Rise of Saddam to Greater Power
This post is contributed by Dr. Diane Hassan, author of “Angels Among Us Even in Iraq”, who is currently participating in “On Loan at You Served” as a guest blogger.
Saddam was becoming more powerful and the members of the Baath party were becoming weaker. Saddam moved quickly with his ideas of bringing family members in position of power and finding excuses to imprison or execute old party members. He wanted to rid himself of any threat to his reign.
When Saddam saw the change in power in Iran, when the Shaw left, he felt it was a good time to invade Iran and recapture a strip of land he felt belonged to Iraq. Saddam thought it would take only a few weeks, the war lasted 7 long years. When the Iran war abruptly stopped, I was visiting in America. I saw the people rush into the streets, shooting in the air, women ripping their clothes. They were so happy they did not know how to react. The horrible war that cost the lives of sooo many young Iraqies and Iranians was finally over.
Saddam was not over. It was just a few months of peace.
I was watching Saddam on Iraqi t.v. visiting the country side. He would tell the people, we are not afraid. I thought what is he up to now. I had the feeling Saddam was going to war again, but where?
It was summer time, My son and I left in July to visit my parents. I was in Alabama when Saddam invaded Kuwait, I realized what he was talking about when he was telling his people, we are not afraid. I watched the news daily, I felt the pain of the Iraqi people they were tired, but they had no choice. The coalition began forming, Saddam was going to be at war with the world.
I felt this time Saddam would be ousted, a new government would form, the Iraqi people would be free. I wanted to be a part of the new free Iraq. I decided to return to Iraq. Against my parents protest, my son and I returned to Iraq. Saddam sent Iraqi airways to Jordan, my son and I were on the last plane that flew into Iraq..
