Saddam and sons appear on TV

Bob Graham13 April 2012

Saddam Hussein has appeared on television apparently showering medals and money on his troops who have been fighting in southern Iraq.

The Iraqi leader appeared with his sons Uday and Qusay in video footage of a meeting of military commanders hours after concerted allied bombing tried to knock state television off the airwaves.

It was the first time since the conflict began that Saddam's eldest son Uday, who is responsible for state propaganda, had been shown on television, but as with other, earlier, broadcasts there was no way of telling when the video was made.

Saddam appeared in military uniform, chairing the meeting, while a voiceover said he decorated commanders and troops of army units in Umm Qasr, Al Faw and Nasiriyah for their "heroic" defence.

A separate statement read on Iraqi Satellite Television late last night said that members of the 11th Division killed at Nasiriyah would receive medals and their families would immediately receive two million dinars - about £420.

US intelligence experts have concluded that Saddam survived the first strike of the war and is alive and well in his bunker and in control of his forces. But once again there was nothing in the TV broadcast to add credence to the claim that this was current footage.

Iraqi information minister Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf said that US attempts to cut off TV and radio transmissions have failed. Despite repeated bombings of the Information Ministry and transmitters, the media operation was "as good as it was before" the attacks, he said. He said he and several colleagues helped put out the flames in the ministry, which was struck for the second time in two days, while technicians repaired transmitters.

Iraqi television was off air for about three hours yesterday. Nearly all Baghdad's telephone lines appeared out of action after at least five telephone exchanges were struck. But the city's power supply is intact.

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