Saddam Hussein - Fatah and PA hero
Saddam Hussein - Fatah and PA hero
Itamar Marcus and Nan Jacques Zilberdik
Itamar Marcus and Nan Jacques Zilberdik
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Posted text: "An image from the memory of the revolution: President Commander Yasser Arafat with Iraqi President Saddam Hussein during the summit conference of the non-aligned countries in Cuba in 1978" [Facebook, "Fatah - The Main Page", Jan. 13, 2015] |
According to a famous saying, you can "know a man by his friends." Just yesterday, Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party chose to remind Palestinians of the deep friendship between former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein and Palestinian Authority and Fatah leader Yasser Arafat. They posted a picture on the official Fatah Facebook "Main Page" of Arafat and Hussein warmly shaking hands.
The PA and Fatah's honoring of Saddam Hussein who was convicted by an Iraqi court andexecuted in2006 for crimes against his own
people, is nothing new. Last 
year, speaking in Mahmoud Abbas' name, Talal Dweikat commemorated Saddam Hussein as a "great leader and fighter" at a ceremony marking the anniversary of the establishment of the Arab-Iraqi army (see below).
year, speaking in Mahmoud Abbas' name, Talal Dweikat commemorated Saddam Hussein as a "great leader and fighter" at a ceremony marking the anniversary of the establishment of the Arab-Iraqi army (see below).Palestinian Media Watchhas reported extensively on Palestinian glorification of Saddam Hussein, including Fatah publishing admiring comments and pictures such asthis: "He smiled to deny the enemy the pleasure of victory. May Allah have mercy on you, Saddam Hussein."
[Facebook, Fatah - The Main Page, Dec. 20, 2012]
In another picture published by Fatah in the past, Saddam Hussein is shown in
uniform, holding a rifle, with the following text glorifying him:
"Today, December 30, 2012, is the sixth anniversary of the death of the hawk of the Arabs and the lion of the Tigris and Euphrates: As we walked we knew that the gallows were in fact the ladder of faith for the glorified Field Marshal Martyr (Shahid) President Saddam Hussein."
[Facebook, Fatah - The Main Page, Dec. 30, 2012]
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Text on photo: "The seventh anniversary of the Martyrdom death of leader of the Arab nation, Saddam Hussein 'Abu Uday.'"
[Facebook, Fatah - The Main Page, Dec. 30, 2013]
The following is a longer excerpt of Abbas' representative Talal Dweikat praising Saddam Hussein on behalf of Abbas in 2014:
"The Jenin District institutions and distinguished figures marked the 93rd anniversary of the establishment of the Arab-Iraqi army yesterday [Jan. 6, 2014] in a ceremony held in the Iraqi Military Martyrs' (Shahids) cemetery near the village of Muthallath Al-Shuhada... The ceremony was held in the presence of District Governor, Talal Dweikat... Dweikat said in his speech on behalf of the President [Abbas]: 'We stand today in this place, and a special feeling takes hold of us as we stand amongst the fifty graves of these heroes who fell as Martyrs on Jenin's soil while protecting our Arab causes from the invaders.'
He added: 'The brave Iraqi army Martyrs sacrificed their lives for Palestine, which they came to protect. They fell in battles of valor against the abusive occupation...'
Dweikat added: 'Today we remember the great leader and fighter, Martyr Saddam Hussein, who cared for the Palestinian issue until his last breath. On this day, we must mention the name of Saddam, who founded and developed the Iraqi army organization.
We came today to lay a wreath out of loyalty, President Mahmoud Abbas' loyalty to our Arab nation and to those who sacrificed and struggled, among them these Iraqi soldiers.'"
[Al-Ayyam, Jan. 7, 2014]