This astonishing and outrageous statement was translated from the Iraq News of Sunday, September 16. Saddam Hussein made the statement on Baghdad TV in Arabic on September 15:
?The event that took place in the United States was extraordinary. It is not a simple event?Since this event is unprecedented, is it wise to deal with it by the customary methods that can be used by whomever has the technical and scientific capacities of the United states and the West?
?We ask again: Would directing the fire of U.S. weapons at a specific target–and inflicting harm or destruction with the support of Western governments based on a fabricated story–solve the problem? Would this bring security to the United States and the world? Or is the use by the United States and some Western governments of their fire against others in the world–including in the forefront the Arabs and Muslims–not the most important reason for the instability in the world at the present time? Those questions bear consideration. Are they meant as threats? If so, are they hollow and empty or serious and deadly?
?Was the evil that was inflicted on the United States–and not any other country, by the events of 11 September 2001, not the result of this and other acts? This is the main question. What happened on 11 September 2001 should be compared to what [the American] government and their armies are doing in the world. For example, international organizations have stated that more than 1.5 million Iraqis have died because of the blockade imposed by the United States and some Western countries, in addition to the tens of thousands who were martyred or injured in the military action perpetrated by the United States along with those who allied themselves with it against Iraq.
?When 1.5 million Iraqi human beings die, according to Western documents, from a population of 25 million, because of the U.S. blockade and aggression, it means that Iraq has lost about one twentieth of its population because of the US aggression. The Americans should feel the pain that they have inflicted on other peoples of the world, so that when they suffer, they fill find the right solution and the right path.
?If you rulers respect and cherish the blood of your peoples, why do you find it easy to shed the blood of others, including the blood of Arabs and Muslims? The United States needs wisdom, not power. It has used power, along with the West, to its extreme extent, only to find out later that force does not achieve what they wanted. Will the U.S. rulers try wisdom just for once so that their people can live in security and stability??
In The World?s Most Dangerous Places,? author Robert Young Pelton writes: ?Among the ?essential items? that have been imported to Iraq in recent years is a liposuction machine worth $16,000. And just to make sure Saddam can keep up the flashy smile, a teeth whitening laser (worth $126,000) has also been imported into Iraq. Of course, it?s all absolutely essential.
?Among the other vital necessities that have been imported have been silicon breast implants at US$ 750 a shot and viagra pills?The Iraqi authorities maintain that an astonishing 1.5 million babies have died in Iraq as a direct result of the U.S.-led sanctions. Doubtless this is why other ?vital necessities? include acne cream, crystal glasses, crates of whisky and champagne, not to mention cigars. By the way, 20 capsules of common antibiotics such as amoxycillin cost $1.60 and 20 doses of penicillin cost just 50 cents.
??Since the Gulf War, he has spent $2.2 billion building or rebuilding more than 74 palaces in Iraq. In April 1997, Saddam threw himself a lavish 60th birthday bash, complete with a Tigris River procession of 60 Turkish yachts, to remind everyone he was still alive?He has a team of 12 Russian doctors on call 24 hours a day.
?His yacht, the Al Mansur?is 394 feet long and can accommodate over 200 of his buddies?More recently Saddam has been building a special holiday resort on the shores of Lake Tharthar, north of Baghdad, for fun and frolics for the faithful. Saddam?s own little palace in his hometown of Tikrit is a modest complex that consists of 13 different palaces with the interiors lined with gold and marble.”
This report is partially based on information received from Iraq expert Laurie Mylroie.
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