No surprise: Khaleej Times

Editor's note: Read the editorial from Khaleej Times, Dubai

SO it’s death for Saddam Hussein. The verdict evidently came as a shock to the accused, despite his histrionics in the court.
It’s hardly surprising given the make-believe world Saddam still inhabits. However, the verdict does not come as a surprise to the people of Iraq and the rest of the Arab and Muslim world.
Honestly speaking, the proceedings of this so-called court and its outcome have been totally predictable. This is nothing but a kangaroo court and the justice it has dispensed is victors’ justice at its worst.
While vehemently condemning Saddam’s crimes against his people and against humanity, we must point out that this trial cannot be seen in isolation of the unjust war that has been imposed on Iraq and its unfortunate people.
Without doubt, the despicable atrocities such as the killing of 148 Shia men in reprisal for a 1982 assassination attempt on Saddam and the gassing of Kurd villages and towns in the northern Iraq are totally unacceptable and the former dictator and his henchmen deserve strongest punishment for those crimes.
However, to maintain the sanctity of justice, it was vitally important that the process to try Iraq’s former leader was flawless and above board. Which hasn’t been the case with the kangaroo court that has presided over one of the most important trials in history.
Saddam is the first leader from an Arab and Middle Eastern country to be deposed and put in the dock like an ordinary criminal. Which is why it was absolutely critical to make the whole process of trying the former Iraqi leader and his men transparent and completely fair. Which hasn’t been the case in this trial.
While the ‘court’ saw a change of three judges during the past one year, two lawyers defending the former dictator and other accused were assassinated, as a warning to others. So this trial had been anything but fair and honest.
Also, the timing of this verdict is significant. It is no coincidence that the Saddam verdict has come two days ahead of the crucial mid-term elections in the US. The besieged Republicans — set to lose big time, according to opinion polls — were desperately hoping for some last minute miracle to rescue them. And the Saddam sentence may have provided them with just that, although it’s doubtful if it can make a huge difference to the Republican prospects.
Back in Iraq, the death for Saddam is going to make little difference to the present or future of Iraqi people.
It’s naïve on the part of the US and the Iraqi government to presume that Saddam’s exit - that is, if it happens indeed — will bring peace to the war-ravaged country. Iraq is stuck with hard times for a long time to come, Saddam or no Saddam.