Saddam's sons Uday, Qusay reburied near his tomb

By Staff
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Tikrit (Iraq), Mar 14: The bodies of Saddam Hussein'sonce-feared sons Uday and Qusay have been disinterred and reburiedoutside the hall where their father was buried after he was hanged inDecember, relatives today said.

In the days after he was hanged, supporters of Saddam made ashrine of his burial site in a hall attached to a mosque in Awja, thevillage north of Baghdad where he was born, flocking to pay theirrespects at the flag-draped marble tomb.

Saddam's two sons Uday and Qusay, killed by US troops in 2003, had been buried in a family plot in Awja's cemetery.

Ali al Nida, head of the Albu Nasir tribe, said they were movedyesterday to a garden outside Saddam's burial hall and reburied besidethe tombs of their uncle Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti, Saddam'shalf-brother, and another former Saddam aide.

''It happened yesterday. We took the bodies from Awja cemetery andwe put them close to the graves of Awad al Bander and Barzan,'' Nidatold Reuters.

Around 10 close relatives were present, he said.

Qusay's son Mustafa was also reburied. Uday, Qusay and Mustafawere killed along with a bodyguard on July 22, 2003 when US soldiersstormed a villa in the northern city of Mosul.

The killing of Uday, a feared rapist and torturer, and Qusay,Saddam's calculating heir apparent, sparked widespread celebration inIraq just a few months after the US invasion that toppled Saddam inApril 2003.

Television pictures from Awja showed three new graves beside the two of Bander and Barzan, all five covered with Iraqi flags.

In contrast to the days after Saddam's hanging, the area was quiet with no crowds of mourners.

Nida said the bodies had been moved in accordance with thefamily's wishes and denied any political motivation or suggestion thatit was to avoid the graves being desecrated.

''It was to gather all the family in one place,'' he said.

The government had initially indicated Saddam's body might lie ina secret, unmarked grave, fearing it could become a pilgrimage site forBaathist rebels and Saddam's Sunni Arabs.

But after lobbying from Saddam's Albu Nasir tribe for the ousteddictator to rest in Awja, a US helicopter flew Saddam's body by nightto Tikrit where it was handed over to his tribe.

Images on the Internet showing Shi'ite officials taunting Saddamas he stood on the gallows sparked fury among those who alreadycomplained his trial was ''victor's justice''.


Reuters>

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