Sadam

[Ember]

Pleased to hear Sadam has been caught and delighted to hear the mass weapons of destruction have been found too, two rifles and a pistol hidden in his cellar. Seriously do you think he should be executed?

[PaulB]

Yes!
He has killed thousands of people, his own people too and many of them have been very unpleasant killings.

[dave_in_cw]

No. Absolutely not. How can you advocate execution if you live in the developed world! That's just pure madness. What do you want to execute him for? If it's for weapons of mass destruction (which we all know was a lie by the US and British) it would be as barbaric as those lies. If it's for crimes against humanity, then why are the US and Britain not pursuing the same against the likes of Robert Mugabe? Maybe it has something to do with oil and 9/11. Funny how they didn't want to execute him before 9/11.

[geofbob]

I don't follow some of Dave's logic. What has the failure of the UK and US to pursue Robert Mugabe got to do with the issue of whether Saddam Hussein should be executed for his crimes against humanity (if proved in a valid court of law)? If Sadam is tried by a properly constituted Iraqi court, then surely his sentence should be left to that court.

[KEJ2000]

Yes, he should be executed I think, but not until we've gotten all of the information out of him, and not until he's had a trial. He can perhaps tell us where his former cabinet members are hiding, whether he did indeed have WoMD and where they went, and whether he did actually collaborate with Osama Bin Laden at any point (and maybe clues about how to catch Bin Laden, wouldn't that be great?). Hussein has nothing left to lose at this point, so he may very well give up some information. Also, to not give him a trial would cause more unrest in the Middle East. Justice is a process that takes time, but when it's done correctly, nothing beats its effectiveness! In the end, though, I think he should be sentenced to death, because many people will never feel at ease until he is truly dead, and it may help his victim's families to get the closure that they deserve.

[sft42]

Some points to chew over.....Firstly if the yanks want to know where Bin Laden is then maybe they should ask the CIA who acually trained the guy to fight against the Russians in Afganistan, they also supplied him with money and arms......as they did with Saddan Hussein al Tikrit...where do you think he bought all the guns, tanks, ammo and such like in the first place? Switzerland?

Next while I fully agree that he should stand trial for crimes against humanity the US should butt out and let the Iraqi people, or a UN appointed court stand in judgement.....the US have no jurisdiction or authority in the matter.....and come to think of it will the US be tried for infringing his human rights under the geneva convention by parading him for the media?

The sooner the americans realise this why large chunks of the world hold grudges against them and the point sinks in that they can't stand in judgement of the world when they can't even elect their own president without him being morally bankrupt and having to rely on his brother to rig the vote for him to get in the white house them maybe, just maybe will the world get on better with them.

[KEJ2000]

Hi sft42, since I am the only American who even visits this site (apparently), and I would not vote for Mr. Bush anyway, your message is getting through to no one!!!!! Why not write a Letter to the Editor for one of the major US newspapers, instead. As it stands, you're "preaching to the converted"-- i.e., people who already agree with you-- Brits and a Yankee Democrat!!!! Save your breath for blowing on your soup...!!!
P.S.: In my previous answer, I should have typed "victims'" with the apostrophe after the "s". Sorry.

[treaclefight]

he's an iraqi national and on the whole his crimes (not alleged, already accepted as he's never made any secret of what he did his to people) were committed in iraqi against iraqis. this is why the iraqis will be holding the trial and deciding on the appropriate sentence. sadams opposition who look like being the foundation of a new government have already renounced the death penalty and look likely to stick by that when they come into power so it is unlikely that he will be executed. the americans are currently holding sadam, indeed they are 'holding' the whole country at present, but they will be leaving him behind when they go. i am concerned that if he is executed then he will be a martyr for extremists everywhere for years to come, however if if he is imprisoned for the rest of his natural then i think he will be the subject of terrorist demands for years to come. the americans, the british (theres other country's forces out there too, such as the australians) etc are in a lose / lose situation and i dont think theres any point giving them grief for an intelligence led bloodless capture of a mass murderer when theres so much else to get stuck into (like how the americans cant make a proper cheese). i dont think he should be executed, destroying him wont stop people like him appearing again, understanding what made him that way and how he was able to act so freeely might help us spot them sooner.

[darth vader]

Add General Pinochet to your list Dave. I agree with sft42's comments, which is the 2nd time this year and proof that Christmas is coming. The british are culprit to double standards too, before you point the finger in our direction. Finally, i am a pacifist so to answer the question i say no he shouldn't and instead be given a life of community service shovelling 5h1t at the Baghdad Sewerage Plant

[Janetex]

Whilst I agree with most of the sentiments posted here (and follow dave's logic), I do not believe in capital punishment. I could possibly turn a blind eye to a timely, accidental assassination.

[archbishop]

For what it's worth (not a lot) It's a pity his dead body wasn't found but as he's alive, the Iraqis will try him,find him guilty and execute him. I will then be happy as I've got him in the dead pool.

[ned flanders]

I actually agree with TW (for once) get as much info as poss from him then chuck him in jail and throw away the key and forget about him.

[Buffy]

My proposal: Anyone who wants Hussein to remain alive has to keep him in their house or flat. Now who still wants him kept alive??! Also, I wouldn't worry about martyrdom too much, Treacle, considering that he was found in a rat hole and behaved like a coward. I still like the very first answer posted here, by PaulB, the best!

[sft42]

Ah ha...so we are proposing a system of justice based solely on revenge now people? If you drive into someone tomorrow will it be ok for them to ram you up the ar5e then? Think about it for a moment please...What you are suggesting is lowering yourself to this mans level....Rise above it....He should be tried be the Iraqi judicial system if it proves to be up to the task and then subject to their own punishment...most likely that will be death but a life sentence would be just as good.

And Buffy rather than anyone putting Saddam up (and of course he was acting like a coward...exactly what he was/is).....would you like to be the one to pull the trigger?

[Buffy]

YES I'll pull the trigger!!! As would any soldier in the allied forces. (If that had been their command, you know they would have done it, without hesitation!) Bring me Osama, too. Any New Yorker or Washingtonian would pull the trigger, there. We're forgetting about the victims, I think. This debate could go on forever though, so I will leave any additional thoughts to other AB users.

[beenee]

No, he should not be executed. As has been previously mentioned, the USA has zero legal jurisdiction over him, but we all know that they will have a good deal of influence over what happens to him. It is very convenient for us to overlook these forms of injustices even though they are happening right in front of our eyes everyday [other examples: the lies we were sold to attack Iraq in the first place, the completely baseless connection of Saddam Hussein to the Al-Qaida in order to gain post 9/11 sympathies].

I think we can all forget about a fair trial for this man. Whatever the outcome of his case, it will not be because the Law has been carried out - there are too many other considerations for the American government. Shame how we're so blind to them.

[DavidUK]

Has Saddam been caught? Oh yes - Bush said he has so it must be true then!

[Ember]

Thank you for your thought provoking answers, I cannot award stars, everytime I try I get frozen out and have to leave the site, but consider three stars for everyone. Myself I have nothing but contempt for the man who at the end gave himself up so easily, how on earth can his followers still respect him, but unfortunately they do. I personally think he should be executed after a fair trial which of course is something he never accorded to all his thousands and thousands of victims and even now is showing no guilt or remorse for his actions. He may not have wielded the torture instruments but he did not wield the pen which could have pardoned or saved.

[Miss Zippy]

I don't think he should be executed as death by way of capital punishment is too quick, painless and easy. Far better to subject people like him to a lifetime of physical and mental torture.

[humming bird]

I gather my letters are too close to the truth about the whole Iraq conspiracy...taken out again!!second time...someone doesn't like reality.Still some others have written some valuable facts but not deeply enough when talking about murdering Hussein. Such advocates are little Husseins.By the way, Hussein didn't give up easily..that's simply an ignorent statement but propaganda ensures that. Let's try another attack. Hussein did what he was told to do by successive US Presidents who supplied all the chemical and biological weapons he needed.This conspiracy started before Reagan but took off with his shafting Carter. I suggested literature, but I guess someone doesn't want to read truths by the originators of Israeli/US deals so that went too. "Try Profits of War" and "The Blood Dimmed Tide" for a starter.Look at the CIA/Norriega parnership which paid for the Iran hostages. see part2