Saddam Hussein's tomb is destroyed: Heavy fighting between ISIS militants and Iraqi forces reduces former dictator's burial place to rubble
- Executed dictator's once-lavish tomb is now just a mountain of rubble
- All that remains are the support columns that once held up building's roof
- Hussein's body is understood to have already been removed by supporters
- Tomb was destroyed amid fighting between Islamic State militants and a coalition of Iraqi Army soldier and Shia militias battling to liberate Tikrit
The
tomb of Iraq's late dictator Saddam Hussein has been destroyed in heavy
clashes between militants from the Islamic State group and Iraqi forces
in a fight for control of the city of Tikrit.
Fighting
intensified to the north and south of Saddam Hussein's hometown
yesterday as Iraqi security forces vowed to reach the center of Tikrit
within 48 hours.
Video
from the village of Ouja, just south of Tikrit, shows all that remains
of Hussein's once-lavish tomb are the support columns that held up the
roof. Poster-sized pictures of Saddam, which once covered the mausoleum,
are now nowhere to be seen amid the mountains of concrete rubble.
Rubble: An Iraqi soldier inspects the demolished tomb of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein
Destroyed: An Iraqi soldier takes photos
of the demolished tomb of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein in
Tikrit, 80 miles north of the Iraqi capital Baghdad
Carnage: Video from the village of
Ouja, just south of Tikrit, shows all that remains of Hussein's
once-lavish tomb are the support columns that held up the roof
Instead
of the posters of the executed dictator, Shiite militia flags and
photos of militia leaders mark the predominantly Sunni village,
including that of Major General Qassem Soleimani - the powerful Iranian
general advising Iraqi Shiite militias on the battlefield.
'This
is one of the areas where IS militants massed the most because Saddam's
grave is here,' said Captain Yasser Nu'ma, an official with the Shiite
militias, formerly known as the Popular Mobilization Forces. 'The IS
militants' set an ambush for us by planting bombs around' the tomb.
ISIS
has controlled Tikrit since June, when it waged its lightning offensive
that saw Iraq's second-largest city, Mosul, come under their control.
The
terror group was helped in its conquest of northern Iraq by Saddam
loyalists, including military veterans, who appealed to Sunnis who felt
victimized by Baghdad's Shiite-dominated government.
ISIS
claimed in August that Saddam's tomb had been completely destroyed, but
local officials said that although it was ransacked and burnt, the
building suffered only minor damage.
Conflict zone: Poster-sized pictures
of Saddam, which once covered the mausoleum, are now nowhere to be seen
amid the mountains of concrete rubble
Clear: Iraqi soldiers inspect the demolished tomb of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein yesterday
Reports: ISIS claimed as long ago as
August that Saddam's tomb had been completely destroyed, but local
officials said that although it was ransacked and burnt, the building
suffered only minor damage
Saddam
Hussein was captured by U.S. forces in 2003 and was executed by hanging
in December 2006 after an Iraqi special tribunal found him guilty of
crimes against humanity for the mass killing of Shiites and Kurds.
His body has been kept in the mausoleum in his birthplace, Ouja, since 2007.
The
complex featured a marble octagon at the center of which a bed of fresh
flowers covered the place where his body was buried. The extravagant
chandelier at its center was reminiscent of the extravagant life he led
until U.S. forces toppled him in 2003.
Iraqi
media reported last year that the dictator's body was removed by
loyalists amid fears that it would be disturbed in the fighting. Its
current location is not known.
Iraqi soldiers stand next to the demolished tomb of former Iraqi president, Saddam Hussein yesterday
No entry: An Iraqi soldier stands next to the demolished tomb of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein
Members of Peace Brigades - a Shiite
militia group loyal to Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr - are seen heading
to Tikrit, where Iraqi troops backed by Shiite fighters and Iranian
advisers are fighting Islamic State extremists
Recapturing
Tikrit, a Sunni bastion on the Tigris River, would pave the way for an
assault on Mosul, which U.S. officials have said could come as soon as
next month.
Concerns
are mounting that Iraq's Shiite militias, of which an estimated 20,000
are fighting in Tikrit, will carry out revenge attacks on this and other
areas that are home to predominantly Sunni residents.
Amnesty
International last year said the militias wear military uniforms but
operate outside any legal framework and without any official oversight,
adding that they are not prosecuted for their crimes.
Earlier
this month, Human Rights Watch echoed those concerns, calling on the
Iraqi government to protect civilians in Tikrit and allow them to flee
combat zones. Its statement noted 'numerous atrocities' against Sunni
civilians by pro-government militias and security forces.
Shiite
militants are increasingly being accused of leveling the Sunni towns
they capture from the Islamic State group, making it impossible for
residents to return. Tikrit has already been heavily damaged in months
of violence.
Members of Peace Brigades sit with their weapons in an armored vehicle as they leave Baghdad for Tikrit
Young volunteer militia posing for pictures before going into battle against Islamic State fighters in Tikrit
Innocent: A young boy displays a white
flag as he passes through a checkpoint manned by Sunni fighters who
have joined Shi'ite militia groups allied with Iraqi forces against the
Islamic State
A
satellite image of Tikrit, released last month by the United Nations,
observed that at least 536 buildings in the city have been affected by
the fighting, with at least 137 completely destroyed and 241 severely
damaged.
Local
Sunni tribal fighters have formed uneasy alliances with the Iraqi army
and Shiite militias in the battle for Tikrit, which Iraqi and U.S.
officials believe is essential for defeating the Sunni militant group.
Yazan
al-Jubouri, a Sunni from Tikrit fighting alongside the Shiite militias,
said that the Islamic State militants killed 16 of his relatives and
kept his family living in horror.
'We want to take revenge on those IS militants who killed our children,' he said.
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