The scrutiny was different for both camps. Networks on both sides of the Atlantic wrangled with questions of ethics leading up to his Decemhanging as to what could and what could not be shown on television. The build-up prior to the actual execution date was significant-both in America and in the Arab world. Occasionally, his outbursts received a tracked package on Western networks, but for the most part the day-to-day of the trial received less than a minute of coverage.īut despite his courtroom antics, Saddam Hussein’s execution had the potential of being a far bigger blockbuster than his trial or sentencing. On more than one occasion he even shouted defiantly that he remained the rightfully elected leader of Iraq. He would constantly threaten boycotts, hunger strikes, not to mention retribution. As for the lead character, he almost always gave a stellar performance. Throughout the course of the trial, unique characters came and went-some of them judges and lawyers who disappeared because they were either fed up, afraid for their lives or killed witnesses who more often than not hid behind a curtain in fear of facing the once-ruthless so-called “Butcher of Baghdad” and alleged accomplices who shouted, boycotted and even went on hunger strikes. Although Saddam Hussein’s trial for killing 148 Iraqi Shi’as from the village of Dujail dragged on a grueling 14 months, it actually made for a stunning courtroom drama: a once-powerful dictator is pulled from a hole in the ground looking as dismal as can be imagined he is interrogated, checked for fleas and bite-sized weapons of mass destruction then spruced up for his post-captivity television debut only to be sentenced to death some months later. It is perhaps ironic that the man who controlled the broadcast of his image with an iron grip was executed in one of the most widely watched news events of recent times.īut then you could say his last 14 months alive were one long television performance.
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