Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
New York Times
June 11, 2008 By Andrew E. Kramer
BAGHDAD — The leader of Saddam Hussein’s tribe was killed by a bomb on Tuesday, after he had spoken publicly in favor of reconciling with the government in Baghdad.
Sheik Ali al-Nida, head of the Albu Nasir tribe that dominated the government under Mr. Hussein, was killed by a bomb attached to his car, the police said.
The bomb detonated while the sheik was driving near his home in the village of Awja, also Mr. Hussein’s hometown, about six miles south of Tikrit. The blast also killed two bodyguards, according to a police official who was not authorized to speak publicly about the killing.
Sheik Nida was known as a moderate among Sunni tribal leaders, in spite of his ties with the former government. Still, he had never joined the pro-American tribal alliances known as the Awakening Councils. And when the Iraqi government executed Mr. Hussein in December 2006, he was among those who claimed the body for burial.
Recently, Sheik Nida received menacing phone calls accusing him of treason, the police said. He fled to Syria but later returned.
Under Mr. Hussein’s rule, members of the Albu Nasir tribe occupied the senior posts in the Baath Party and the government. They were also part of the insurgency in northern Iraq after the overthrow of the government.
In spite of the ostensibly modernizing ideology of the party he led, Mr. Hussein always retained a strong tribal identity, bearing three tattooed dots on his wrist identifying himself as a member of Albu Nasir.
June 11, 2008 By Andrew E. Kramer
BAGHDAD — The leader of Saddam Hussein’s tribe was killed by a bomb on Tuesday, after he had spoken publicly in favor of reconciling with the government in Baghdad.
Sheik Ali al-Nida, head of the Albu Nasir tribe that dominated the government under Mr. Hussein, was killed by a bomb attached to his car, the police said.
The bomb detonated while the sheik was driving near his home in the village of Awja, also Mr. Hussein’s hometown, about six miles south of Tikrit. The blast also killed two bodyguards, according to a police official who was not authorized to speak publicly about the killing.
Sheik Nida was known as a moderate among Sunni tribal leaders, in spite of his ties with the former government. Still, he had never joined the pro-American tribal alliances known as the Awakening Councils. And when the Iraqi government executed Mr. Hussein in December 2006, he was among those who claimed the body for burial.
Recently, Sheik Nida received menacing phone calls accusing him of treason, the police said. He fled to Syria but later returned.
Under Mr. Hussein’s rule, members of the Albu Nasir tribe occupied the senior posts in the Baath Party and the government. They were also part of the insurgency in northern Iraq after the overthrow of the government.
In spite of the ostensibly modernizing ideology of the party he led, Mr. Hussein always retained a strong tribal identity, bearing three tattooed dots on his wrist identifying himself as a member of Albu Nasir.