A quiet anniversary of Saddam's death

Last update: December 30, 2007 - 8:24 PM

Hundreds of mourners visited the tomb of Saddam Hussein on the outskirts of his hometown of Tikrit on Sunday to light candles and recite the Qur'an in memory of the ousted dictator hanged a year ago.

Security forces braced for possible attacks in Baghdad and the Sunni Arab heartland around Tikrit, north of the capital, where Saddam's chaotic execution heightened the alienation that many Sunnis feel under Iraq's new Shiite rulers.

Driving bans were imposed in some places, and extra checkpoints went up in and around Tikrit. But there were no reports of violence associated with the anniversary.

Many Saddam loyalists have joined forces with U.S. and Iraqi troops in the past year to fight groups such as Al-Qaida in Iraq, a decision U.S. officials credit with helping to reduce bloodshed across the country by 60 percent since June.

At Saddam's birthplace on the outskirts of Tikrit, schoolchildren lit candles and hundreds visited the tomb -- decked in flowers and the Iraqi flag -- but it was a far cry from the crowds of thousands that Saddam could command in his lifetime.

"He was not a dictator," declared Saif Nateek, a policeman from Saddam's tribe. "He was able to keep this country united, to hold it with a firm grip."

Saddam's execution a year ago set off an uproar when footage shot with a cell phone showed Shiite onlookers taunting him as the noose was placed around his neck. Rioting that kills dozens of people followed.

Saddam was executed for the killings of 148 Shiite men and boys from the town of Dujail after a 1982 assassination attempt, a fraction of the tens of thousands of deaths during his nearly four-decade rule. He is buried near his sons, Odai and Qusai, and 14-year-old grandson, Mustafa, who were killed in a 2003 gunfight with U.S. forces in the northern city of Mosul.

The anniversary passed without comment on state-run TV and in parliament.

CHECKUP FOR AL-MALIKI

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki had a health checkup at a British hospital, and his office described the results as "very reassuring." Aides denied reports that the prime minister was suffering from exhaustion.

"We would like to assure our gracious Iraqi people that there is no need to be concerned about the health condition of his excellency the prime minister," Al-Maliki's office said in a statement Sunday.

U.S. SOLDIER DIES

A U.S. soldier died Sunday of noncombat injuries, the military said. The death is under investigation. As of Sunday night, 21 U.S. military deaths had been reported in December in Iraq, one more than in February 2004, which was the lowest monthly total of the war. There have been 899 deaths for the year, according to an Associated Press count.

LOS ANGLES TIMES, AP

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