Saddam stabbed after execution: report

LONDON: The body of Saddam Hussein was stabbed half a dozen times after he was executed, the head guard of the former Iraqi dictator’s tomb has told a UK newspaper.

The allegation fly in the face of the official version of events, with the Iraqi government claiming that no mutilation took place after Saddam was hanged for crimes against humanity.

Saddam’s execution on Dec. 30, 2006 sparked international outrage when it emerged the dictator was taunted by guards as the noose was put around his neck. The latest allegation could cause similar anger.

“There were six stab wounds on his body,” Talal Misrab was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

Misrab, 45, said around 300 others saw the injuries when the body was buried.

Saddam’s tomb lies in a small village called Al-Awja north of the capital Baghdad where he grew up as a child.

Iraq’s security advisor Mowaffak Al-Rubaie denied the allegation.

“I oversaw the whole process from A-Z and Saddam Hussein’s body was not stabbed or mutilated and he was not humiliated before execution,” Al-Rubaie was quoted as saying.