- BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi
state television aired brief footage on Monday of President Saddam Hussein
smiling and in uniform, the Iraqi leader's second televised appearance
of the day following an earlier speech to the Iraqi nation.
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- In the second, shorter clip, Saddam was shown alongside
his son Qusay, who was silent, meeting the Basra provincial leader of the
ruling Baath party. The group sat around a meeting table.
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- Reuters correspondents familiar with Saddam's past television
appearances said the footage appeared to be fresh.
-
- In his earlier address, Saddam praised Iraqi commanders
including those at Nassiriya and at Umm Qasr, where U.S.-led forces have
faced stiff resistance.
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- There has been intense speculation about Saddam's fate
since the war started last Thursday with air strikes on Baghdad intended
to kill the Iraqi leader.
-
- Some reports have said he may be dead, others that he
was so badly wounded he had to receive a blood transfusion.
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- It was not clear when or where the main 20-minute speech
was delivered, but Saddam's references to the fighting suggested it was
no more than a day or two old.
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