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Hussein: War has tarnished U.S.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published July 22, 2006

BAGHDAD - Saddam Hussein said in a letter released Friday that President Bush and pro-Israel groups lied to Americans to justify the Iraq war, and he added that Iran "and its agents" helped facilitate the aggression.

Hussein also urged Americans to "save your country and leave Iraq" in a letter written in prison to the American people and released by his lawyers in Jordan.

"I see that officials of your administration are still lying to you, and they still do not give you a true explanation for the reasons that motivated them to rush on the road of aggression against Iraq," Hussein wrote.

Hussein said seven years of U.N. inspections failed to find evidence that Iraq was still trying to build weapons of mass destruction.

"They also exploited the so-called war on terrorism, which prevailed in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks," to claim a link between Iraq and al-Qaida, Hussein said.

The real reason for the war was to prevent Iraq from pursuing the "legitimate aspirations to develop its economy, culture and civilization," he said.

He said the war had tarnished America's "reputation and esteem" around the world.

"Look at the American citizen, who was used to traveling anywhere he liked and being welcomed in any country he visited," Hussein said. "Nowadays, an American cannot walk outside America unless he has a mine detector. The Department of State issues one warning after another to inform you about the countries that have become dangerous for you."

He said the loss of prestige was due to the "reckless behavior of your government, pushed by Zionism and influential centers of power, which led to the commission of these crimes and scandals in order to attain certain interests which do not include the interest of the American people."

Now, Hussein said, the American people must decide whether to "allow the killing machine to continue grinding the flesh of both the Iraqis and the Americans" or to act "decisively to stop it."

Hussein's trial resumes Monday. He is charged in the deaths of Shiite Muslims in a crackdown after a 1982 assassination attempt against him.

[Last modified July 22, 2006, 00:45:02]