Iraq Scud boss poisoned

The Sun ^ | March 1, 2003 | GEORGE PASCOE-WATSON

[MadIvan]

SADDAM Hussein’s top missile expert has been murdered to stop him blabbing to the UN.

General Muhammad Sa’id al Darraj died on Thursday after Saddam’s men poisoned his drink.

Relatives say he was ordered to hide details of Iraqi Scuds from the UN — but devious Saddam did not trust him.

The revelation came as President Bush warned war was imminent.

He said Saddam would be forced to give up his weapons — whatever the UN decided. He added: “If he had any intention of disarming, he would have disarmed. We will disarm him now.”

Bush called war the “last option” but said Americans fully understood an attack may be launched soon.

He added: “I’ve thought long and hard about the consequences and the price that could be paid.”

His comments came as UN chief weapons inspector Hans Blix said Iraq was expected to start destroying its outlawed Al Samoud 2 missiles on Saturday.

The rockets can carry chemical and biological warheads and travel more than 90 miles — the maximum range laid down by the UN.

General al-Darraj was murdered hours before Saddam agreed to the destruction. The engineer had been called to a meeting at one of Saddam’s palaces for talks about how to mislead UN scientists over Iraq’s Scud programme.

Moments before he died, he managed to tell his family Saddam’s officials had spiked his drink with poison.

British intelligence chiefs said the murder was another example of Saddam’s ruthlessness.

They said it underlined his total disregard for human rights.

Saddam had his own son-in-law assassinated when he exposed the tyrant’s weapons of mass destruction.

[NonValueAdded]

OK, next time I'll check all the following posts before I respond. Didn't realize you beat me to it, sinkspur.

[dennisw]

Here we have another journalist who says "son-in-law" when it was "son-in-laws". Two defected, were lured back and then killed. So widely reported how can a journalist who gets it wrong be trusted?

For sure it was two of them. I don't believe the story they were simply lured back. I believe Saddam threatened to kill their extended families. They thought they could escape Saddam's Iraq but they couldn't.

[TADSLOS]

Dead men tell no tales.

[hotpotato]

Moments before he died, he managed to tell his family Saddam’s officials had spiked his drink with poison.

How? How would he know he was poisoned and have time to tell his family before he died? How did he contact his family? Did the family get the body back?

[Semper911]

skeptical about this publication

I agree, only because I associate The Sun with The National Enquirer.

Ivan, can you tell us more about this british publication?

[tomahawk]

I'm sure Hans Blix will consider this "significant progress". This is like a bad dream, the idiocy of this UN track. Let's get it over with already.

[Cicero]

When the s*** hits the fan, there's going to be a disconnect between Saddam and his closest associates. No one wants to risk being the next guy to get poisoned, stabbed, or tortured in the meantime. But when it comes down to the final moment, he's not exactly building an atmosphere of trust around himself.

My theory is that Saddam will find it very hard to control his troops through the devious channels he has set up to protect himself.

[pabianice]

Iraqi government retirement plan needs work.

[MadIvan]

The Sun is not like the National Enquirer; the equivalent we have to the National Enquirer is "The Sunday Sport", which has headlines like "World War II Bomber Found on the Moon".

The Sun has some good political reporters like Trevor Kavanagh, and their reporters are often seen on Sunday "talking heads" programmes here. Yes, the newspaper is a tabloid and has naked girls on Page 3, but generally speaking their news is fairly standard.

Regards, Ivan

[Scott from the Left Coast]

Think this brutality might harm Saddam's image with the peaceniks?

Nope. They're happy to tolerate killing by a dictator...his own faceless people, you, me, maybe themselves...they're psychotic enough.

What they can't tolerate is a conservative administration demonstrating America's might.

[Mad_Tom_Rackham]

[The revelation came as President Bush warned war was imminent....He said Saddam would be forced to give up his weapons — whatever the UN decided...He added: “If he had any intention of disarming, he would have disarmed. We will disarm him now.”]

This is essentially a declaration of war by GW. We'll be rolling soon enough. God grant us rapid victory and few casualties.

[Cvengr]

For about the last 40 years, it's never been very healthy to be a senior officer or in the entourage of Saddam Hussein.

Fortunate it was merely poison and not a more torturous death which Hussein is infamous for watching.

[MHGinTN]

The democrats here at home will say this is an execution and rightly so since Saddam Insane issued (through his hand-puppet Parliament) a new law that makes it a crime to withhold info on WMD. Of course, these same democrat fools/acorns will not ask where are the weapons, but they will cite the action as proof Saddam is cooperating!

[MJY1288]

"I'm sure Hans Blix will consider this "significant progress". This is like a bad dream, the idiocy of this UN track. Let's get it over with already."

I'm sure Hans (innocent is) Blix will claim it was the pressure of the Weapons Inspectors that drove this man to his suicide, What else could explain 12 bullet holes to the head :-)

[reaganbooster]

Clinton and Saddam think alike... many people close to them conveniently disappear.

[Happygal]

Well, I wouldn't equate the Sun with the Enquirer. But it is a tabloid, that's staple diet is a Page 3 glamour model.

It is a tabloid - and therefore the news is presented in a sensational and sometimes OTT fashion, with serious news stories surrounded by 'brain bubble gum' for its readership.

However, it has a conservative bent, which for a tabloid, is something rather unusual, I would imagine.

Ivan, can tell you more.

[Libertarianize the GOP]

http://www.freerepublic.com/perl/bump-list

[hippy hate me]

SADDAM Hussein’s top missile expert has been murdered to stop him blabbing to the UN.

Yeah, but the inspections are working!

[Wissa]

So... they decide to kill him. They poison him instead of just putting a bullet in his head. They use a relatively slow-acting poison and then allow him to go on his merry way to tell this to his family and his family gets the story out to The Sun. I guess it's possible, but for some reason I'm skeptical too.

[concerned about politics]

Oh the stuff we will find.

Yep.