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| Axis of Evil |
| Saddam’s support begins to evaporate |
| 2003-01-23 |
| OPPOSITION within Iraq to President Saddam Husseinâs regime has surged in the past few weeks, with anti-Saddam graffiti and literature appearing in areas supposedly under Baghdadâs control, the Foreign Office said yesterday. Citing interviews with Iraqi asylum-seekers arriving in Britain, officials claimed that the modest but significant unrest in central Iraq has unnerved the authorities, who have taken steps to shore up their flagging support and to crush dissent. The evidence of the asylum-seekers was first alluded to by Tony Blair on Tuesday, when he told MPs that the pressure on Baghdad was beginning to show. âThere is no doubt at all that as a result of the pressure there, the regime in Iraq and Saddamâs immediate entourage, there is evidence that they are weakening, they are rattled about the build-up of forces,â he said. Yesterday General Richard Myers, Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that the Pentagon had also picked up reports of dissent. âThere are some indications about unrest in some of the Iraqi leadership. But just hints. We have not seen anything (about) purges by Saddam,â he said. Yesterday the Foreign Office fleshed out the claims. Officials insisted that a consistent pattern had emerged from scores of interviews with refugees and defectors from Iraq, who have arrived in their thousands in Britain over the past months. Most of the refugees are Iraqi Kurds from the north, but also include former civilian members of the regime from central Iraq, the bedrock of Saddamâs support. âA lot of them are coming out and saying there is increased dissent in Iraq â for example more anti-regime leaflets being circulated, more underground activity,â one official, who described the accounts as âconsistent and credibleâ, said. Anti-Saddam slogans, such as âFor how long will the Iraqi people sleep?â, have been daubed on statues and photographs of the Iraqi leader. Leaflets predicting Saddamâs downfall have also been circulated. The campaign of dissent, which is punishable by death for anyone caught, has apparently been co-ordinated by two opposition groups emboldened by the prospect of a looming war. The Iraqi authorities are said to have cracked down on suspected opponents. But they have also attempted to buy the loyalty of people close to the regime with payments and increased rations of food. Toby Dodge, an expert on Iraq at Warwick University, said that the reports were credible and were supported by independent sources inside the country. âThere is now a strong sense that the regimeâs downfall is coming,â Mr Dodge said. In particular, he said that the Iraqi Communist Party, which was purged by the ruling Baathists 30 years ago, has an active network in the country. Last night Iraqâs Deputy Prime Minister, Tariq Aziz, ruled out the possibility of Saddam leaving his country to avoid a US-led war. âHe will continue leading Iraq until the last minute of his life,â he told ABC News in America. Time's almost up, Sammy. |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #4 we're making a list, checking it twice gonna find out who's naughty and nice Rice n' Rummy's coming to town (sung to any Belafonte tune that doesn't gag you) |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-01-23 20:33:05 |
| #3 I hope Bush is going to be watching everybody in sight when Sammy is nothing but a lingering odor. There are going to be Ba'athists in Syria and Libya, sitting around plotting comebacks and dire revenge. The Shiites are going to find the ayatollahs in Iran, oh, so eager to assist them in establishing Iraq as an "Islamic democracy." The Commies (and the commies) are going to be looking for a chance at five-year planning in lockstep with NKor and Cuba and whatever other socialist powerhouses there are left in the world. Meanwhile, the Soddies are going to be scrambling to minimize the effects of the departure of the status quo by supporting whatever they can find as the most authoritarian trend, the while pushing the joys of being a wahab. Qaeda and its surrogates are going to be going for the Islamist vote, and there will probably be a bunch of Paleos headed into the rubble to try and raise their own intifada. That's only a partial list - it doesn't include the Kurds, the Assyrians and Chaldeans, various Bedouins, and the relgious conflicts that are sub-boiling at the moment. It's going to be a very interesting time... |
| Posted by: Fred 2003-01-23 18:23:47 |
| #2 However many hints there are about unrest, I'd be sure to broadcast a few more. I'd even make up a few and slip them to my favorite pet reporter. Sammy's antennae have to be quivering like jello over all the reports he's getting, and I'd like to help him get rattled a little more. Assuming I was in charge and had a pet reporter, of course :-) |
| Posted by: Steve White 2003-01-23 18:22:50 |
| #1 We gotta watch the commies, or it'll be China all over again. |
| Posted by: Ptah 2003-01-23 13:58:41 |