Iraq Unveils New City, With Saddam's Stamp on It
May 9, 1999 - 0:0
BAGHDAD, Iraq Iraq has added a new city to its map - a lakeside vacation complex where nearly every brick is engraved with President Saddam Hussein's initials, SH. On Thursday, Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan handed over to Saddam the city's key, shaped like a half-meter (1.5-feet) -long sword made of solid gold. Sprawled along the Al-Tharthar Lake, the Saddamiat al-Tharthar city was built over the last 11 months with little publicity, even secrecy.
Most Iraqis came to know about its existence only when the ceremony for the key's hand over was broadcast on state television Thursday night. State run newspapers published more details of the city Friday. Besides bungalows, many of them on a lakeside promenade, the city includes stadiums, an amusement park, hospitals, parks and a lake view restaurant. Most of the bricks in the buildings are stamped with the Arabic alphabets, saa'd and ha, initials for Saddam Hussein. Officials said the city will be a holiday resort.
The apparent secrecy around its construction was probably to avoid attracting international criticism over extravagant government spending at a time when the country's economy is in a shambles largely due to the UN economic sanctions since 1990. ``The achievement of such a project in such critical time reflects Iraqi people's determination to face the unwarranted aggression'' on Iraq, Ramadan told Saddam before handing over the key.
An engineer who supervised the building said only Iraqi stones, material and labor were used. He spoke on condition of anonymity. Officials refused to say how much it cost to be build the city. It was also not clear if the city will be open to the public as a commercial venture or whether subsidized accommodation will be provided to government employees as a perk, a common practice in the past when Iraq leaned toward socialism.
On Friday, dozens of curious Iraqis drove through a desert highway to see the city, 85 miles (140 kilometers) west of Baghdad. The first impression was striking. From a mile (1.6 kilometers) away one could see a towering bronze statue of Saddam atop a three-story high white stone arch, the gateway to the city. Saddam, in military uniform, is posed with a raised right arms, as if welcoming visitors.
More statues of the president are placed strategically on street intersections in the white colored city. The inescapable shadow of Saddam is nothing new to Iraqis - thousands of Saddam statues and larger-than-life posters dominate streets and public buildings of every Iraqi city, town and village. Most hospitals and stadiums are named for him. The ruins of Babylon, dating back to 500 B.C., have been reconstructed with modern bricks bearing his name.
People visiting the city Friday refused to comment on the necessity of building it, apparently out of fear of retribution. The lake along which the city is built also is artificial, dug out during the days of Iraqi prosperity, before sanctions were imposed to punish Iraq for its 1990 invasion of Kuwait. The lake stored water drawn from the mountains of northern Iraq to irrigate lands that could not be fed by the Euphrates River. A landmark in the city is the Al-Majeed Grand Mosque, large enough to accommodate 800 people.
It is named for Saddam's family. (AP)
Most Iraqis came to know about its existence only when the ceremony for the key's hand over was broadcast on state television Thursday night. State run newspapers published more details of the city Friday. Besides bungalows, many of them on a lakeside promenade, the city includes stadiums, an amusement park, hospitals, parks and a lake view restaurant. Most of the bricks in the buildings are stamped with the Arabic alphabets, saa'd and ha, initials for Saddam Hussein. Officials said the city will be a holiday resort.
The apparent secrecy around its construction was probably to avoid attracting international criticism over extravagant government spending at a time when the country's economy is in a shambles largely due to the UN economic sanctions since 1990. ``The achievement of such a project in such critical time reflects Iraqi people's determination to face the unwarranted aggression'' on Iraq, Ramadan told Saddam before handing over the key.
An engineer who supervised the building said only Iraqi stones, material and labor were used. He spoke on condition of anonymity. Officials refused to say how much it cost to be build the city. It was also not clear if the city will be open to the public as a commercial venture or whether subsidized accommodation will be provided to government employees as a perk, a common practice in the past when Iraq leaned toward socialism.
On Friday, dozens of curious Iraqis drove through a desert highway to see the city, 85 miles (140 kilometers) west of Baghdad. The first impression was striking. From a mile (1.6 kilometers) away one could see a towering bronze statue of Saddam atop a three-story high white stone arch, the gateway to the city. Saddam, in military uniform, is posed with a raised right arms, as if welcoming visitors.
More statues of the president are placed strategically on street intersections in the white colored city. The inescapable shadow of Saddam is nothing new to Iraqis - thousands of Saddam statues and larger-than-life posters dominate streets and public buildings of every Iraqi city, town and village. Most hospitals and stadiums are named for him. The ruins of Babylon, dating back to 500 B.C., have been reconstructed with modern bricks bearing his name.
People visiting the city Friday refused to comment on the necessity of building it, apparently out of fear of retribution. The lake along which the city is built also is artificial, dug out during the days of Iraqi prosperity, before sanctions were imposed to punish Iraq for its 1990 invasion of Kuwait. The lake stored water drawn from the mountains of northern Iraq to irrigate lands that could not be fed by the Euphrates River. A landmark in the city is the Al-Majeed Grand Mosque, large enough to accommodate 800 people.
It is named for Saddam's family. (AP)