Justice Accomplished!

At long last, Saddam is dead, hanged for his crimes against the Iraqi people.

Saddam Hussein, the former Iraqi dictator who spent his last years in captivity after his ruthless Baathist regime was toppled from power by the U.S.-led coalition in 2003, was hanged Saturday for crimes committed in a brutal crackdown during his reign, a witness said.

"Saddam's body is in front me," said an official in the prime minister's office when CNN telephoned. "It's over."

In the background, Shiite chanting could be heard. When asked about the chanting, the official said, "These are employees of the prime minister's office and government chanting in celebration."

A witness to the execution reported that celebrations broke out after Hussein was dead, and that there was "dancing around the body."

Not only was there dancing around the body, but also in Iraqi-American communities.

And celebrations broke out in Iraq as well.

I'll post more pictures/video of the big event when they becomes available.

UPDATE 1 -- 7:30 AM CST: Pictures added.

UPDATE 2 -- 8:00 AM CST: At least one local Dem blogger and party activist (connected enough to be admitted to our incoming Congressman's hospital room) appears troubled that it was Saddam swinging and not members of the Bush administration.

According to Raw Story, Saddam Hussein will die tonight. After 3 years of war, almost 3000 American soldiers killed, 20,000+ wounded, our reputation around the world badly damaged, hundreds of thousands of Iraqis killed, and after spending almost $500 Billion of our tax dollars, we finally got Saddam hanging from a rope.

We should be so proud.

Tonight Saddam will be swinging from a rope and struggling for his last breath of air, while the ghouls across the country are waiting for the video to hit YouTube.

And yet the undeniable fact will remain that the only person who didn't lie about weapons of mass destruction will be hanging from the end of the rope.

And those that did will not.

UPDATE 3 -- 2:00 PM CST: Hot Air has video from FoxNews.

MORE AT Michelle Malkin, Captain's Quarters, Tammy Bruce, Liberty Papers, Sensible Mom, Ed Driscoll, bRight & Early, A Blog For All, PoliBlog, Anchoress, Patterico, Gay Patriot, Hot Air, TelChai Nation, Gateway Pundit, JammieWearingFool, Jawa Report

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In light of his new book, one would think Carter would have something to say about this wall.

Or is it only the Israeli security fence that offends his sensibilities?

A country has chosen to build a wall to stop the flow of militants from crossing its border and creating terror and havoc in two countries.  Some critics say that the real problem is the tolerance of militants by a government that claims to be fighting them. Sound familiar?

Has Jimmy Carter been heard from to condemn this human rights atrocity? So far, no. After all this would be a wall built by Pakistan on its long border with Afghanistan.

I guess when Muslims build a wall to keep out Muslim terrorists, it is a good thing -- it's only when Jews defend themselves from Muslim terrorists that such barriers become a problem.

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An independent voice in Venezuela is about to be silenced by the government for its active opposition to the government of strongman Hugo Chavez.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has said he will not renew the licence for the country's second largest TV channel which he says expires in March 2007.

In an address to troops, Mr Chavez said he would not tolerate media outlets working towards a coup against him.

Radio Caracas Television, which is aligned with the opposition, supported a strike against Mr Chavez in 2003.

But the TV's head said there must be some mistake as its licence was not up for renewal in the near future.

Marcel Granier also vowed to fight against the president's plans in Venezuela's courts and on the international stage.

The BBC's Greg Morsbach in Caracas says Mr Chavez has repeatedly threatened to take the TV off the air but has never given a date.

The move could help silence some of his critics in the media who have been a thorn in his side for several years, he says.

Mr Chavez, who was returned to power by a wide margin on 3 December, said Mr Granier was mistaken in believing "that concession is eternal".

"It runs out in March. So it's better that you go and prepare your suitcase and look around for what you're going to do in March," he said during a televised speech to soldiers at a military academy in Caracas.

"There will be no new operating licence for this coupist TV channel called RCTV. The operating licence is over... So go and turn off the equipment," Mr Chavez said.

So opposition to the government is now grounds for lifting broadcast licenses in Venezuela -- and there is no appeal from the heir-apparent to Fidel among Latin American human rights violators.

But Chavez isn't a dictator -- just ask America's leftists!

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This Christmas day finds yet another front against the forces of the Anti-Christ jihadi terror -- this one involving Somali Islamists fighting against the legitimate Somali government and neighboring Ethiopia

Ethiopian fighter jets bombed Somalia's main airport Monday, the first direct attack on the city that serves as the headquarters of an Islamic movement attempting to wrest power from the internationally recognized government. Another airport also was hit nearby.

Russian-made jets swept low over the capital at midmorning, dropping two bombs on Somalia's main airport, which recently reopened after the Islamic takeover of Mogadishu. An Associated Press reporter who arrived shortly after the strike saw one wounded woman taken away. The runway and one building used by the Islamic forces were damaged.

Shortly afterward, Baledogle Airport, about 60 miles outside Mogadishu, was hit, an Islamic soldier said. There were no reliable casualty reports available for either attack.

"The Ethiopian government is bombing non-civilian targets in Somalia in order to disable and prevent the delivery of arms and supplies to the Islamic courts," said Bereket Simon, an adviser to Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi. Ethiopia and the Somali government have long accused the Islamic council of recruiting foreign fighters into its ranks.

The Ethiopian attacks have the support of the legitimate Somali government, which has long accused the Islamists of being reinforced by foreign jihadis, and the bombings were intended to keep the Islamist forces from being re-supplied.

For their part, the Islamists have had the following to say about the attack.

The Somalia Islamic Courts Council's (SICC) Web site hailed "mujahideen" troops who, it said, chanted passages from the Koran as they went into battle against militarily superior Ethiopian "crusaders".

So let there be no question about who and what the SICC is, and why they seek to destroy the legitimate Somali government (which is secular) and Christian Ethiopia.

MORE AT Tammy Bruce & Liberty Papers

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The Madman of Teheran now prophesies for his false god.

"The oppressive powers will disappear while the Iranian people will stay. Any power that is close to God will survive while the powers who are far from God will disappear like the pharaohs," he said Wednesday, according to Iranian news agencies.

"Today, it is the United States, Britain and the Zionist regime which are doomed to disappear as they have moved far away from the teachings of God," he said in a speech in the western town of Javanroud.

"It is a divine promise."

The time is now at hand to act against this maniac, before he has a chance to bring his nuclear plans to fruition -- if he hasn't already.

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James Baker was part of one sell-out of the Kurds after the Gulf War. Now his Iraq Surrender Group has proposed another sell-out by seeking to appease those who fight America at the expense of those who cooperate with America. Kurdish leader Masrour Barzani urges the United States to reject such a solution.

The Iraq Study Group's recommendations will accomplish nothing in Iraq. Its expressions of "gratitude" to those of us Iraqis who fought on the battlefield for freedom and liberty ring hollow. The report ignores our accomplishments, dreams and sacrifices in favor of a concern for those whose ultimate goal is the destruction of democracy.

Our federal constitution, which the majority of the Iraqi people voted for, is treated flippantly, as though it were a negotiable document rather than the hard-fought result of lengthy negotiation among those willing to participate in the new Iraq. Further, the study group's approach is driven by the concerns of the countries in this region rather than by the concerns of the Iraqi people.

Many Iraqis, especially the Kurds, are justifiably concerned about this. No one from the study group visited Iraqi Kurdistan, which the group admits is safe and pro-American, and where there has not been a single U.S. casualty since the war. Kurds not only fought alongside Americans but lost some of our best men to American friendly-fire incidents. Yet we staunchly support the work of the coalition and are eternally grateful for the sacrifices the American people have made for our future.

The report is right to acknowledge that part of the problem in Iraq is America's inability to distinguish friend from foe. Unfortunately, Baker-Hamilton fares even worse in this regard. This comes as little surprise, since it was partly written by those who orchestrated the saving of Saddam Hussein in 1991.

Remember -- the Kurds have steadfastly supported US efforts to bring freedom and democracy to Iraq. They have paid a terrible price for those efforts, as the United States has abandoned them in the past.

Once again Kurds are about to be sold out. Should the U.S. administration adopt the recommendations of Baker-Hamilton, the Kurds will be sacrificed to protect the interests of Iraq's neighbors. We were massacred in 1975 and 1991 by Saddam Hussein because we thought that our commitment to democracy and tolerance made us natural U.S. allies. We responded then, as we did four years ago, to American calls for the introduction of a new era in the region. Like Americans, we dream of a better future for our children, one in which they can grow up without deformities caused by chemical attacks on our villages.

Baker, Hamilton, and the Iraq Surrender Group have a different vision -- negotiate with America's enemies even if that means that America's friends once again pay the price of our failure to stay the course, honor our commitments, and support our allies.

Iraq's constitution should be treasured. Iraq's neighbors should not be allowed to violate our sovereignty. Democracy and federalism are the popularly chosen basis of the new Iraq. Never again should Kurdish wealth be stolen to finance genocide against the Kurdish people.

While Kurds welcome American troops into their homes, Baker-Hamilton proposes that the United States revise its policies to meet the demands of those firing at its soldiers. According to the study group, we are all part of "a problem" that needs fixing, and we are equally unworthy of America's protection.

Don't sell us out to our authoritarian neighbors and those who are terrorizing our communities. We agreed democratically to participate in this project because we were guaranteed the rights needed to protect our people. We Kurds are asking President Bush and America to remember the sacrifices we have made to keep your loved ones safe in Iraq. We are asking you to keep a promise where those before you have failed.

We must stand by the Kurdish people, and all the peace and freedom loving Iraqis. We must finish what we started, resolute in the assurance that our course is correct and our goals are proper. If we do not, we show the world one clear truth -- the United States is not to be trusted, and American promises and commitments will not be honored when the going gets tough. In short, the decision that faces America is stark -- will we continue to be a great nation which stands with our allies, or will we simply be an impotent joke with which others ally themselves at their own peril?

Interestingly enough, the top leader of Iraqi Shiites has come out in support of US efforts to work with a coalition of Iraqi forces to isolate extremists, rather than negotiate with those who bankroll those who seek to bring down the US-backed government.

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So -- do we have the will to stop their nuke program NOW?

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Saturday his country was ready to transfer nuclear technology to neighboring countries, nearly a week after Arab states on the Persian Gulf announced plans to consider a joint nuclear program.

Ahmadinejad told a top Kuwaiti envoy he welcomed the decision by the Islamic republic's Arab Gulf neighbors to pursue peaceful nuclear technology, state-run television said.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran is prepared to transfer to regional states its valuable experience and achievements in the field of peaceful nuclear technology as a clean energy source and as a replacement for oil," state media quoted Ahmadinejad as telling Mohammed Zefollah Shirar, a top adviser to the Kuwaiti emir.

Unfortunately, we know that the Iranian program is not peaceful -- and that the Iranian leader has implicitly threatened to use nukes to wipe Israel off the map. Do we act -- or do we allow the situation to continue on, permitting Ahmadinejad to complete the work that he denies Hitler began?

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Will the Tyrant of Havana soon be residing in Hell? According to US intelligence sources, Satan's minions are probably preparing a particularly warm spot for Fidel as you read these words.

Cuban President Fidel Castro is very ill and close to death, Director of National Intelligence John D. Negroponte said yesterday.

"Everything we see indicates it will not be much longer . . . months, not years," Negroponte told a meeting of Washington Post editors and reporters.

Castro relinquished power for the first time in 47 years after surgery July 31 for an undisclosed intestinal disorder.

So start chilling that champagne -- and get the necessary supplies ready to celebrate Cuba libre with Cuba Libre.

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One more consideration for the Iraq Surrender Group supporters and other cut-n-runners.

Saudi Arabia has told the Bush administration that it might provide financial backing to Iraqi Sunnis in any war against IraqÂ’s Shiites if the United States pulls its troops out of Iraq, according to American and Arab diplomats.

King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia conveyed that message to Vice President Dick Cheney two weeks ago during Mr. CheneyÂ’s whirlwind visit to Riyadh, the officials said. During the visit, King Abdullah also expressed strong opposition to diplomatic talks between the United States and Iran, and pushed for Washington to encourage the resumption of peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, senior Bush administration officials said.

The Saudi warning reflects fears among AmericaÂ’s Sunni Arab allies about IranÂ’s rising influence in Iraq, coupled with TehranÂ’s nuclear ambitions. King Abdullah II of Jordan has also expressed concern about rising Shiite influence, and about the prospect that the Shiite-dominated government would use Iraqi troops against the Sunni population.

A senior Bush administration official said Tuesday that part of the administrationÂ’s review of Iraq policy involved the question of how to harness a coalition of moderate Iraqi Sunnis with centrist Shiites to back the Iraqi government led by Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki.

So, "realists", what is your solution to this one? Personally, I support partition, with the US and coalition forces playing peace-keeper between three states -- Sunni, Shi'a and Kurd.

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I think this says all that needs to be said about the status of human rights in Cuba.

Dozens of government supporters broke up a silent march by a small group of dissidents marking International Human Rights Day on Sunday, roughing up participants and accusing them of being mercenaries of the U.S. government.

The activists led by physician Darcy Ferrer tried to keep walking around the park, but they were eventually forced out of the park and they fled in taxis.
"Long live Fidel and Raul!" the government loyalists chanted, referring to ailing leader

Fidel Castro and his brother. "Down with the worms!"
"They are mercenaries!" some of the loyalists shouted of the dissidents.
The government supporters were waiting for the activists at the park before the march started.

So what we have here is an organized effort to prevent the exercise of human rights. And yet somehow our left-wing countrymen and women find it impossible to criticize the Castro regime for its human rights abuses.

But hey, the left-wingers of the “cultural elite” see Cuba as such a wonderful place – despite the fact Cubans lack the freedom to criticize Cuba’s government that these American Mercedes Marxists use to undercut the United States.

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The words of Hezbollah’s leader would seem to imply that, since that is how jihadis like Hezbollah deal with individuals seen as collaborators with Israel – and Saniora’s response seems likely to confirm the implicit sentence of death.

Prime Minister Fuad Saniora denounced Hezbollah and its leader on Friday in an unusually personal attack, a day after the guerrilla group's chief renewed his pledge to bring down the U.S.-backed government.

The prime minister and Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah had traded barbs in the past, mostly through aides or supporters, but their recent remarks descended into direct attacks for the first time. The escalation of rhetoric marked a sharp turn in Lebanon's political crisis and further stoked the tensions between the two sides that threatens to tear the country apart.

"What we've seen yesterday was an unnecessary fit of anger and rudeness that we don't accept," Saniora told hundreds of supporters at his heavily fortified office complex where he has been holed up since the opposition launched street protests on Dec. 1 to bring down his government.

He accused Nasrallah of threatening a coup and said the protests will lead nowhere. Emboldened by international support for his U.S.-backed government, Saniora has repeatedly insisted he would not give in to the demonstrations.
In a rousing speech delivered Thursday night on huge screens in central Beirut, Nasrallah accused Saniora of conniving with Israel during its monthlong war with Hezbollah last summer. He claimed Saniora ordered the Lebanese army to confiscate Hezbollah's supplies of weapons - his sharpest attack on the prime minister since the August cease-fire that ended the fighting.

"Didn't the prime minister of Lebanon work to cut off the supply lines?" Nasrallah asked.

He said government officials had asked American envoys to persuade Israel to destroy Hezbollah: "Those are the ones responsible for the war, not the resistance."

We know that Hezbollah is nothing more than a Syrian and Iranian proxy, and that Syria has been killing Lebanese leaders for years in an effort to keep the country in turmoil. Let’s make it clear that any action against Saniora – and continued funding of Hezbollah – will be grounds for action against the Baathist government of Syria and Islamofascist government of Iran, which the “realists” of the Iraq Surrender Group see as partners for peace in the Middle East.

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Why should we expect good-faith in future negotiations if one of the party rejects every past agreement?

Earlier Friday, Haniyeh vowed that the Hamas government would never recognize Israel and would continue to fight for the liberation of Jerusalem.

"The world's arrogance (US) and Zionists ... want us to recognize the usurpation of the Palestinian lands and stop jihad and resistance and accept the agreements reached with the Zionist enemies in the past," Haniyeh told thousands of Friday prayer worshippers at Teheran University.

The United States is pressing the Hamas-led Palestinian government to recognize Israel, renounce violence and form a national unity government with Fatah in a bid to revive the peace process with Israel.

"I'm insisting from this podium that these issues won't materialize. We will never recognize the usurper Zionist government and will continue our jihad-like movement until the liberation of Jerusalem," he said.

So we have one more element of the Iraq Surrender Group/Israel Sell-out Group plan collapsing before our very eyes. So much for “realism”!

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Why should we expect good-faith in future negotiations if one of the party rejects every past agreement?

Earlier Friday, Haniyeh vowed that the Hamas government would never recognize Israel and would continue to fight for the liberation of Jerusalem.

"The world's arrogance (US) and Zionists ... want us to recognize the usurpation of the Palestinian lands and stop jihad and resistance and accept the agreements reached with the Zionist enemies in the past," Haniyeh told thousands of Friday prayer worshippers at Teheran University.

The United States is pressing the Hamas-led Palestinian government to recognize Israel, renounce violence and form a national unity government with Fatah in a bid to revive the peace process with Israel.

"I'm insisting from this podium that these issues won't materialize. We will never recognize the usurper Zionist government and will continue our jihad-like movement until the liberation of Jerusalem," he said.

So we have one more element of the Iraq Surrender Group/Israel Sell-out Group plan collapsing before our very eyes. So much for “realism”!

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But so-called "realists" consider this Holocaust-denying loon an excellent partner for peace in the Middle East.

"These oppressive countries are angry with us ... a nation that on the other side of the globe has risen up and proved the shallowness of their power," Mr Ahmadinejad said in a speech in the northern town of Ramsar.

"They are angry with our nation. But we tell them 'so be it and die from this anger'. Rest assured that if you do not respond to the divine call, you will die soon and vanish from the face of the earth," he said.

Hey, Mahmoud -- Allahu F*ck You!

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