VARIOUS: Reaction to Saddam's execution mixed among Arab neighbours

Iran hailed the execution of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein as "enforcer of the most horrendous crimes against humanity", but many Iranians said Saddam should have stood trial for invading Iran and Kuwait before being hanged. "I am very happy, but I expected that after all of the crimes that Saddam committed against the people of Iran, a representative from Iran could attend Saddam's court and Iran's right, which were lost in the eight year war, were restored. One execution was not enough for Saddam," said Mohamad Mousavi. Saddam was considered Iran's biggest enemy for invading Iran in 1980, a bloody war that lasted eight years and took the lives of more than one million people and left the economic infrastructure in Iraq and Iran almost in ruins. While president Bush said Saddam's execution was an important milestone on Iraqi's path to democracy, some Jordanians meet the news of Saddam Hussein's execution with grief and blame the U.S administration petrol interests in Iraq for his "unfair" execution. "Any leader who had people who wanted to revolt would do what Saddam did, but this is the American policy... His execution is wrong, they wanted to get rid of Saddam from the start to take the petrol," Mousa added. Saddam was found guilty over the killing, torture and other crimes against the Shi'ite population of the town of Dujail after Shi'ite militants tried to assassinate him there in 1982. His appeal was rejected four days ago and the rapid execution will delight Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's Shi'ites, who were oppressed under Saddam, but may anger Saddam's resentful Sunni minority, as well as some Kurds who were hoping to see him convicted of genocide against them. Beirut residents, who headed on Saturday early morning to the city mosques, to participate in al-Adha Eid prayers, expressed their sorrow over former Iraqi President Execution. "They executed Saddam because he is Muslim and because he loves the Islamic nation, they intentionally hanged him today as people are on holiday (Adha). This execution is tabooed. He is a Muslim and was the best Arab Leader who raised the nation of Islam," Zayd is convinced. Palestinians also mourned the execution of Saddam Hussein, remembering the man who once financially supported the families of Palestinian suicide bombers who attacked Israel. For many Palestinians, Saddam had for long represented a symbol of defiance against the U.S. and Israel, and used to be a major supporter of the Palestinian political aspiration throughout the decades-long conflict with Israel. Saddam, who called for Israel's destruction and fired Scud missiles into Tel Aviv during the 1991 Gulf War, would make payments of up to $10,000 to relatives of such militants, who he called "martyrs". "Saddam's execution was political in the eyes of the United States and not to the Arab countries. Why other regimes and leaders don't get executed besides Saddam? Because the United States wanted to execute him," said a resident of the West Bank town of Hebron. Meshaan al-Juburi, an Iraqi Parliament member, said in Damascus that he sees Saddam as a martyr. "This is an American crime that is added to all contemporary crimes because he is a war prisoner and the Human Rights laws do not allow to surrender him to the hostile party. In addition to that I think Saddam is going to be a martyr and his execution in this way will deepen the disagreement in Iraq. If the Iraqis are still crying al-Hussein (Shiite Prophet) for the last 1400 years I think that the same will happen concerning Saddam Hussein. The chances of a national agreement became very low," he said. Juburi is calling to the withdrawal of American forces since 2003. In a street of Damascus, a bakery has opened a consolation council for those who were supporters of Saddam. In the shop where verses of the Holy Koran started the first day of Adha holiday, a worker in bakery, told Reuters: "The existing government which encouraged the execution, is a null government. They were from the 'Baath' and now they are all happy saying that Saddam was oppressed them but they are the ones who betrayed the country"

ITN Source | January 1, 2007

Tags:. .withdrawal. .ruins. .democracy. .iranians. .gulf