When Saddam Hussein Held a Public Purge (1979)
In 1979, Saddam Hussein publicly accused 68 of his own party members of treason. But it was a lie. A way to get rid of people he considered rivals, and who he feared could cause problems in the future
1979-07-16 19:00:00 - Must Watch
Upon taking office as president in 1979, Saddam purged rivals within his party. In 1980, he ordered the invasion of Iran, purportedly to capture Iran's Arab-majority Khuzestan province, and end Iranian attempts to export its Islamic Revolution to the Arab world. In 1988, as the war with Iran ended in a stalemate, he ordered the Anfal campaign against Kurdish rebels who had sided with Iran.
Later, he accused his former ally Kuwait of slant-drilling Iraq's oil reserves and subsequently invaded the country in 1990. This ultimately led to the Gulf War in 1991, which ended in Iraq's defeat by a United States-led coalition. In the war's aftermath, Saddam's forces suppressed the 1991 Iraqi uprisings launched by Kurds and Shias seeking regime change, as well as further uprisings in 1999. After reconsolidating his hold on power, Saddam pursued an Islamist agenda for Iraq through the Faith Campaign.
In 2003, a US-led coalition invaded Iraq, falsely accusing him of developing weapons of mass destruction and of having ties with al-Qaeda. Coalition forces toppled Saddam's regime and captured him.
During his trial, Saddam was convicted by the Iraqi High Tribunal of crimes against humanity and sentenced to death by hanging.