With Saddam Hussein sentenced to be executed by means of hanging, one can only ask what kind of effect would this have on the war on Iraq. Quite frankly, there are only two visible answers to that question.
It will have no effect, with Iraq eventually tearing itself apart or the citizens of Iraq finally resolving whatever differences there are, and peace will be had. That, however, is the best-case scenario. Worst-case scenario, things get much worse and Iraq gets torn apart from within more quickly, even with an American presence trying to induce stability.
Before the news of Hussein being set to hang, things were getting progressively worse in Iraq. While the violence has been predominately localized in only certain areas, its impact is still significant. The combined casualty count of the Iraqi police over the past two years is around 12,000 (4,000 dead and 8,000 wounded) as reported by the New York Times on Oct. 7.
Seven hundred members of the Iraqi police force have been laid off due to suspicion of complicity with the insurgents, as reported by the Associated Press on Oct. 4. Last month alone, over 100 American soldiers have been killed, making it the bloodiest month in well over a year.
As Iraq descends closer and closer to the possible all-out civil war rather than just small sectarian skirmishes that are localized in certain areas, the announcement of Hussein’s sentencing brought out protests from the Sunni population. It is here where the already virulent situation could potentially get messier for both Iraq and America.
Either the violence increases exponentially and the nation falls into a civil war with America trying to hold back all sides, or it continues on the path it has been going toward either eventual all-out civil war or eventual peace.
Would there be any benefit to Hussein’s execution? There are a couple of things that are good about it. For one, it will be justice for the people who were tortured and killed in Iraq while he was in power. It will be a means of showing that part of the mission in Iraq is done, although the rest of the mission will be rebuilding and stabilizing Iraq.
Also for America, it will be a means of fixing one of its Cold War mistakes. A renewed hope in change is also a possible outcome of the execution.
While there are these good aspects to Hussein’s execution, there still are the problems that were mentioned earlier. Chances are the execution will be more costly in terms of lives and property damage than keeping him alive. Iraq will either continue on its course or be torn apart, and the ones who will suffer the most from either the change, or lack thereof, will be the Iraqi civilians.