Hussein Kamel
Encyclopedia
Hussein Kamel Hassan al-Majid (lived 1954 — February 23, 1996) was the son-in-law and second cousin of Iraq
i leader Saddam Hussein
. He defected to Jordan
and assisted United Nations Special Commission
(UNSCOM) and International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA) inspection teams assigned to look for weapons of mass destruction
in Iraq.
He married one of Saddam Hussein's daughters, Raghad Hussein
, and lived in Iraq until 1995. On August 7 of that year, Kamel and his wife defected from Iraq, along with Kamel's brother, Col. Saddam Kamel al-Majid
, and the brother's wife, Rana Hussein
, another of Saddam Hussein's daughters. In a September 21, 1995 interview with CNN, Hussein Kamel explained:
Jordan granted asylum to the Kamels, and there they began to cooperate with UNSCOM and its director Rolf Ekéus
, the United States
' CIA
and the British
MI6
. Kamel provided the inspection teams with a wealth of information.
Kamel confirmed what inspectors had been able to ascertain shortly before his defection, that Iraq had operated a biological warfare program prior to the Gulf War
, providing locations for large amounts of undeclared technical documentation. The defection appears to have had a psychological impact in Baghdad
due to uncertainty over what Kamel would reveal: soon afterwards, inspectors were invited to revisit weapons sites and new documents were turned over for examination.
In a January 25, 1999 report to the U.N. Security Council, UNSCOM declared that the history of the Iraqi weapons inspections "must be divided into two parts, separated by the events following the departure from Iraq, in August 1995, of Lt. Gen. Hussein Kamel."
Kamel maintained that Iraq had destroyed its weapons of mass destruction and related programs after the end of the first Gulf War.
.
In February 1996, after intermediaries for Saddam Hussein had assured them that all would be forgiven, Hussein Kamel and Saddam Kamel were convinced to return to Iraq with their wives. Reportedly, immediately upon their return, they were ordered to divorce their wives and were denounced as traitors. Three days after their arrival, on February 23, they refused to surrender to Saddam's security forces and were killed in a 13-minute firefight at a safe house
.
In the build-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Bush administration figures—including George W. Bush
, Dick Cheney
, Donald Rumsfeld
and Colin Powell
—repeatedly cited Kamel's testimony as evidence that Iraq had produced unconventional weapons, though Kamel believed all weapons had been destroyed.
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
i leader Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
. He defected to Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
and assisted United Nations Special Commission
United Nations Special Commission
United Nations Special Commission was an inspection regime created by the United Nations to ensure Iraq's compliance with policies concerning Iraqi production and use of weapons of mass destruction after the Gulf War...
(UNSCOM) and International Atomic Energy Agency
International Atomic Energy Agency
The International Atomic Energy Agency is an international organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy, and to inhibit its use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons. The IAEA was established as an autonomous organization on 29 July 1957...
(IAEA) inspection teams assigned to look for weapons of mass destruction
Iraq and weapons of mass destruction
During the regime of Saddam Hussein, the nation of Iraq used, possessed, and made efforts to acquire weapons of mass destruction . Hussein was internationally known for his use of chemical weapons in the 1980s against Iranian and Kurdish civilians during and after the Iran–Iraq War...
in Iraq.
Biography
Kamel rose through the army ranks to become Iraq's minister of military industries, heading the Military Industrialisation Commission and supervising Iraq's weapons development programs from 1987 and then President Saddam Hussein made him commander of the Iraqi army later on.He married one of Saddam Hussein's daughters, Raghad Hussein
Raghad Hussein
Raghad Saddam Hussein is the eldest daughter of former President of Iraq, Saddam Hussein and Sajida Talfah.-Biography:...
, and lived in Iraq until 1995. On August 7 of that year, Kamel and his wife defected from Iraq, along with Kamel's brother, Col. Saddam Kamel al-Majid
Saddam Kamel
Saddam Kamel Hassan al-Majid was the second cousin and son-in-law of deposed Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.-Biography:He was married to Rana Hussein and was the brother of Hussein Kamel al-Majid .For a time he was head of the Republican Guard...
, and the brother's wife, Rana Hussein
Rana Hussein
Rana Saddam Hussein is the second-eldest daughter of the former President of Iraq,Saddam Hussein and his first wife, Sajida Talfah. Her older sister is Raghad and younger sister is Hala Hussein....
, another of Saddam Hussein's daughters. In a September 21, 1995 interview with CNN, Hussein Kamel explained:
This is what made me leave the country, the fact that Saddam Hussein surrounds himself with inefficient ministers and advisers who are not chosen for their competence but according to the whims of the Iraqi president. And as a result of this the whole of Iraq is suffering. http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9509/iraq_defector/kamel_transcript/index.html
Jordan granted asylum to the Kamels, and there they began to cooperate with UNSCOM and its director Rolf Ekéus
Rolf Ekéus
Carl Rolf Ekéus is a Swedish diplomat. From 1978 to 1983, he was a representative to the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, and he has worked on various other disarmament committees and commissions....
, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
' CIA
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
and the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
MI6
Secret Intelligence Service
The Secret Intelligence Service is responsible for supplying the British Government with foreign intelligence. Alongside the internal Security Service , the Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence Intelligence , it operates under the formal direction of the Joint Intelligence...
. Kamel provided the inspection teams with a wealth of information.
Kamel confirmed what inspectors had been able to ascertain shortly before his defection, that Iraq had operated a biological warfare program prior to the Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, providing locations for large amounts of undeclared technical documentation. The defection appears to have had a psychological impact in Baghdad
Baghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
due to uncertainty over what Kamel would reveal: soon afterwards, inspectors were invited to revisit weapons sites and new documents were turned over for examination.
In a January 25, 1999 report to the U.N. Security Council, UNSCOM declared that the history of the Iraqi weapons inspections "must be divided into two parts, separated by the events following the departure from Iraq, in August 1995, of Lt. Gen. Hussein Kamel."
Kamel maintained that Iraq had destroyed its weapons of mass destruction and related programs after the end of the first Gulf War.
I ordered destruction of all chemical weapons. All weapons—biological, chemical, missile, nuclear—were destroyed. http://middleeastreference.org.uk/kamel.htmlBritain's Foreign Office has stated that they disbelieved this claim, while a March 3, 2003 Newsweek report said that Kamel's revelations were "hushed up" because inspectors "hoped to bluff Saddam [Hussein] into revealing still more." http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/0226-01.htm Kamel's version of events appear to have been borne out in the wake of the 2003 Invasion of Iraq
2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
.
In February 1996, after intermediaries for Saddam Hussein had assured them that all would be forgiven, Hussein Kamel and Saddam Kamel were convinced to return to Iraq with their wives. Reportedly, immediately upon their return, they were ordered to divorce their wives and were denounced as traitors. Three days after their arrival, on February 23, they refused to surrender to Saddam's security forces and were killed in a 13-minute firefight at a safe house
Safe house
In the jargon of law enforcement and intelligence agencies, a safe house is a secure location, suitable for hiding witnesses, agents or other persons perceived as being in danger...
.
In the build-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Bush administration figures—including George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
, Dick Cheney
Dick Cheney
Richard Bruce "Dick" Cheney served as the 46th Vice President of the United States , under George W. Bush....
, Donald Rumsfeld
Donald Rumsfeld
Donald Henry Rumsfeld is an American politician and businessman. Rumsfeld served as the 13th Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under President Gerald Ford, and as the 21st Secretary of Defense from 2001 to 2006 under President George W. Bush. He is both the youngest and the oldest person to...
and Colin Powell
Colin Powell
Colin Luther Powell is an American statesman and a retired four-star general in the United States Army. He was the 65th United States Secretary of State, serving under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African American to serve in that position. During his military...
—repeatedly cited Kamel's testimony as evidence that Iraq had produced unconventional weapons, though Kamel believed all weapons had been destroyed.
External links
- Photo of Hussein Kamel, CBC news.
- Profile: Hussein Kamel, Center for Cooperative Research.
- Interview with Hussein Kamel, August 22, 1995; a transcript of Kamel's debriefing by U.N. weapons inspectors.
- CNN interview with Hussein Kamel, September 21, 1995.
- A Defector's Revelations, Frontline, April 1999.
- John Barry. "The Defector’s Secrets", Newsweek, March 3, 2003.
- "Star Witness on Iraq Said Weapons Were Destroyed", FAIR Media Advisory, February 27, 2003.
- Russ Baker. "The Big Lie", The Nation, March 20, 2003.
- Downing Street Memo - Timeline". 1992 -2005. Read: date 8-22-1995
- Downing Street Memo July 22, 2002 - Secret Minute memo. US and UK Prime minister meeting. "...intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy"
- General Hussein Kamel testimony to UNSCOM August 22, 1995. Also CIA who shares all their intelligency information with MI6 got this report. Including Bill ClintonBill ClintonWilliam Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
and George H. W. BushGeorge H. W. BushGeorge Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
and US and UK administrations that were told this issue.