The discovery and capture of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein holed up in a six-by-eight foot ‘spider hole’ may prove to become the pivotal turning point towards establishing self-rule and reconstructing Iraq.
Similar to the psychological victory achieved with the end of Hitler's regime in 1945, the capture of Saddam brings a tide of relief to the millions of Iraqis who suffered under his 23-year Baathist regime.
The Bush administration, intelligence community and coalition forces deserve a giant pat on the back for the relentless effort to track down members of the tyrant from Tikrit’s murderous regime.
For eight months, the Iraqi president eluded capture. But during Operation Red Dawn on December 13, 2003, after months of conducting raids and scouring the countryside near his hometown, a U.S. military team unearthed the "Ace of Spades" in an underground hide-out. A far cry from his marble palaces, the deposed leader surrendered himself from a crawlspace that had just enough room for the 66-year-old dictator to lie down.
Despite the fall of Saddam’s reign of terror in May, an opposition campaign led by loyalists and other resisters has persisted against efforts to rebuild the country’s infrastructure and bring political and economic stability to Iraq.
The insurgents’ campaign of terror in Iraq has caused understandable anxiety among Americans and for those who continue to serve and sacrifice overseas in the name of freedom and liberty.
Since the launching of Operation Iraqi Freedom in March, brave men and women in uniform have put their lives in peril to free the Iraqi people and lay down a foundation for freedom, law and order and democracy in Iraq.
News reports of Saddam’s capture began to hit America early on a Sunday morning. Like many Iowans, I felt disbelief, then relief and hope for the 25 million Iraqis who have lived in fear for decades.
The capture of the former dictator ends a genocidal regime built upon terror, war, repression and deprivation. With Saddam behind bars, it’s time to carry out justice.
In my view, the former dictator ought to be tried for his crimes against humanity in Iraq with Iraqi citizens playing a leading role in the administration of justice. By prosecuting the former dictator in Iraq with fair, detailed and accurate presentation of Saddam’s atrocious crimes against his own people, the judicial process may help solve a critical piece of the puzzle necessary to achieve democracy and self-rule. And that missing link is forging an alliance based on trust, compromise and rule of law among Iraq’s Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish communities.
History will show if Saddam’s capture helps accelerate the road to self-rule in Iraq in the 21st century. Without a doubt, it provided a welcome morale boost to the brave troops putting their lives on the line overseas in the war on terror.
Hopefully his capture and arrest also will shatter the fear and reticence shown by many Iraqis to embrace freedom and peace. As the president has said many times since the start of military action in March, the U.S. is committed to securing a sovereign government, rebuilding basic infrastructure needs, retooling the economy and forging long-term stability in Iraq.
Although I’m encouraged by France and Germany’s offer to reduce the crippling international debts hindering Iraq’s reconstruction, I remain discouraged by their unwillingness in 2003 to join the U.S.-led coalition to liberate Iraq and oust the Iraqi tyrant from power.
The United States of America takes pride in the freedoms and liberties of our free society. Since the dawn of the 20th century, our sons and daughters have shed blood and risked life and limb to protect our borders, stop tyranny and spread peace and freedom around the world.
May the U.S.-led capture of the lawless, ruthless Iraqi dictator send a signal to our friends and foes the world over. Terror and tyranny are unwelcome. The United States stands committed to fighting evil and embracing peace, freedom and the rule of law.