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This is an archive article published on December 15, 2003

Kuwait jokes, Arabs mourn

Sahaf has denied the capture of Saddam Hussein, saying the man who was arrested is the leader of the Afghan Taliban,8217;8217; read a mo...

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Sahaf has denied the capture of Saddam Hussein, saying the man who was arrested is the leader of the Afghan Taliban,8217;8217; read a mock SMS circulated among Kuwaitis on Sunday, within minutes of his capture being announced.

Jubilant at the capture of their arch-foe, text messages were attributed to the former Iraqi Information Minister Mohammad Said as-Sahaf, known for his wildly inaccurate statements on the war in the run-up to Saddam8217;s overthrow.

Iraqi troops invaded and occupied Kuwait in August 1990 before they were driven out by a US-led multinational coalition seven months later.

Arab reactions were tinged with regret that a symbol of Arab defiance against the United States was behind bars.

Some feared Saddam8217;s capture would boost US President George W. Bush, who many Arabs believe has waged a campaign against them and other Muslims after the September 11 attacks. But others said the fight against US occupation would go on.

8216;8216;I only wish it was not the Americans who got him. I don8217;t like Saddam but as an Arab I wouldn8217;t like to see them Americans dragging him around Baghdad,8217;8217; said Syrian student Abdul-Nasser.

8216;8216;Of course it8217;s bad news. To us, Saddam Hussein was a symbol of defiance to the American plans in the region. And we support any person who stands in the face of the American dominance,8217;8217; said Azzam Hneidi, an Islamist member of Jordan8217;s parliament.Reuters

 

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