President Saddam Hussein Receives  Top Party and State Officials on Eid - al - Fiter

 5, Dec . 2002

H.E. President Saddam Hussein received in audience, the top party and state officials offering their congratulations on the blessed Eid-al-Fitr; May God, blessed be His name, convey on our beloved leader, our steadfast people, and the glorious Arab nation, and all Muslims, His blessings, grace, compassion, and omnipotence.

On this honorable occasion, H.E. the President received Mr. Izzet Ibrahim, vice-chairman of the Revolution Command Council (RCC); Messers. Taha Yasseen Ramadhan, and Taha Muhiddine Marouf, the vice-Presidents; Mr. Tariq Aziz, Deputy Prime Minister; the Comrades members of the national leadership of the Arab Baath Socialist Party (ABSP): Dr. Abdul Majeed Al-Rafiee, Badr-Uddine Mudather, and Dr. Elias Farah; the members of the RCC, the combatant General Ali Hasan AL Majeed, and Mezban Khider Hadil; Dr. Sadoun Hamadi, speaker of the National Assembly; the comrades member of the ABSP Regional Leadership, a number of comrades former members of the RCC, and the Regional Leadership; Messrs. Hikmat Ibrahim Al-Azzawi, and Abdul Tawab Al-Mulla Huwaish, the two deputy prime ministers; the members of the Cabinet, and the members of the General Commend of the Armed Forces.

The Officials offered their congratulations, and their sincerest, most loyal blessings to H.E. the President on this happy occasion, imploring the Almighty to bestow on H.E. a long life, crowned with good health, and well being, and to provide him with the means of vigor, and ability to lead the people of Iraq to the shores of integrity, and gracefulness, to provide for them an honorable, free life, and to save Iraq and its people from the evil doings of those evil ones, turning their ill-intention onto their own chests, For God is the best to protect, and the best to help.

H.E. the President, in reply, congratulated his comrades and brothers, imploring the Lord of Heaven and Earth to make their days and the days of all Iraqis, a true Eid, resplendent with good deed, and victory with the help of God. The President said:

I wish you all well with every Eid, and implore the almighty that all your affairs, and circumstances shall be better in the coming year; that you shall not face any difficulties of a type you are well aware of, and that the rock they throw at you shall fall on their heads God willing; we also implore God that Arabs, Muslims, and all the faithful on the face of the Earth shall be better, and the evil doers, wherever they might be in a worse state, God willing .

Greetings to all the comrades and welcome.

Then Mr. Izzet Ibrahim said:

A thousand congratulations to you on this Eid and all other Eids. Indeed, all the days of Iraq are festive, thanks to the giant, historic march led by the comrade President, for over 33 years now in Iraq, the land of Arabism and Islam, the land of faith, Jihad, and sacrifice for the sake of the nation, its principles, and noble values.

Godly greetings to you, Sir, a pioneer, and a fine example for Arab men and Iraqi Mujahideen in all walks of life, in the Jihad and defense of the homeland, the nation and mankind, as well as in construction, development, and the buildup of civilization and history that match our nation’s glorious history.

Godly greetings to you Sir and to your great people. Greetings are also due to the nation which is today marching behind you with all its Jihadists and combatants, behind the banner that has remained in your firm, faithful hand high and glorious, while other banners, in all parts of the world, folded down before this arrogant, disgraceful tyrant, whose aim is to destroy all humane values and ideals, which have been chosen for man by God, ever since He created him on this Earth.

I praise the almighty God, and congratulate myself and my party comrades, first because God has bestowed on us this great, historic leader. Allow me please to relate a remark which is profoundly indicative of what we are witnessing. I see, and this is life’s natural course, that the valiant knights and the Jihadists, while in the midst of their concerns, do not see what is achieved by their efforts, their Jihad, and sacrifices. Those who are outside the confines of battle, or seeing from afar, see more than those embroiled in the battle. A few days ago I met a group of Iraqi opposition figures who were outside the country but chose to declare a patriotic, jihadist stand behind the leader, in line with Iraq’s march, although they, like other opposition members outside the country used to raise the slogan of western- type democracy in our life and orientation. Yet, they said they renounced this western-type democracy, which doesn’t suite Iraq, because Iraq is a historic country carrying a historical responsibility ever since God created it and planted man on its land. Thus only a historic leader is fit for Iraq, and this historic leader is Saddam Hussein. They also said that they now have a belief in Iraq, democracy, patriotism, and patriotic efforts on that basis, namely Iraq is a historic country; the people of Iraq a historic people, the leader of Iraq is a historic leader, and that Iraq can not contribute anything without a historic leader. Praise is due to God for bestowing on Iraq, at this stage, a historic leader to stir and revolutionize the historical and creative message-based factors embedded inside the people of Iraq and the nation as a whole, through the Iraqi people and leadership.

This is how we are, my beloved comrade , the brave, chivalrous, faithful leader, who believes in all the values coveted by God for man on the face of this Earth, which you, along with your comrades, and people have become the only ones defending them. That’s the state we are in today under your glorious, historic leadership. Our days are all festive Eids, because the day of festivity is that which is the day when the actively-involved Mujahid receives his reward, and that’s why he rejoices on the day of receiving the reward. But we are rewarded every day for the great efforts made by the Iraqis, of all categories, and in all their institutions, and organizations, as a result of your historic leadership, and your profound, comprehensive guidance on all aspects and fields of life.

Every day, week, and month we have  a historic achievement, making all our days festive occasions. But the Eid, coming at the end of Ramadhan, is a historic, traditional occasion, celebrated and rejoiced over, traditionally and legally, by the whole nation. And that’s what makes us observe it, and talk about it . Otherwise, all our days are festive. But life for the faithful is a process of self-preparation for the afterlife, by achieving civilized progress, glory, and making history for mankind in general, and the nation in particular. For this reason their best days in this life are those of Jihad, struggle, progress, and challenging evil in order that goodness may prevail and triumph, and challenging infidelity so that right will prevail. This is my understanding of the Eid, and how I see the Iraqis and the nation’s Eid at this stage.

Congratulations to you on this day, Sir, with the hope that you shall always lead this nation, through the great  people of Iraq, who have been formed by God in a specific way, even within our nation which was formed in a particular way in relation to others. Thus, our people were recognized by the early accomplishers by the fact that they represent the skull of the Arabs, meaning the Arab’s active mind, which America feels so frightened by it today, and is terrorized by this creative mind, which is a treasure of faith for the nation and humanity, and God’s spear on Earth, or rather , the spear that defends all other values and ideals. This is Iraq, Sir. Congratulations to you because of Iraq, and congratulations to Iraq because of you. May you always be well, and may you be well with each victory. We, on the other hand, cannot present what might aspire to fit your leadership except to say that our aim, in this respect is martyrdom, God willing.

The president, in answer to the words of  Mr. Izzet Ibrahim, said:

“ I find in you, and in our people all that is good and blessed. You have been eloquent comrade. May God bless you, and my best wishes to all of you, brothers and comrades.

For some 700 years, and up to our present times, Iraqis were described by those who come in contact with them for a short time, or rather they used to describe themselves too, that they have little patience. But this façade doesn’t reflect their true character because patience, in addition to being a historic accumulation inherited, along with other characters, by the people, its basic tenet is practice, training, and preparation. On this basis, God almighty made patience, in a faithful man’s life a Jihad. It is viewed inside a man’s self in the light of the depth, nature, and level of the objective in sight. If the objective is grand, a man’s spirit is geared up to absorb and accommodate the duties of this superior objective. If it is deep, the spirit is geared up and readied to assume its duties on the basis of the objective’s depth as is the case with other aspects of life. But when the aims are small and ordinary, the patience is likewise small. When they are far-fetched, they require extra-ordinary efforts to accomplish, thus patience is proportional to the depth of the aims too.

Now that what has happened has been described on numerous occasions, and how it happened that Baghdad’s position and influence changed to something different from what it was, and since the duties of the Iraqi people were no longer collective, and the Iraqi people no longer assuming the status of a model for the nation, without being given a leadership role by it, the aims became ordinary, that is part of everyday chores and small details of life. Thus, the people never gave up their patience which was one of their characters, because whoever can build the Hanging Gardens, and the extensive network of rivers throughout Northern and Southern Iraq in that far away past, must have been patient. The same can be said about those who constructed those famous historical landmarks, although the building material in Iraq ,particularly in central and Southern Iraq did not do justice to us, because clay was used in the construction of temples, palaces, and other buildings, albeit sometimes, bitumen was used with the clay very early, since more than 3000 years. For this reason, not all these historical monuments which were constructed by the Iraqis were invoked , except in very subtle ways, throughout the period leading to the July Revolution, and even more recently than that, in a way indicating they were no ore than heaps of soil and sand that could be identified only in a historical sense. So, it would be said that Babylon was in this place, and other civilizations and their landmarks were there, and so on. Out of all the Ashnuna civilization in the Diyala Governorate, nothing is left except some hills, such as Tel Asmar, Tel such and such…etc.

Therefore, whoever could build all this and have all these civilizations, because whenever a certain civilization collapsed anew one was resurrected, must have had considerable patience too.

Before the Revolution, and during the underground period of struggle, we used to count on this. After the Revolution, and while we were musing and thinking of all the accomplishments that were tackling our imagination, having depended on God to serve the people, we found nothing but the patience of the Iraqi people to guide us in our daily life, which could be counted upon. Thus, our main storehouse was derived from history, supported by all the landmarks mentioned earlier, such as the canals network built during the Islamic era, and the role of the Iraqis in delivering the message to where it had reached in the East, in addition to their other roles.

We had all this before us, compelling us to say the Iraqis have patience.

But the factors that would make them invoke and alert the sense of patience inside themselves for a collective mission, and a lofty , profound objective were missing in the previous periods. However, when those factors were invoked, their sense of patience became as you have seen, in addition to their ability for creative work, and their capacity to carry the banner and the sword to achieve and defend the principles of the nation.

The Iraqis, of whom we are part, do not like the colors falling between white and black, except in clothes, and in certain aspects of nature. But in the case of making a stand and taking a position, they like to deal with their enemies standing in one trench, and the enemies in another, with a distance separating the two trenches long enough to avoid overlapping. That’s why you find them ingenious in using the sword , but are not always good at maneuvering. It seems that this is a trait born out of a people’s history, but at the same time long practice can become partly a credit in this respect.

Thus, you have been tested in all fields, and have come out successful, before God, your nation, and your people. Now, however, you are being put to test in a new field, but you will come out successful. By that I do not mean being able to bear the evil injury inflicted by the enemy, relying on the patience of Iraqis, because if we act like that we shall then be as if we were in the same category like others, who find pretexts in the superior ability of the enemy, over them. Thus, they resort to patience, which for some is tantamount to withdrawal under the guise of patience, not a reassembly, or mobilization of forces to make them act in a new framework, and with superiority at a later stage.

Thus  we are entering a new field: plain evil, and plain cowardice by the parties who are supposed to present an opinion and make a stand, not in defense of Iraq, because Iraq doesn’t need any party to defend it, as it relies on God almighty, and whoever relies on God, Who is the all powerful, unmatched by any other power, will not, as I believe, diminish his faith or his ability, to the point where he would seek help from others, except when his faith fervor overtakes him, making him go searching for a field in which he could rekindle his spirit, his mind and conscious, to reassert himself by the ability of his faith, and his intimate ties to the nation. This is considered a duty for those who come to perform it, or to do it while they are in their environment. It is likewise a duty on whoever is doing it, within the framework of humanity, because it is a humanitarian duty.  

Iraq, in a humanitarian sense , put up a defense on behalf of every honest, patriotic person, in the face of the unjust , arrogant, debased American tyranny, and bore the brunt of 12 years of fighting, aggression and the well known embargo. The Iraqis put up a defense on behalf of every honest, or wanting to be an honest person, who wishes to get rid of the injurious cocoon that tries to defile his patriotism, and his honorable position. The Iraqis put up a defense on behalf of all the people on this earth. Whoever is overtaken by fervor under the aegis of humanity, or by his calculus of strategic interests, to adopt a position that is not one of weakness, surrender, or cowardice shall not be doing Iraq a favor, for his favor shall be for himself  and humanity. But, still we shall look with favor at whoever adopts such a stand.

Thus, you are facing a new test, which should mean that we show our capacity for bearing, so that our enemies could say “ no one is better than the rest”. No, because our status, with the grace of God, is as it has been, and we shall never forsake it. We cast our lot with the good people, and refuse to line up alongside the weaklings, that is making concessions to the point where we would be described as being weak, God forbids. The basis, however, as was explained by the letter of the Foreign Minister, is to keep our people out of harms way amid an international situation that some might claim that we didn’t give them the proper chance to resist, with tangible evidence, the American allegations that Iraq produced weapons of mass destruction during the period of the inspectors absence. For that reason, we shall provide them with such a chance, after which if the weaklings remain weak, and the cowardly remain  coward, then we shall take the stand that befits our people, principles, and mission. Victory will be yours always, God willing, as will be the superiority in faith, which is the basis of every type of superiority in life, for he whose faith is not superior, shall not supercede.

God’s salutations to the comrades, and to the people of Iraq, who are a valiant, combative, honest symbol and the upholder of well known principles and chivalry  in the defense of the principles of the nation, and humanity.

Yes, like what the comrade deputy chairman said, it’s as if we are living continuous festivities, as we feel it inside ourselves, because we know what this stand means in the calculus of integrity, faithfulness, the proper role, and the great reward awaiting the Iraqi people, so that theirs will come from God, the Merciful, the Beneficent. Your people are great, God willing.

Godly salutes to your comrades, and may God salute the people of Iraq, and the nation.

Lest we miss one very important thing, it is imperative that we hail our heroic people of Palestine, hailing in particular the Jihadist spirit of those willing to sacrifice their lives to defend the nation and mankind too.

Although there is great hope in the Arab nation everywhere, Iraq and Palestine present the model to humanity in two images: the first is the image of the abilities of a people relying on God, invoking the great meanings inside themselves, and in the horizon they are seeking. The second is the image of this debased, criminal hegemony, that of the Zionist-American alliance; the ugliness of this image contrasting with the splendid image presented by Iraq from early times, and still upholding it, and the people of Palestine, who are still upholding it. These heroic, Jihadist people, both men and women, children and the elderly, are projecting these two images every day: the image of a faithful, God-relying human being, contrasting with that of the evil doers, so that there is no longer any one believing, inside himself,  regardless of the policies of politicians, in the American slogans, with which he had been deceived.

 I say this very confidently, though I do not know what is inside other peoples hearts or how and what they are thinking of, but I say it because it is the state of every human being, who is honest and truthful towards himself, humanity, and the world; who is full of patriotism towards his country, when he sees these two pictures, the excesses, and the evil aggression, committed daily in a way that never happened before in the history of mankind, even during the distant past, like that of Hulago, Genghis Khan, and their likes, who I believe , did not commit more than what the criminal Zionists are presently doing in Palestine. I also do not think there are a people who have presented a model loftier than what the Palestinians are presenting now inside Palestine, with such resistance under the prevalent circumstances. The Iraqis have presented their model, as confirmation of all those common principles, for when mankind  struggle against injustice to reaffirm a right cause, all of it would assemble , in one line, while differences remain understandable, recognized, and sometimes necessary.

Your patience, brothers and comrades, and that of the Iraqi people is noteworthy, but your anger , and revolt are also great when the situation calls for it. However, for every situation there is an answer, for every phase there is a certain behavior , and for every action there is a reaction.

God bless you,

And  congratulations, with best wishes.