Posted on 03/19/2003 6:01:00 PM PST by O.C. - Old Cracker
Newsmax Wires Thursday, March 20, 2003
WASHINGTON -- All speculation about whether Iraqi President Saddam Hussein would flee and whether he would be tried for his crimes or forgiven if he did ended Wednesday as the time for the dictator and his two sons to leave expired. Saddam hasn't left Baghdad.
But since Monday evening, when U.S. President George W. Bush gave him two days to surrender if he wants to avoid war, his possible departure was sought and discussed intensely around the world.
At least two Arab states -- Saudi Arabia and Bahrain -- who have been asking him privately to save Iraq from destruction by stepping down, went public with their urgings.
Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa also offered to host this unwelcome guest.
"Bahrain's king announced that Bahrain ... is ready to host Iraqi President Saddam Hussein in a dignified manner that should not be seen as undermining Iraq's position and capabilities," said an official statement issued by the palace.
And for the first time since this crisis broke out more than two months ago, Saudi Arabia also officially urged Saddam to leave Iraq.
In Washington, the Bush administration watched quietly as the Arabs built up pressure on Saddam to leave. But both U.S. officials and Middle East experts said they did not believe Saddam was going to accept Bush's offer and relinquish power.
"At 8 o'clock tonight, the American people will know Saddam Hussein has committed his final act of defiance," Fleischer told reporters. "With just a short amount of time to go before the deadline, we have not received, unfortunately, any indication from Saddam Hussein that he intends to leave the country."
'Leader of All Arabs'
Appearing on CNN, Hans Blix, the U.N. chief weapons inspector, said he did not believe that "a man who considers himself the leader of all Arabs" was ever going to accept exile.
At the State Department, spokesman Richard Boucher was confronted with a hypothetical question: "If he accepted the last-minute exile in Saudi Arabia, will he be prosecuted for his crimes?"
"If there was a proposal to that effect, I suppose that's a question we'd be exploring. But at this point, I haven't seen any serious proposal or discussion from the Iraqi side," Boucher said.
He said the United States was willing to work with Arab proposals for Saddam's peaceful departure, "were they to be accepted."
"But we've seen continued refusal by the government of Iraq to take any option that provides for a peaceful settlement," he added.
Asked could Saddam accept an offer to exile without public assurances that he would not be prosecuted, Boucher said: "He's said nothing whatsoever to indicate he's even interested. So it's really a moot point."
Boucher said he had not heard of any plan to send a U.N. plane to bring Saddam and his family out of Iraq.
The State Department spokesman also sounded a warning to Iraq's ruling Ba'ath Party saying that the future of this party would "depend on the outcome of the conflict and the actions of individuals in that party, who may or may not further the crimes of the regime."
Copyright 2003 by United Press International.
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