Iraqis fear Saddam verdict fallout (violence...riots)

[jefferson_dem]

UH OH, the Repuke's little election eve plans may backfire...

****

Iraqis fear Saddam verdict fallout
Some Sunnis believe a death sentence — and backlash — are inevitable

The Associated Press
Updated: 3:45 p.m. ET Nov 3, 2006

AMMAN, Jordan - The trial of Saddam Hussein was intended to heal a fractured Iraq: exposing the crimes of his regime in a court of law so Iraqis could come to terms with their past and move forward — united as a people.

Instead, the nine-month trial, roiled by a civil war and Saddam’s own political outbursts, has brought little healing for Iraqis who remain deeply divided over his legacy.

The verdict, expected Sunday, could just make those tensions worse.

Indeed, many of Saddam’s fellow Sunni Arabs — but some Shiites and Kurds too — are predicting a firestorm if the Iraqi High Tribunal, as widely expected, convicts and then sentences the ex-president to death.

“Violence and killings will increase and Saddam will turn into a national hero among Sunnis,” said Ibrahim Khalid, 52, a Sunni from Baghdad’s Azamiyah district, where many people still support the ousted 69-year-old president.

Many Shiites, on the other hand, will be enraged if he escapes the gallows. Last month, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a Shiite, said he expects “this criminal tyrant will be executed” and that his followers who are “gambling on returning to power” will lose heart and abandon the insurgency.

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http://msnbc.msn.com/id/15547137/

[whistle]

1. That will create the chaos that KKKarl Rove and Bush/Cheney have

...been waiting for. What BushCo will do with that, who knows but them?

[niceypoo]

4. I bet it gets read monday in a last desperate attempt to get a bounce...

...but there will be no bounce to be had. Its too late. Der Fuhrer's bunker is surrounded and Berlin is in flames. All is lost.

[ClintonTyree]

2. Watch, Rove will "convince" them to hold off..........

on releasing the verdict until after Tuesday. What they thought would be a big boost for the reigning party could turn into a blood bath, making Americans even more sure a change is needed. I wouldn't put it past them. Everything is political to them.

[Joe for Clark]

3. It is wierd there -

The sunnis and the shia could explode alright. They will, either way.

But there is also this arab kurd element - totally different dynamic that is likely to get set off.

Good post though,

Joe