Botched hanging in Iraq arouses Arab suspicions

by DIG THE HEAVY | January 15, 2007 at 05:38 am

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By Jonathan Wright

CAIRO (Reuters) - The botched hanging of
Saddam Hussein's half-brother Barzan on Monday aroused Arab suspicions
of foul play and malice, deepening the divide between the Iraqi
government and Arabs in other countries.

The noose pulled off
Barzan al-Tikriti's head as he fell from the gallows, suggesting that
the hangman had misjudged the length of rope needed just to break his
neck.

Government spokesman Ali Dabbagh said there was no
"violation of procedure" in the hanging of Barzan and fellow convict
Awad Hamed al-Bander, Saddam's former chief judge, for crimes against
humanity over the killings of 148 Shi'ites.....................

Zaid al-Boudani, a shopkeeper in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, said: "I am very sad today, as many other Muslim Arabs are. This execution is part of the revenge campaign going on in Iraq. The way his head was ripped off shows hatred and revenge."