Insightful, penetrating, and shocking, the defining biography of Iraq's deposed tyrant Drawing on an unparalleled network of sources, contacts, and firsthand testimonies, Con Coughlin takes us to the center of Saddam Hussein's complex, bewildering regime -- and beyond. Fully updated and revised, Saddam: His Rise and Fall meticulously describes how Hussein took power and immediately set about controlling every aspect of Iraqi life. Coughlin examines Hussein's regime both before and after its fall, exploring the contradictions of Saddam's private life: his sponsoring of Islamic fundamentalism while whiskey drinking and womanizing as well as his reliance on and celebration of family negated by his violent and temperamental treatment of them. With evidence from family members, servants, and staff, Saddam: His Rise and Fall is unique in its close-up representation of this elusive and secretive world. In all-new chapters and an epilogue, and with shocking new disclosures, Coughlin also vividly recounts the last few months of Saddam's reign and his eventual capture by American forces. “... readers looking for a biography of Iraq’s strongman will need to look no further.” - Publishers Weekly “Coughlin sheds especially valuable light on the viciousness of Saddam Hussein’s early career.” - Foreign Service Journal “...the most sought after biographer of Saddam Hussein.” - Los Angeles Times “.... a timely, detailed portrait of the Iraqi dictator.” - Publishers Weekly Insightful, penetrating, and shocking, the defining biography of Iraq's deposed tyrant Drawing on an unparalleled network of sources, contacts, and firsthand testimonies, Con Coughlin takes us to the center of Saddam Hussein's complex, bewildering regime -- and beyond. Fully updated and revised, Saddam: His Rise and Fall meticulously describes how Hussein took power and immediately set about controlling every aspect of Iraqi life. Coughlin examines Hussein's regime both before and after its fall, exploring the contradictions of Saddam's private life: his sponsoring of Islamic fundamentalism while whiskey drinking and womanizing as well as his reliance on and celebration of family negated by his violent and temperamental treatment of them. With evidence from family members, servants, and staff, Saddam: His Rise and Fall is unique in its close-up representation of this elusive and secretive world. In all-new chapters and an epilogue, and with shocking new disclosures, Coughlin also vividly recounts the last few months of Saddam's reign and his eventual capture by American forces. Con Coughlin, one of Britain's leading journalists, is the executive foreign editor of the Daily Telegraph and a world-renowned expert on the Middle East. He is the critically acclaimed author of the New York Times bestseller Saddam: His Rise and Fall . He appears regularly on television and radio in the United States, and has been a frequent political commentator on CNN, NBC, and MSNBC. He has also written for the Wall Street Journal and the Atlantic Monthly . He lives in London, England. Saddam King of Terror By Con Coughlin Ecco Copyright © 2004 Con Coughlin All right reserved. ISBN: 0060505435 Chapter One The Orphan The young Saddam Hussein had a harsh and deprived childhood. The man who was to become one of the most powerful Arab leaders of modern times came from an impoverished village situated on the banks of the Tigris River on the outskirts of the provincial town of Tikrit. He was born into a poor family in one of the country's most inhospitable regions. At an early age Saddam was orphaned and sent to live with relatives, who oversaw his upbringing and education. No profound knowledge of psychology is required to estimate the effect these circumstances had upon the child's development. As with Hitler and Stalin, those two great tyrants of the twentieth century, both of whom overcame their less than auspicious starts in life to take absolute control of their respective nations, Saddam was to rise above the disadvantages of his childhood to become the undisputed master of Iraq. The shame of his humble origins was to become the driving force of his ambition, while the deep sense of insecurity that he developed as a consequence of his peripatetic childhood left him pathologically incapable in later life of trusting anyone -- including his immediate family. Given the disadvantages of his birth, Saddam deserves credit for overcoming these seemingly insurmountable social obstacles to reach the pinnacle of Iraq's political pyramid. Saddam was born in the village of Al-Ouja, which means "the turning," and is so named because of its location on a sharp bend in the Tigris River eight kilometers south of Tikrit, in north-central Iraq. The village was then a collection of mudhuts and houses and the inhabitants lived in conditions of abject poverty. Amenities such as running water, electricity, and paved roads were unheard of, and althoug