Bulletin de liaison et d'information - Institut kurde de Paris

Revue de Presse-Press Review-Berhevoka Çapê-Rivista Stampa-Dentro
de la Prensa-Basm Özeti
Dead or alive? Mystery of Sadd am Hussein"s health deepens
TheGuardian Friday January 5 2001
Brian Whitaker
Iraq-watchers took out
their magnifying glasses
yesterday to scrutinise
pictures from Baghdad
purportedly showing Saddam
Hussein chairing a
cabinet meeting.
Depending on who you
believe, the Iraqi leader is
dead, incapacitated ... or
his usual robust self.
The latest rumours
surfaced after a military
parade on Sunday in which
President Saddam stood
for four or five hours, saiuting
the troops as they
marched past by firing a
rifle into the air.
"He fired more than 142
rifle shots, using one
hand," said an Iraqi government
spokesman, Salam
Khatab. "Most of the youth
could not do such."
But according to Iranianbacked
opposition sources,
he suffered a severe stroke
during or shortly after the
parade.
other opposition sources
in London suggest that he
had a minor stroke or heart
attack.
The Saudi-owned al-
Hayat newspaper, citing
"trusted Iraqi sources", said
that President Saddam had
felt chest pains and had
been taken to hospital,
where a medical team under
Dr Aziz Mahmoud
Shukri "confirmed to those
accompanying the president
that he was suffering
the effects of standing for a
long time in the cold':
On Wednesday Iraqi television
showed the president,
who is officially 63,
looking his usual self as he
walked into the cabinet
room wearing a brown suit,
but there was no way of
confirming when the film
wasshot.
An official denial ofhis
illness as "a nonsensical
fabrication that is not even
worth responding to" did
little to dampen the
speculation.
Some analysts even saw
the denial as suspicious,
noting that the Iraqi authorities
do not usually
comment on such reports.
1Iut a Kurdish opposition
source in London suggested
that the reports
could be part of a disinformation
campaign by President
Saddam himself. "His
security service spreads
rumours that he is dànger-
. ously ill or has been assassinated,
then after a few
days you see him making a
speech on TV."
The purpose might be to
flush out opponents of the
regime.
In July, when he made an
odd and unusually short
speech to mark the 32nd
anniversary of the coup
that brought his Ba'ath
party to power, there were
claims that he was seri-
0usly ill.Two weeks later,
and apparently in good
health, he welcomed President
Hugo Chavez of
Venezuela to Iraq and personally
drove him on a tour
of Baghdad.
In September there were
reports that he was about
to undergo chemotherapy
for lymph cancer.
A subsequent Israeli
report said the story was
based on a misunderstanding:
the treatment was for a
senior member ofhis
regime.
Analysts were reluctant
yesterday to commit themselves
either way. Most
agreed that ifhe were dead
or seriously ill the regime
might well conceal it until
his successor's position had
been secured.
Few expect a smooth transition,
because of the
rivalry between his two
sons, Uday, 36, and Qusay,
34.
Qusay, who runs the Special
Security Organisation
and the Special Republican
Guard, seems to be the
favoured successor.
Uday, a playboy, runs
several Iraqi media organisations
and is said by opposition
groups to be a rapist
a serial killer, and heavily ,
involved in oil smuggling.
Last year he was elected to
parliament in a Baghdad
constituency with 99.9% of
the vote.
Sedam Hussein seen In wh. stete television claimed wes footage of him chairing the first cabinet meeting of the New Year.
But as specullltion about his VNlfere Incree .... the west Islooklng for evidence th8tth ... may be old pictures
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