Saddam Hussein has been the dictator of Iraq since 1979. He was born in a village just outside Takrit in April, 1937. In his teenage years, Hussein immersed himself in the anti-British and anti-Western atmosphere of the day. At college he joined the Baath party when he was a university student and in 1956 took part in an abortive coup attempt.

Saddam Hussein launched his political career in 1958 by assassinating a supporter of the Iraqi ruler. When the conspiracy was uncovered, he fled the country. In 1963, with the Baath party in control in Baghdad, he returned home and began jostling for power. During this time, he married his cousin Sajida. They later had two sons and three daughters.

Within months of returning, the Baath party was overthrown and Hussein was thrown in jail. He remained there until the party returned to power in 1968. He rose within the ranks after a Baath coup and gained a position on the ruling Revolutionary Command Council. For years, he was the power behind the ailing President and by 1979 became the leader of Iraq.

For years, Hussein has kept the diversity of Iraq (Kurds in the north, Sunni Muslims in the center, and Shiites in the south) together through an iron hand using torture and execution.

In 1980, Saddam Hussein ordered a surprise cross-border attack on Iran. What followed was a devastating and protracted war with Iran. Eight years later, with hundreds of thousands of war casualties, Hussein agreed to a cease-fire.

Then in August 1990 Iraqi forces invaded Kuwait. A U.S.-led alliance defeated Iraqi forces in the Gulf War which ended in February 1991. Hussein insists that the "Mother-of-All-Battles" ended in victory for Iraq. Since 1991, Saddam Hussein has ignored sixteen U.N. resolutions calling for him to disarm his country of biological, chemical, and nuclear weapons.

©2003 Probe Ministries.

About the Author

About the Author

This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it is National Director of Probe Ministries International. He holds masters degrees from Yale University (science) and from Georgetown University (government). He is the author of several books, including Christian Ethics in Plain Language, Genetic Engineering, Origin Science, and Signs of Warning, Signs of Hope. His new series with Harvest House Publishers includes: A Biblical Point of View on Islam and A Biblical Point of View on Homosexuality. He is the host of "Point of View" (USA Radio Network) and regular guest on "Prime Time America" (Moody Broadcasting Network) and "Fire Away" (American Family Radio). He produces a daily syndicated radio commentary and writes editorials that have appeared in papers such as the Dallas Morning News, the Miami Herald, the San Jose Mercury, and the Houston Post.

What is Probe?

Probe Ministries is a non-profit ministry whose mission is to assist the church in renewing the minds of believers with a Christian worldview and to equip the church to engage the world for Christ. Probe fulfills this mission through our Mind Games conferences for youth and adults, our 3-minute daily radio program, and our extensive Web site at www.probe.org.

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