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Now when does he animate Iraq's finest talk show ?
raqis' mixed response to return of Comical Ali
By afp in Baghdad
Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf on television yesterday
The re-emergence of Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf, the former Iraqi information minister, has received a mixed reaction from the cafes of Baghdad.
Mr al-Sahhaf, nicknamed “Comical Ali” for his defiantly optimistic assessments of the progress of the Iraq War, was interviewed on two Arab television channels yesterday.
Clients at the Hajj Ali cafe in downtown Baghdad abandoned their domino games as he appeared on al-Arabiya and Abu Dhabi TV. Mr al-Sahhaf came across as a subdued version of his old self, looking thinner and with his hair turned white.
Wissam al-Ani, who runs the Hajj Ali café, said: “He looked like an older version of the once almighty minister. He looked much thinner, more tired and his hair is now all white.
“He aged in two months. It’s like it is his older brother."
Ahmed Jassem, an elderly customer at the café, said it proved al-Sahhaf did “not have the means to import expensive hair dying products.
He said: “I am happy to see him without his hair dyed. He now looks more normal and serene. It is as if he removed the ugly mask of the Saddam regime.”
Various rumours have circulated in recent weeks concerning Mr al-Sahhaf’s whereabouts, with some saying he had fled to neighbouring Syria, others insisting he was at the Iranian Embassy, and most believing he was at his sister’s house in Baghdad.
Mr al-Sahhaf confirmed reports that he had been detained and interrogated by US coalition forces before being released. He is not on the list of the 55 Iraqis most wanted by the United States.
Many Iraqis now denounce Mr al-Sahhaf, in spite of his popularity during the war.
Abdel Hussein al-Shummari, a grocer, described him as being: “As big a liar as the Americans who said they were coming to liberate us when they were just coming to steal our oil and left our country in complete chaos.
“At first we believed him, but then we saw that he continued to say that the 'uluj are not in Baghdad', when in fact we were watching them in Baghdad with our own eyes."
He admitted: “It is probably because we wanted to believe in what he was saying."
Qazem Ali Hussein, a taxi driver, said: “Sahhaf was not really close to Saddam. He was aggressive with people, but was not known to have taken part in the horrible crimes of the former regime."
Salam Khudeir, a translator, said: “It is very important for Sahhaf to come out on television because the Iraqi people are lost. They need to see with their own eyes that the regime in Iraq has changed”.
During the war, Mr al-Sahhaf won fans worldwide for his anti-American defiance, forcing many to search in dictionaries for the meaning of words rarely used in Arabic to insult the Americans.
The most famous expression was “uluj”, the subject of differing definitions on Arab television shows. Suggested meanings include: non-believers; strong, unintelligent people; blood-sucking creatures; and wild animals.
“Uluj” has today become a common reference by the Iraqis to the American occupiers.
Mr al-Sahhaf explained on television yesterday that the expression was an old Arabic word used by Omar Ibn al-Khattab, the 7th century Islamic caliph.
By afp in Baghdad
Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf on television yesterday
The re-emergence of Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf, the former Iraqi information minister, has received a mixed reaction from the cafes of Baghdad.
Mr al-Sahhaf, nicknamed “Comical Ali” for his defiantly optimistic assessments of the progress of the Iraq War, was interviewed on two Arab television channels yesterday.
Clients at the Hajj Ali cafe in downtown Baghdad abandoned their domino games as he appeared on al-Arabiya and Abu Dhabi TV. Mr al-Sahhaf came across as a subdued version of his old self, looking thinner and with his hair turned white.
Wissam al-Ani, who runs the Hajj Ali café, said: “He looked like an older version of the once almighty minister. He looked much thinner, more tired and his hair is now all white.
“He aged in two months. It’s like it is his older brother."
Ahmed Jassem, an elderly customer at the café, said it proved al-Sahhaf did “not have the means to import expensive hair dying products.
He said: “I am happy to see him without his hair dyed. He now looks more normal and serene. It is as if he removed the ugly mask of the Saddam regime.”
Various rumours have circulated in recent weeks concerning Mr al-Sahhaf’s whereabouts, with some saying he had fled to neighbouring Syria, others insisting he was at the Iranian Embassy, and most believing he was at his sister’s house in Baghdad.
Mr al-Sahhaf confirmed reports that he had been detained and interrogated by US coalition forces before being released. He is not on the list of the 55 Iraqis most wanted by the United States.
Many Iraqis now denounce Mr al-Sahhaf, in spite of his popularity during the war.
Abdel Hussein al-Shummari, a grocer, described him as being: “As big a liar as the Americans who said they were coming to liberate us when they were just coming to steal our oil and left our country in complete chaos.
“At first we believed him, but then we saw that he continued to say that the 'uluj are not in Baghdad', when in fact we were watching them in Baghdad with our own eyes."
He admitted: “It is probably because we wanted to believe in what he was saying."
Qazem Ali Hussein, a taxi driver, said: “Sahhaf was not really close to Saddam. He was aggressive with people, but was not known to have taken part in the horrible crimes of the former regime."
Salam Khudeir, a translator, said: “It is very important for Sahhaf to come out on television because the Iraqi people are lost. They need to see with their own eyes that the regime in Iraq has changed”.
During the war, Mr al-Sahhaf won fans worldwide for his anti-American defiance, forcing many to search in dictionaries for the meaning of words rarely used in Arabic to insult the Americans.
The most famous expression was “uluj”, the subject of differing definitions on Arab television shows. Suggested meanings include: non-believers; strong, unintelligent people; blood-sucking creatures; and wild animals.
“Uluj” has today become a common reference by the Iraqis to the American occupiers.
Mr al-Sahhaf explained on television yesterday that the expression was an old Arabic word used by Omar Ibn al-Khattab, the 7th century Islamic caliph.
Now when does he animate Iraq's finest talk show ?
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