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Shiites Clamor for Saddam to Be Executed
EFL:
Thousands of Shiite Muslims marched through Baghdad on Tuesday clamoring for Saddam Husseinâs execution in the latest show of strength by people oppressed for decades by the former dictator.
"Yarrr! String 'im up!"
"Hey! Watch it with that pitchfork! You could put somebody's eye out!" |
The 5,000-strong crowd was believed to be the first public demonstration in Iraq demanding death for Saddam since he was captured by U.S. forces Dec. 13. The Pentagon has said Saddam is a prisoner of war and that designation will not keep the deposed Iraqi president from standing trial before an Iraqi tribunal. "Saddam is a war criminal, not a POW! Execute Saddam!," the crowd chanted.
| Sounds good to me, but the Red Thingy would calve on the spot. And the Frenchies would come down with group apoplexy... |
Shiites also staged a smaller protest of several hundred people in the southern city of Najaf. "We call for the execution of Saddam the infidel, who killed our sons and kept them in mass graves," said Karima Hanoun, 40, speaking through a black veil at the demonstration. Another demonstrator, 43-year-old Samira Hassan, said, "Every good Muslim woman and every honest human being wants Saddam to be executed. How can America make him a POW?"
Donât worry, Samira. Heâll be executed, just give it time.
Prisoner of war status under the Geneva Conventions grants Saddam certain rights, and many Iraqis fear that the status will shield him from a trial in his country. International Red Thingy Cross officials have said the conventions would not prevent the United States from handing Saddam over to an Iraqi tribunal, as long as a fair trial is guaranteed.
| But we can't hand him over to an Iraqi angry mob? Damn. That's too bad. |
Oh, itâll be fair. And then heâll go to the block.
A statement by the demonstrators said Saddam should be tried by an Iraqi court for crimes against humanity. "We emphasize our rejection and condemnation of the unjust American decision" to term him a prisoner of war, it said. "Did America forget, or is (it) forgetting the screams of the children, orphans, and the tears of women who are crying at the graves of their sons and husbands?"
No, we didnât forget. Thereâs just some who donât want to hear you.
Posted by: Steve 2004-01-20 |
