Saddam Hussein was moments away from being blown to bits Saturday, before he eagerly surrendered.
(CNN) — The soldiers who captured Saddam Hussein talked to reporters Monday about how a mission that seemed similar to others they had been on ended with the former Iraqi dictator in custody. […]
Outside the hovel, the soldiers saw a rug on the ground, pulled it back, and found an 8-inch thick piece of Styrofoam covering a narrow hole that appeared to be 6 to 8 feet deep.
They heard noises from below.
They were about to execute a “clearing procedure” — firing into the hole or dropping a grenade into it — when someone saw upraised hands belonging to a bearded, bedraggled man. The man had a pistol but did not fire it.
When the soldiers assisted the man from the hole, he said, in English: “I am Saddam Hussein. I am the president of Iraq. I want to negotiate.”
The soldiers replied: “President Bush sends his regards.”
So much for his going out in a blaze of glory, the cowardly bastard.
“President Bush sends his regards.”
God I love our troops
“In Tikrit, about 700 people rallied in the centre of town Monday chanting ‘Saddam is in our hearts, Saddam is in our blood.’ U.S. soldiers and Iraqi policemen yelled back: ‘Saddam is in our jail.'”
I love them too.