December 28, 2006 02:49pm
THE White House is braced for a wave of reprisal attacks when former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein is hanged for crimes against humanity.
Saddam will be hanged within 29 days after Iraq's highest court yesterday upheld his death sentence for the 1982 killings of 148 people in a single Shi'ite town after an attempt on his life there.
White House spokesman Scott Stanzel said US forces in Iraq were braced for reprisal attacks from the former strongman's supporters when he is sent to the gallows.
"Certainly that's something that the multinational forces are aware of and Iraqi forces are certainly aware of," Mr Stanzel said, regarding a potential surge of violence linked to Saddam's hanging.
"So we've seen in the past that the enemies have worked to use any excuse to foment violence, and that's something that we're monitoring, for sure."
Saddam and two regime cohorts were convicted on November 5, after a court heard they ordered the deaths of the Shi'ites in the village of Dujail in an act of collective punishment.
Mr Stenzel denied any US government involvement in deciding when Saddam is to be hanged.
"That is a matter for the Iraqi people, and we are observers to that process. They are a sovereign government, and they will make their own decisions regarding carrying out that justice," he said.
Without commenting on the Iraqi appeals court's decision, the White House yesterday said Saddam's confirmed death sentence "marks a milestone for Iraqi people's efforts to replace the rule of a tyrant with the rule of law".
No comments:
Post a Comment