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| Iraq-Jordan |
| Sammy sez he wuz obsessed with Iran |
| 2004-10-07 |
| Saddam Hussein was obsessed with his status in the Arab world, dreaming of weapons of mass destruction to pump up his prestige. And even as the United States fixated on him, he was fixated on his neighboring enemy, Iran. That is the picture that emerges from interrogations of the former Iraqi leader since his capture last December, according to the final report of the chief U.S. arms inspector, which gives a first glimpse into what the United States has gleaned about Saddam's hopes, dreams and insecurities. The report suggests that Saddam tried to improve relations with the United States in the 1990s, yet basked in his standing as the only leader to stand up to the world's superpower. It says Saddam was determined that if Iran was to acquire nuclear weapons, so was Iraq. And it says he was a narcissist who cared deeply about his legacy, making sure bricks were molded with his name in hopes people would admire them for centuries to come. Weapons hunter Charles Duelfer had access to information from U.S. interrogations of Saddam over several months. The former Iraqi dictator apparently talked not because he wanted to help the United States, but because he was concerned with his legacy, the report says. Much of his motivation in the quest for weapons of mass destruction came from neighboring Iran and the two countries' "long-standing rivalry over the centuries," including the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s. "From Saddam's viewpoint, the Persian menace loomed large and was a challenge to his place in history," the report says. "This was an important motivation in his views on WMD — especially as it became obvious that Iran was pursuing the very capabilities he was denied," said the report, which found no evidence that Iraq had produced any such weapons after 1991. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #1 Mullah madness? As I argue in my opinion piece, the Iranian thugs looked to be able to move in on the Tikrit thugs. Thus the obsession. |
| Posted by: Chuck Simmins 2004-10-07 11:39:50 AM |