In light of recent reports that Saddam Hussein and his sons may be alive, messages purported to be from the deposed Iraqi dictator printed in Arabic newspapers take on new importance.
The al-Quds al-Arabi newspaper carried a letter, dated June 12, purported to be from Saddam Hussein. In the handwritten text, Saddam threatens "all foreign citizens and who came with the occupation... to leave Iraq before July 17, otherwise they will be responsible for results." July 17, the chief editor, Abdul Bari Atwan, explains, is the anniversary of the 1968 Ba'athist coup in Iraq.
In the Lebanese al-Watan al-Arabi magazine, another message attributed to Saddam contains the warning: "We tell all people of the world to withdraw your citizens from Iraq; we are in a war of liberation. If you do not respond, you will be responsible for your lives. [We] do not spare any plane, bus or ship. They are all a target for us." The letter-writer also stated that a guerilla war against the American and British forces, for which 40,000 men were mobilized, is to begin on July 17.
The al-Quds al-Arabi newspaper carried a letter, dated June 12, purported to be from Saddam Hussein. In the handwritten text, Saddam threatens "all foreign citizens and who came with the occupation... to leave Iraq before July 17, otherwise they will be responsible for results." July 17, the chief editor, Abdul Bari Atwan, explains, is the anniversary of the 1968 Ba'athist coup in Iraq.
In the Lebanese al-Watan al-Arabi magazine, another message attributed to Saddam contains the warning: "We tell all people of the world to withdraw your citizens from Iraq; we are in a war of liberation. If you do not respond, you will be responsible for your lives. [We] do not spare any plane, bus or ship. They are all a target for us." The letter-writer also stated that a guerilla war against the American and British forces, for which 40,000 men were mobilized, is to begin on July 17.