Editorial: Capture is important step in Iraq

Monday, Dec. 15, 2003 | 9:06 a.m.

The U.S. military's capture of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein on Saturday ended a pursuit that had lasted more than eight months, ever since the United States invaded Iraq and toppled his regime. It was fitting that the tyrant, who once lived in palaces while so many Iraqis lived in squalor and fear under his rule, was discovered hiding in a burrowed hole on a farm near his hometown of Tikrit. It also says a lot about Saddam that, while he was wearing a pistol at the time of his capture, he didn't put up any resistance. This from the same man who for months had urged Iraqis to risk their lives in fighting U.S. soldiers.

It's unclear whether Saddam had been orchestrating the insurgents' military attacks and suicide bombings against U.S. forces, Iraqis, foreign embassies and relief organizations. But the fact that he was on the loose undoubtedly emboldened his supporters and those foreign terrorists who have slipped into Iraq. Saddam's capture is an important step forward in the war in Iraq, but even as President Bush acknowledged on Sunday, this doesn't automatically mean there will be an end to violence in Iraq. In the immediate term, there very likely will be a spate of attacks in revenge for Saddam's capture, as already was seen today as suicide bombers attacked police stations in Baghdad, killing eight people. Still, creating a stable Iraq wouldn't be possible without Saddam's capture or death. Even many Iraqis who opposed Saddam's rule weren't ready to embrace a new I raqi government because of their fear that Saddam and his supporters would one day return to power.

Another thing that is very important is that Saddam was brought in alive, so now he can be put on trial for the crimes he committed against his own people. The Iraqi Governing Council already had decided to create a tribunal to try Saddam and others in his regime who have committed genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. Iraqis are the ones who should deliver justice in these cases.

Saddam's capture does serve as an unsettling reminder, however, that Osama bin Laden still is on the loose. The terrorist leader behind the 9-11 attacks is believed to be hiding someplace along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. Bin Laden's ability to elude capture has had a destabilizing effect on Hamid Karzai's government in Afghanistan -- much like Saddam had been doing in Iraq. The terrorist attacks carried out against Afghanistan's people haven't generated the same level of attention in the United States as those inflicted on Iraq, but they've been devastating nonetheless. Helping bring about democracy and stability to both Afghanistan and Iraq will be difficult, but this past weekend's news out of Iraq is just the kind of development that's been sorely needed.