD and believe in his mother's virginity,if you want to think that SADDAM was harboring those TERRORISTS who were his worst enemies ,I don't blame you.CHRISTIANITY is PSYCHOSIS and CHRISTIANS are PSYCHOTICS.

[nyckate]

To Drudge2 - I agree - for us right now the most important question to ask Saddam is how the heck he kept AQ out of his part of Iraq. Important to note that our so-called 'friends' the Kurds allowed AQ in and assisted them and permitted AQ training camps.

As for vengence, well as the good Lord put it, vengence is mine, sayeth the Lord. I do think Bush is probably hoping for a spike upwards of his approval ratings when Saddam is executed and there might be some Americans still dumb enough to give it to him but I'd say that Bush has already lost the confidence of much of America and most of the world.

[eyeneeda]

I am putting a jihad on Saddam...and I'm taking his virgins for myself.

Hang him high and let him swing!

[bildooreilly]

It's not even the real saddam, go compare photos of the old saddam to this new actor guy that they gave the mock trial and whose death they're getting ready to fake....

It's amazing how people just accept that this phony is Saddam Hussein without doing a little research and homework on their own. This government of ours has lied about everything else, what makes you think they're telling the truth about this? Fact is the real Saddam (their old employee) is probably alive and well in Belarus.

[exyahootroll]

Anyone taking bets on whether his neck breaks? Oh man, I can't wait for the video to come out!

[processor2]

patriotic9

is proof that liberlism is a mental disorder

[bildooreilly]

azman, all religions are extremely violent, including the atheistic religion as displayed in commie russia. Fact is people let their phony leaders whether they be preachers or mullahs, or commies, or politicians deceive you into doing what they want you to do. When people finally grow up enough to lead themselves instead of relying on some fake leaders to lead them then maybe the world will be a less violent place.

[trueprogress]

ATTENTION KIDS IN COLLEGE

If anything, our experience in Iraq and the Arab world in general, although sugar coated still by the media, should tell us :

1. All cultures are not the same . Ours is better. Way better.
2. "Who are we to judge ?" Is a stupid thing to say. We had better. Moral Idiots !

3. "You can't generalize." Is a generalizations which is also a moral lidiotic statement. You can not go through life and make any meaningful decisions without generalizations, from "Ties are ususally more expensive at Nordstroms than Costco, to Japanese women are thinner than Eskimos women, To Islamic religion teachings are more violent than Christrian teachings.

[exyahootroll]

"Although Saddam is a very evil man. I hate to see anyone die."

I hate to see INNOCENT people die. That's why I I'll be whistling while he is swinging.

Being compassionate toward evil men make dead men of us all.

[stompa1]

Dear singinrick:

You are a very funny person. I bet you believe 9/11 was caused by our government. I also bet you believe in the tooth fairy :o)

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED WITHIN THE NEXT 36 HOURS! VISUALIZE THAT!

[trueprogress]

Let's get tough as a nation. Have we become feminized ?

Even our CBS evening news has an "icky pooh" anchor.

[trueprogress]

Saddam = Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot, and the others who hide behind leaders to "follow orders". Burn in Hell.

[trueprogress]

HumanCitizen is right on. Have the rest of you feminized Graduate students read any history at all ?


I suspecte you are moal idiots.

[bildooreilly]

Singin Rick you have a point there about not letting men lead you around, and I agree with you that you should look inside yourself for leadership. As far as God and Jesus and the Bible goes religion was invented by man, the bible is based upon astrology, astronomy, the zodiac, and egyptian/babylonian/sumerian and greek myths. Dec. 25th was originally the Rebirth Of The Sun, it marks the day the SUN starts heading back towards the northern hemisphere after winter solstice. Now days will start getting longer here until summer solstice comes and the Sun Of God starts heading back south a little more everyday until it's fall and winter.

The entire bible is based upon things like this, Jesus was based upon the mythos of Horus, Osiris, Dionysus and many many more... I could go on about this forever and I have done my homework. For instance when you say "AMEN" this refers to the ancient egyptian SUN god AMEN RA... So don't give me any of your religious crapola, I'm a FORMER christian myself. I'm not an atheist, I don't hate the bible, I think it's a great book if you know how to read it. The SUN of God LIGHTS my way haha.

[stompa1]

I'm sorry singinrick - my post should have been directed to bildooreilly:

Dear bildooreilly:

You are a very funny person. I bet you believe 9/11 was caused by our government. I also bet you believe in the tooth fairy :o)

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED WITHIN THE NEXT 36 HOURS! VISUALIZE THAT!
Posted by Stompa1 at 11:47 AM : Dec 29, 2006

[stompa1]

LATEST BULLETIN:

An Iraqi judge says Saddam Hussein will be executed by tomorrow, at the latest.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED SOON! VISUALIZE THAT!

[rharrin1]

singinrick

Why did you only serve a couple of years in the marines?

[bildooreilly]

Well Stompa1, as far as 9-11 goes, just go look at the standard footage and tell me where this magical force is coming from to propel the debris UPWARDS AND OUTWARDS IN AN ARCH when those towers "FALL." Where did this magical energy come from??? Why do those buildings go up like a Volcano spewing upwards and outwards when they supposably fell???

[stompa1]

Dear humancitizen:

Why don't you tell us what you really thing?

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED SOON! VISUALIZE THAT!

[stompa1]

Mr. bildooreilly:

That theory has been dispelled by engineers around the world. Besides, our government couldn't even cover-up a chick leading one of the scum bags around by a rope at Abu Graib so how in the world do you think they could keep something like 9/11 underwraps if they were responsible. That is plain nuts!

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED VERY SOON! VISULIZE THAT!

[bildooreilly]

Singin rick you believe in a delusion called religion that was made by men to control man. If there is a god he created all things GOOD AND BAD, and this is the real god of the bible as it says in Isaiah 45:7
"'I form the light, and create darkness; I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things'"

If there's a god it's probably more as they portray him in the secret societies and other esoteric cults as the great architect of the universe.

[stompa1]

LAWYERS SAY SADDAM IS NO LONGER IN U.S. CUSTODY; IRAQI JUDGE SAYS FORMER DICTATOR WILL BE EXECUTED BY SATURDAY

[bildooreilly]

Hey Stompa1, you still didn't tell me where this magical energy that propels the debris UPWARDS AND OUTWARDS IN AN ARCH when those buildings "FELL" came from.... you're just a follower not a leader, you just believe whatever they want to tell you instead of looking at how things actually happened. So go be their punk, but don't expect everyone else to get in line with you.

[gslinger3]

Thank You to our great military, and to their great leader President George W Bush for finally outting an end to Saddam Husseins rein or Terror!

Great Job!

Happy New Year!!!!!

[bluestardad]

Now we should hand over bush and his buddies too!

[gslinger3]

"Kuuum-byyy-YAAAAHHH singinrick, you're a stupid pu$$y! A hampster could kick your a$$. What was your pal jesus thinking when he got a look at the millions of people who suffered, and were tortured and murdered in hideous and cruel ways down through the ages since his little resurrection party?? Take your jesus and god *** and SCRAM to the born again onliners forum where someone cares about your 43 IQ stupidity and support inbreeding like you."

May to Lord God have mercy on this poor humans soul.

[rharrin1]

singinrick

You never served active duty?

[stompa1]

Mr. humancitizen:

I would be very careful going outside if lightening is anywhere closeby.

Just my humble opion.

[bildooreilly]

Didn't Rumsfeld give him those WMDs that he killed all of those kurds with? Hell yes he did, our country even supplied the helicopters they used to gas those kurds with... Those kurds commit terrorist acts in turkey by the way like blowing up passenger trains and are known as terrorists there. Even our own state department had kurdish groups listed as known terrorist groups in Canada, so why is our government supporting even more terrorists now with our tax money? This *** never ends, I say tell the world to get screwed and close up the borders...

[childofgod28]

Wow, look at all the immature people on this bored except for Singinrick and Stompa cussing up a storm, really mature people. There are allot of angry people on here because of what? A poor man that is going to die Sunday without Christ in his life? A poor lost soul that dosen't know better because he is lost... Oh and you guys cussing on here are obviously lost to get so angry and resort to rude comments and cussing...I will pray for all of you... oh and go ahead and cuss me out too, or tell me to go to my mommas house, because thats what lost immature people do, so go ahead and rip on me, it won't hurt me or upset me...

[stompa1]

humancitzen wrote -

One war criminal down, NOW, let's impeach Bush, convict him of the global war crimes he is guilty of, and hang his ridiculous a$$ over saddams grave and bury them together.

Sir:

You are one sick puppy!

W is still our President!

[stompa1]

Dear humancitizen:

That may be difficult as both my parent passed away when my brother and sister and I were small. But I still contend you are "one sick puppy".

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED VERY SOON! VISUALIZE THAT!

[processor2]

To all liberals upset over the eminent execution of Saddam Hussein:

I KNOW HOW TO MAKE YOU FEEL BETTER

Don't consider this an execution,,,, instead,,,, just,,,, "visualize",,,, that Saddam Hussein is a baby, and the only thing Iraq is going to do is perform a late-term abortion.

That should ease your liberal conciousness.

.................................

[obiwan234]

It cannot happen too soon. As for all you pot smoking hippy, Bush hating, left-wing wimps, GET OVER IT.

Gosh, how do you all get through the day with such hatred in your hearts. President Bush is simply a reflection of the times. He isn't an evil person, he's just cleaning up the Left's $hit left from years and years of mismanagement in Washington. No, he isn't perfect or always correct. But he is the man in charge, so get over it. Maybe next time the Left will get their chance to screw things up really well, like they have done for years.

[bildooreilly]

It's not even the real Saddam, this guy is an actor. Fact is they HAD To put an ACTOR on trial, a Saddumb fake or else he would have talked way too much about his relationship with the united states and career traitors like donald rumsfeld. So now we get the mock trial and fake execution tv show while the real saddam is alive and well in a foreign country living on US Taxpayer money just like he ALWAYS HAS. Go look at some pics of the old saddam and the NEW saddam... they're not even close to being the same person. All of you fools just keep on believing everything you see on television, you know billdo is closer to the truth than most of you even want to consider.

[bildooreilly]

oh yeah singin rick, I'm trying to oppress you by telling you where your bibble came from... enjoy your fantasy world. Christianity is an Egyptian religion...

AMEN RA

[patriotic9]

singinrick
Why that one true GOD has CHOSEN those who deny JESUS as MESSIAH and HIS SON and DENY his MOTHER'S VIRGINITY whereas NEGLECTED those who believe in JESUS as MESSIAH and SON OF GOD and believe in his mother's VIRGINIVTY?Why that GOD if he really exist was seeing those AMERICANS DYING in WORLD TRADE CENTER whose TAX MONEY was going to help those about who GOD had said in the BIBLE
"God bless those who bless ISRAEL"
"God curse those who CURSE ISRAEL"
In Saudi Arabia,it is taught in the Elementary schools that jews are PIGS and APES.Why those SAUDIs are blessed with so much of PETRO DOLLARS.Why Iraqi invasion has resulted in INCREASED OIL PRICES as a direct result of increase in OIL DEMAND and INSTABILITY in the region which makes these JEW HATING ARABS further rich so they can invest even more money in ANTI AMERICAN INSURGENCY.On the other side,why our NATIONAL DEBT has reached $ 3 Trillions,why we were attacked and our citizens were killed if GOD really exist and BIBLE is the BOOK of GOD.

[childofgod28]

HALLELUYAH!! Child-o-GOD is here!! Yeah!!! Another moronic Jesus freak!
Posted by humancitizen at 12:14 PM : Dec 29, 2006

Thank you humancitizen for the warm welcome, I love being called a Jesus Freak, that is a compliment to me, and I will put you on my list for people I need to pray for... God Bless you.

[stompa1]

humancitizen (that's a laugh):

Good grief! Now you are into beastality. How did this posting go from Saddam to KY and goats?


Back on track -

LAWYERS SAY SADDAM IS NO LONGER IN U.S. CUSTODY; IRAQI JUDGE SAYS FORMER DICTATOR WILL BE EXECUTED BY SATURDAY

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED VERY SOON! VISUALIZE THAT!

[childofgod28]

Why that one true GOD has CHOSEN those who deny JESUS as MESSIAH and HIS SON and DENY his MOTHER'S VIRGINITY whereas NEGLECTED those who believe in JESUS as MESSIAH and SON OF GOD and believe in his mother's VIRGINIVTY?Why that GOD if he really exist was seeing those AMERICANS DYING in WORLD TRADE CENTER whose TAX MONEY was going to help those about who GOD had said in the BIBLE
"God bless those who bless ISRAEL"
"God curse those who CURSE ISRAEL"
In Saudi Arabia,it is taught in the Elementary schools that jews are PIGS and APES.Why those SAUDIs are blessed with so much of PETRO DOLLARS.Why Iraqi invasion has resulted in INCREASED OIL PRICES as a direct result of increase in OIL DEMAND and INSTABILITY in the region which makes these JEW HATING ARABS further rich so they can invest even more money in ANTI AMERICAN INSURGENCY.On the other side,why our NATIONAL DEBT has reached $ 3 Trillions,why we were attacked and our citizens were killed if GOD really exist and BIBLE is the BOOK of GOD.
Posted by patriotic9 at 12:18 PM : Dec 29, 2006

Patriotic9, if you read the book of Revelations in the Bible it will answer all of your questions... The world is hateful these days because we are in the days of the end... There is more crime and hate out there right now then there ever was, its because we are close to the end...

[rharrin1]

singinrick

You talk the talk just wanted to know if you walked the walk, just curious.

[bildooreilly]

Didn't Saddam have like 10 BODY DOUBLES???? Now they're giving one a fake trial and mock execution and you retards are eating it up... If you go and look at a bunch of old pictures of the old Saddam and compare them to this new ACTOR you'll see they obviously aren't the same person. 1 Trillion of our tax dollars and over 3,000 american lives went for this phony baloney *** from the republicans AND The democrats. You're trusting the same people that gave NORTH KOREA $10 Billion Dollars of our tax money over the last 10 years, the democrats and republcians to tell you the truth. Most of you people are the biggest fools on the planet.

[nothappyatall]

Patriotic9 it's NINE trillion goingon TEN trillion dollars for our national debt not 3.

Quoted: "Whenever it occurs, Saddam's execution is likely to cause an uproar across the Arab world.
It will be a huge shock to the people in the Arab world,"

Oh right, like it's any surprise this was going to happen eventually? any idiot knew that when he was captured he would never get out of our hands any other way than in a body bag.

[stompa1]

humancitizen:

That's a little better! You may want to ease up on those that believe different from yourself on religion and faith. The lightening thing still might happen.

My humble opinion.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED VERY SOON! VISUALIZE THAT!

[virginiajean]

It's amazing that this devilsh soul that is about to be hung has pulled out the evilness in all of you. Read the words, the insulting. Know what I think. It's going to turn into something global!!!!!!

[childofgod28]

Jesus freaks, shut the fu(k up and preach it elsewhere, this is about SADDAM getting what he deserves, and the end of his sick reign.
Posted by humancitizen at 12:22 PM : Dec 29, 2006

First of all I never said he isn't getting what he deserves, but I do feel sorry for him because he will not know Christ when he is going to die. What he did deserves punishment that he is going to receive, except I feel bad for him because he isn't saved... by the way does your mother kiss you with that mouth? poor thing... I hope one of my daughters dosen't accidentally peak over my shoulder and see your flavorful language... God Bless you