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May 29, 2008 By Andrew Walden (Hawai'i Free Press) Nadhmi Auchi, seen here with the Governor of Illinois, Rob Blagojevich (middle) at a 2004 Chicago dinner in Auchi's honor arranged by Antonin Rezko (potentially, right)[1]. All three men have been convicted of corruption related charges (Auchi 2003, Rezko 2008, Blagojevich 2009).[2] “A British-Iraqi billionaire lent millions of dollars to Barack Obama's fundraiser (dual US-Syrian citizen Tony Rezko) just weeks before an imprudent land deal that has returned to haunt the presidential contender, an investigation by The Times discloses. The money transfer raises the question of whether funds from Nadhmi Auchi,...

George W Bush yesterday said that the execution of Saddam Hussein bore the hallmarks of a sectarian "revenge killing", in his most critical assessment of the hanging of the former dictator. The US President criticised the circumstances surrounding Saddam's death and the recent execution of two top aides, including Saddam's half brother, Barzan al-Tikriti, for their roles in the massacre of 148 Shia men in Dujail in 1982. "I was disappointed and felt like they fumbled the – particularly the Saddam Hussein execution," Mr Bush said in an interview by public broadcast television's Jim Lehrer. "The message is confusing. It...

SADDAM HUSSEIN has sent his personal jeweller to Thailand on a secret mission to buy millions of dollars worth of diamonds, prompting speculation that he is preparing to flee or send his family into hiding, writes Jon Swain. Sources with knowledge of the trip revealed that the jeweller travelled from Baghdad to Bangkok via Jordan. They said he bought the gems in the Thai capital in a prearranged deal. “He purchased millions of dollars worth,” said one. This was the jeweller’s second recent visit to Bangkok. Three months ago the sources said that Saddam’s son Uday had sent him to...

2,268 Iraqis and their Families Thank You More good news from Iraq: along with the deaths of Uday and Qusay Hussein, American authorities announced that the head of the Special Republican Guard, Barzan Abd al-Ghafur Sulayman Majid al-Tikriti, was captured on Wednesday. This leaves only 18 of the 55 most-wanted members of the former regime still at large. Yet the demise of Hussein's hated sons shared newspaper headlines this morning with the news that two more American servicemen were killed in attacks by Baathist forces. I intend to comment at greater length before long on the difficulty of fighting a...

THE search for Saddam Hussein's multi-billion dollar fortune gathered momentum yesterday when special forces seized a half-brother implicated in torture and genocide. Barzan Ibrahim el-Hasan al-Tikriti, the second of Saddam's three half-brothers to be arrested, was captured during a night raid in Baghdad after a tip-off. Barzan, designated the five of clubs in a pack of cards of the most-wanted fugitives, acted as financier, adviser, diplomat and intelligence chief for Saddam. He is believed to have unique knowledge of the billions of dollars hidden abroad for Saddam Hussein and his family. The questioning of Barzan by US investigators is likely...

THE half-brother of Saddam Hussein captured by special forces on Thursday has disclosed valuable information about the former regime, American military sources said yesterday. Barzan Ibrahim Hasan al-Tikriti, who worked closely with Saddam for more than two decades, was said to have been instantly co-operative. His response has raised hopes that he will lead troops to the fugitive Iraqi leader or provide details of weapons systems. The reports came as a fourth member of the regime was seized. Samir al-Aziz al-Najim, regional chairman of the Baath party in east Baghdad, was handed to US troops by Iraqi Kurds near Mosul....