Posted on 12/16/2003 8:33:40 AM PST by AmericanInTokyo
Here is my quick synopsis/Japanese-to-English translation (a “Freepranslation”) of the report today from the Japanese news website, ZakZak, attached to the Nikkan Gendai publication in Tokyo.
Title: "Saddam, Digs His Grave By Talking With Wife, Starts to Give Information"
"--The U.S. was greatly assisted by a sophisticated “elint” (electronic eavesdropping) operation involving good cooperation by US, Australian, and British intelligence. The cooperative group was code named “Dream Team”. Of course, former officials of the regime who 'were turned' against Saddam were also instrumental and completed the picture just before the raid.
--The Dream Team went ahead on the theory that Saddam would make every effort to keep in touch with his wife #2 in Beirut, Lebanon. This woman is Samira Shabandar. They centered their coordinated and high level intelligence collection and eavesdropping efforts on her.
--The Dream Team captured important telephone conversations between Samira and Saddam held by satellite telecom, via Inmarsat. Saddam was code-named by them as: “Number One”. The Dream Team had not only this success, but also in using similar methodologies to track down Saddam’s sons, Uday and Qusay and later slaying them.
--Saddam was known to the Coalition as a “ladies man” (in Japanese here, an "enpukuya"). The chap not only was married to wife #1, Zahjida Hairara, but he also stole #2 from a former Ba'ath regime associate, he has a mysterious #3 wife, and finally, he married a German woman, #4 Wife, Iman Fuwaishu (spelling) just last year. Of course, on top of that, he had the closest relationship to #2, but still played the field with five additional mistresses, jacked up on Viagra, having fun every night here and there until the war.
--#2 Wife had already foolishly revealed to the press in Lebanon earlier that Saddam, while on the run, talked to her once a week by phone and would send over letters with details that could not be discussed on the telephone.
--#2 wife claimed that “no way will he ever be captured by the Americans”, but the Dream Team was busy at work with other, conflicting plans in mind for Saddam.
--Dream Team was making Samira “swim”, all the while passing the info off to it's elite, multiforce “Task Force 121”. Based on additional information from captured associates in Baghdad, they lined up details with the telephone conversations, they were able to cross the information and they then finally put the "x" on the map at al-Dawar, near his familiar Tikrit.
--Saddam was asked by Iraqi leaders, current US allies who questioned him in captivity, “just how do you intend to meet Allah (after what he had done to people”. Saddam’s response to them, “I will go to him with a quiet heart.”
--As the four Iraqi officials left the cell, Saddam spat at them “You ________ will be sent to Hell by my Iraqi people!” But once he started 'singing' about the underground fighters, the US got even more information on anti-US resistance elements in Iraq and detained them, too.
--Saddam was described as ‘Saddam the sellout” by US military officers, after he started “singing”."
(END OF "FREEPRANSLATION")
I take that as a rejection, now im deeply saddened. ;o
Seriously, I like you, but not enough for an special invitation to my spiderhole.
ps: thanks for the translation, interesting read.
Maybe, maybe not. Saddam has a vested interest in dragging this thing out and giving up just enough information to scare France, Germany and Russia into getting involved to protect him from the death penalty. We can look forward to some slight softening in the opposition from "Old Europe" and Russia, but don't look for a complete turnabout. Old Europe has too much to lose if prosecution of Saddam proceeds without international interference.
Now that is very good analysis based on past performance, and you may very well have it right.
To those who say he is trying to give out disinformation, I would direct your attention to at least two FR posts that tell of stunning raids, arrests, and killings of Saddam-ites in the last 48 hours. We have the intel and the confirmation; and we are acting on it. It's what MG Odierno (CG, 4th ID) called 'actionable intelligence'.
(Not 'relieved' of course in the sense of Saddam having his long overdue pee break.)
Kakkate Koi! Hard to imagine, but Bush must be regarded in Japan as the archetypal American - thoughts and impressions?
He (Bush) is in Japan, IMHO, generally regarded as an effective bully, whom at the end of the day, you have no choice but to fear and to respect.
The press in Japan is just as liberal, in many cases, as in the US. Particularly the publishing houses. Very little positive press on George W. Bush. They basically translate Michael Moore and copy him and his ideas, then going on and trying to be original but they are not.
Here is a special collection of his books, entitled "Stupid Americans" in the Japanese language. It includes his work on Bush, the USA in general, you know, that kind of left wing crap:
Then why, when captured, did he request to "negotiate"? I think he mentioned some legitamate stuff (that got some of his buddies caught) in the hopes he would be taken seriously. Sure, some of it is disinformation and some of it will be poor memories, but the real haul is when he forgets what he is saying and alludes to something he'd rather not. The more he talks the more he leaks.
When confronted by his leaks, he'll talk some more... probably just to keep from being alone. And so it goes.
Maybe he'll leak about Al-Quida and where Osama is, maybe on WMDs, or, most fun of all, he could tell of the fun times he had with the Democratic Congressman and Senators (like McDermot) who heaped praise on him. LOL!
As the terms are normally used in the intelligence community, "SIGINT" (signals intelligence) consists of: (1) "COMINT" (communications intelligence) (voice and other text communications) and (2) "ELINT" (electronic intelligence) (other signals).
Since the story talks about things like intercepted telephone conversations (COMINT), I think he should have used the term "SIGINT", rather than "ELINT".
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