Saddam execution - the backlash continues.

The outcry over the execution of Saddam, and the timing on a Holy day, continues. (see our earlier story here: Moroccans condemn Saddam execution.) Nazim Fethi in Algiers, Imane Belhaj in Casablanca and Jamel Arfaoui in Tunis, writing for the online journal Magharebia, have pulled together the reaction from around the Maghreb.

Maghreb countries and their media have criticized the timing of the execution of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, which was carried out by Iraqi authorities on December 30th, the first day of Eid al-Adha.

Hussein was hanged in Baghdad following an Iraqi court conviction of crimes against humanity in the Shia village of Dujail in 1982, where at least 148 villagers were massacred on orders from the deposed dictator and his henchmen.

In a statement released Sunday, the Algerian government regretted the execution "on a sacred day ... of clemency and generosity for all the Arab and Muslim world". The statement expressed hope that "this development will not add to an increase in the violence and the tragic ordeals that the Iraqi people are living."

Some Algerian media described the execution as an act of "revenge".

Under the headline "Disgraceful hanging on first day of Eid", Algerian daily Liberté wrote, "It is not the role of the State to take revenge … Pinochet died in his bed, while Milosevic died of a heart attack in his cell. Saddam Hussein, meanwhile, was less fortunate than these 'dictators' since he was executed like a common cowboy in the Wild West."

The more moderate El Watan also referred to the execution as an act of "revenge" against a man "accused of the most unspeakable crimes against his Kurdish and Shia countrymen". The daily argued that the execution could renew tensions between Sunnis and Shias in Iraq, especially since Saddam ceased to be a major figure after his fall from power.

"Saddam was a president and his sentencing was a politically motivated act," the Algerian National Liberation Front (FLN) party said. The spokesman of the National Democratic Rally, Miloud Chorfi, said that his party was deeply unhappy about the execution "especially since it took place on the first day of Eid Al-Adha, making it an attack on the feelings of the Muslim world."

In Morocco, where official and media reactions were more guarded, around 200 people from various NGOs protested in Rabat and Casablanca following the execution. More protests are planned to take place this week. The Moroccan National Press Syndicate said the protests will be against the hanging of "a nation’s president on the eve of Eid Al-Adha, when it was incumbent upon Muslims to honour [the Eid’s] holiness."

"I’m not against executing Saddam -- the man deserves more than that. But the choice of timing gave neither Americans nor Iraqis [their] due in applying international law, because it wasn’t expected that the ruling would be carried out on the evening of Eid Al-Adha … making the man a victim and hero. I think the ruling was more an act of revenge and humiliation than implementation of the law," high school teacher Mohamed Alyas'i told Magharebia.

Abdelhak Ettaleb, a Moroccan college student in Casablanca, said, "At university, we usually criticised the policy and dictatorship of Saddam Hussein and considered him a despotic ruler who lived off of plunging into wars and fomenting civil strife -- from the Iran war to the Kuwait war...and other crimes committed inside Iraq by him and under his orders. But issuing a death sentence and carrying it out so quickly gave rise to a lot of controversy." Ettaleb said the manner in which the execution was carried out is playing into the hands of "critics of American policy in the entire region -- not just its intervention in Iraq."

"Saddam’s execution means the execution of the tyranny and might that befell anyone who ventured to criticise Saddam, oppose him or stand up against him," Rachid Elmalki, a state employee, said.

In Tunisia, where the government also objected to the timing of the execution, calling it "a serious attack on the sentiments of Muslim people", the media agreed that the timing could amount to a "provocation of all Muslim Arabs".

Writing in La Presse, journalist Nouredine Hlaoui said, "There is no consensus of opinion regarding the trial of Saddam Hussein or the ruling issued against him, but no two people differ regarding the date the sentence was carried out, which agitated everyone."

The state-controlled daily Essahafa highlighted the US ambassador to Iraq reported request to delay the execution by 15 days. .Alchourouk also picked up on the story, and printed details gathered from various sources on American "misgivings" about the timing of the execution.

See our earlier story here: Moroccans condemn Saddam execution.

See also: Saddam video - we are all executioners now


Tags: Moroccan Morocco Fes, Maghreb news