Saddam Hussein

/ sæˈdæm /

noun

1. See Hussein

Hussein, Saddam

1. Dictator of Iraq who seized power in 1979. With the intent of making Iraq the dominant power in the oil-rich Persian Gulf , Hussein invaded Iran in 1980 and Kuwait in 1990. The latter invasion provoked a military response from the United Nations , led by the United States, which drove Iraqi forces from Kuwait in 1991. ( See Persian Gulf War .)

Notes

Although widely loathed outside the Arab world and feared by most Arab governments, Hussein retains some of his appeal to the Arab masses because of his resolute defiance of the United States and western Europe.

Hussein's cruelty and deviousness have become legendary. He has ruthlessly suppressed both Shi'ite Muslims and Kurds within Iraq; in 1987 and 1988 he authorized poison gas attacks on Kurdish villages.

Example Sentences

Ali fled Saddam Hussein’s Iraq as a 16-year-old fearing for his life.

From BBC

He then traveled to a seminary in Najaf, Iraq, for religious studies, but two years later he and other Shiite students and clerics were expelled by Saddam Hussein’s government.

From Los Angeles Times

The title doubles as a description of Young’s paralysis and the Congressional chambers that voted to authorize President George W. Bush’s use of “pre-emptive force” against Saddam Hussein.

From Salon

It was certainly the first external bombardment of Israel since Saddam Hussein's Scud missiles in 1991.

From BBC

He was also critical of President George W. Bush for failing to have an occupation plan in Iraq after the U.S. military threw out Saddam Hussein in 2003.

From Seattle Times