Posted on 12/14/2003 7:32:49 AM PST by ovrtaxt
CAIRO (Reuters) - Arabs greeted the capture of Saddam Hussein with divided emotions Sunday, welcoming the arrest of a dictator yet tinged with regret that a symbol of Arab defiance against the United States was behind bars.
Some feared Saddam's capture would boost President Bush, who many Arabs believe has waged a campaign against them and other Muslims after the September 11 attacks. But others said the fight against U.S. occupation would go on.
"It is happy news but we wish it were the Iraqi people who had captured him, not U.S. troops, because this will give Bush a boost in the upcoming election," said Bahraini salesman Hussein Jafar as news of Saddam's capture swept through Arab capitals.
U.S. troops captured Saddam, grubby and bearded, when he was dug out by troops from a narrow hiding hole during a raid on a farm near his hometown of Tikrit.
"I only wish it was not the Americans who got him. I don't like Saddam but as an Arab I wouldn't like to see them (Americans) dragging him around Baghdad," said Syrian student Abdul-Nasser.
For others, the capture was disappointing news. Saddam may have been seen as a dictator who oppressed his people, but many also saw him as the only Arab leader who stood up to the United States, which they said rode roughshod through the region.
"Of course it's bad news. To us, Saddam was a symbol of defiance to the U.S. plans in the region. And we support any person who stands in the face of the American dominance," said Azzam Hneidi, an Islamist member of Jordan's parliament.
KEEPING UP THE FIGHT
Others said the U.S. success might prove fleeting, saying Iraqis were not fighting for Saddam but for an end to the U.S. occupation of Iraq.
"The situation in Iraq will not change much. I don't think the resistance was linked to Saddam and it will increase as was the case after the death of Uday and Qusay," said Yemeni political analyst Saeed Shabet, referring to Saddam's two sons.
In Gaza and the West Bank, where Palestinians are fighting against an Israeli occupation, some were in somber mood that the United States, perceived as providing unswerving support for Israel, could claim victory.
"It's a black day in history. I am saying so not because Saddam is an Arab but because he is the only man who said 'no' to American injustice in the Middle East," said Fadiq Husam, a 33-year-old taxi driver in the West Bank city of Ramallah.
But in Kuwait, occupied by Iraq in 1990-1991, the reaction was one of joy. Some cars honked horns along a seaside road that during the occupation had been lined with Iraqi army positions. Others sent mobile phone messages to spread the news.
"We are so happy they got him...The people of Iraq have been brainwashed by the Saddam regime. They need another 20 years to realize that the Kuwaitis are not to blame for the Iraqis' plight," said Kuwaiti Mohammad al-Hudieb, cruising the Arabian Gulf seafront in his jeep.
You bet your bippy we are waging a campaign against you! It wasn't Mormans who have been terrorizing the world. Nor is it all Muslims, but it WAS arabs.
That is quite impossible militarily--and quite easy politically. Just stop the violence against Iraqiswhich is the rationale for the continued expence of maintaining U.S. troops in Iraq.Allow a democratic republic to be installed in Iraq and begin to work smoothly--and watch the occupation voluntarily dissipate before your eyes. That however would represent American success, American victory--and it is that which the "resistance" opposes. They want us to lose face, and will die
tryingfailing to achieve that.
Same for ABC. Pentagon reporter Sheila McVicker is speaking in a tone as if she's informing her relatives about a death in the family. Terry Moran deflated. Bastard George Snuphaluffagus expressing disbelief that Saddam could have been directing or involved in any of the insurgencies.
Muslims drag dead Americans around, not the other way A-Hole!
I kid you not.
I think it's a clear indicator that an Iraqi democratic Constitutional republic will never work or last. Our beloved US Constitution took a major hit last week, and few Americans cared. Iraqis, accustomed to abuse from government, won't even know the difference. While everyday Iraqis will enjoy the nest few years, installing a liberated government in Iraq, sadly, is probably just window-dressing in the long run.
No suprise here, Arabs in general are a bunch stupid and cowardish morons. Even French would defeat any of their "regular army".
No wonder handful of Izraelis beat the living crap out of them quiet a few times in last 50 years.
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