The Hindu : Saddam 'vows' more attacks

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Saturday, Jul 05, 2003

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Saddam 'vows' more attacks

The ousted Iraqi President, Saddam Hussein, addressing his countrymen in this image from Al-Jazeera on Friday. — Reuters

BAGHDAD JULY 4. A voice purported to be that of the former Iraqi President, Saddam Hussein, was aired on Al-Jazeera television on Friday, saying he is still in Iraq and vowing more attacks on Americans.

"No to surrender and no to cooperation and we thank God for everything," said the tape, which the voice said was recorded on June 14. The voice urged Iraqis to not aid coalition forces in their attempts to hunt down former Iraqi leaders.

"I call upon you to protect these heroic fighters and not give the invaders any information about them or their whereabouts during their operations. There is resistance and I know you are hearing about this. Not a day passes without them (suffering) losses in our great land, thanks to our great mujahideen. The coming days will, God willing, be days of hardship and trouble for the infidel invaders."

There was no immediate way to confirm the tape's authenticity but those who are familiar with Mr. Hussein's voice said it sounded like his. "We (the regime) fulfilled our obligations to you and sacrificed what we had to, except our values, which are based on our deep faith and honour. We did not stab our people or our nation in the back."

Claiming credit for armed attacks on U.S. occupation forces in Iraq, the voice said, "Oh brothers and sisters, I relay to you good news: Jihad (holy war) cells and brigades have been formed."

Explaining why the regime fell so fast, the voice said: "We refused to hold onto power if that meant submitting to the American threats."

The voice added that his Government preferred to give up power than become a puppet state. "They wanted to occupy us without a fight and destroy our pride."

The voice said he is still in Iraq "among my people" along with a small group of his `companions.'

Al-Jazeera's chief editor, Ibrahim Hilal, contacted in Doha, Qatar, said the tape was delivered to his office on Friday.

"Someone called us and played back the tape for us and we recorded it. It ran for over 20 minutes, but only 10 minutes are newsworthy. We don't know the source, or where the call came from. We have no reason to doubt its authenticity," he said.

— AP

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