Don't Hang the Messenger for Saddam Video Leak

A BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS

The stolen camera phone video clip of Saddam Hussein's execution revealed a chaotic, barbaric botching of what should have been a serious and solemn procedure. Feet and hands bound, Saddam was taunted mercilessly before his violent death by a shouting mob of Iraqi officials and guards, who told him to "go to hell." They also chanted the name of Moqtada al-Sadr, the infamous rebel cleric and militia leader.

It is hard to have much sympathy for Saddam himself, but the nature of the execution is a disgrace to the new Iraq. Worse, it has significantly worsened the tensions between Iraqi Shiites, Sunnis, and their government. Surely some of the recent violence since the incident has been provoked by outrage at the vulgarity.

So how is the Iraqi government responding to this travesty? Arresting the guy they think may have made the video and "interrogating" him. Talk about hanging the messenger.

Filming and releasing a bootleg video may be bad, but that is hardly the story here. The Iraqi government sanctioned and executed - so to speak - the debacle, and evidence indicates that at least two officials were "openly" taking pictures in plain view of other officials. And why the heck are Iraqi officials promoting al-Sadr, among the biggest enemies of the government?

An Iraqi adviser said the suspect is being questioned on "the goals of his filming," which seems reasonable in case subversion was the intention. But the leaking of the video pales in comparison to its contents. There would be no investigation if the proceeding had been more dignified.

Of course, any actions by the Iraqi government reflect directly on the Bush Administration as well because they are still pulling all the strings. The actual execution was the one part of the process not directly controlled by the U.S., but this disaster can still be blamed on Bush policies, inaction, and incompetence. With all the lives and money wasted on Iraq thus far, the ability of Iraq to pull off a respectable hanging does not seem like too much to expect.

Never known for accepting due blame, the Bush Administration has refused to join the rest of the world in condemning the manner of the execution. After the initial praise for "bringing Saddam Hussein to Justice," the White House has been silent about the new revelations, except for a coy deputy Press Secretary who said, "Prime Minister Maliki's staff have already expressed their disappointment in the filmings, so I guess we'll leave it at that."

If Bush did not think the problems were his fault, he would have been the first to deflect criticism. Instead, the Bush Administration has no comment on this crisis other than to passively bemoan only the leak of the video.

The Saddam execution vividly exposed serious problems with the Iraqi government and administration, and certainly not because of one guy with a cell phone.

A BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS