American Groups Protest Saddam Hanging in Times Square

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NEW YORK (AP) – Groups of Americans opposed to either the death penalty or American foreign policy decried Saddam Hussein’s execution on Saturday, including a few dozen activists who protested in Times Square and a handful who demonstrated in Boston.

The small rallies, led by a group affiliated with former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark, was one of several condemnations of the hanging. The Vatican denounced the execution as “tragic.” Activists in Detroit also planned to demonstrate.

Mr. Clark, who leads the New York-based International Action Center and was one of Saddam’s defense lawyers, predicted during the Iraqi leader’s trial that a bloodbath would follow if he was executed. In a statement faxed to The Associated Press, the center said his hanging was part of a plan by President Bush to escalate the war.

At least 68 people died and more than 130 were wounded in two bombings in Iraq following the execution, which took place just before the start of one of the holiest Islamic holidays, Eid al-Adha.

At the Times Square rally, which occurred near a military recruiting station, protester Sara Flounders held up a sign that read “Execution Escalation.”

“We didn’t need this execution. Saddam should have been jailed,” said the Rev. Joel Jang, a Presbyterian minister from Flushing, Queens.

The demonstrators gathered behind a police barricade outside the recruiting station, which has been a magnet for anti-war protests. The rally did not disrupt the flow of tourists or preparations for Sunday’s massive New Year’s Eve celebration.

In Boston, about five protesters stood in light snow outside of the Marine Corps recruiting building and passed out printed statements to the few people that walked by. Protesters referred to the execution of Saddam Hussein as U.S. sponsored murder. They also called for an immediate withdrawal of American troops from Iraq.

Making no claims about Saddam’s guilt or innocence, Steve Kirschbaum, a member of the International Action Center, said the execution was a “serious violation of international law … a legal lynching.”

Saddam’s execution has led to mixed reactions in the United States, with plenty of Americans – including many Iraqi-Americans – saying it was justice well served.

Clark, a former Marine who served as attorney general for three years in the 1960s, has assailed the trial. He said the Iraqi Special Tribunal – trained and funded by the United States – is an illegal entity and did follow proper legal procedures.

“The execution of Saddam Hussein is a clear sign that the Bush administration is looking not to negotiate a way for the U.S. to leave Iraq, but is instead sending a signal that it will continue the war and escalate it despite the impending disaster,” the International Action Center said in a written statement.


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