Word: douris
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...Douri, the former Vice-President - the "King of Clubs" in the U.S. deck of cards naming the Saddam regime's most wanted figures - is among several Ba'athist leaders believed to be hiding in Syria, under the protection of the regime of President Bashar Assad. He is believed to be in poor health, possibly suffering from stomach cancer. Nonetheless, al-Douri said the Ba'ath Party has been restructured under his leadership as a "revolutionary, struggle-oriented" organization, in which he plays an influential role...
...Sunni politics confirmed that claim: "He's still in charge, still dedicated to a return of Ba'athist dictatorship," said the official. Although U.S. and Iraqi sources say there have been contacts, usually through intermediaries, with the party's leadership, they insist there can be no deal with al-Douri. "The only thing we will discuss with him is his surrender," says the U.S. official...
...TIME's questions were sent to al-Douri in May through intermediaries, and it's not exactly clear when his written answers, delivered in Arabic and authenticated by trusted sources, were composed - the fact that they refer in the present tense to the terrorist leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi suggest they were written before Zarqawi was killed in June. Al-Douri praises the Qaeda man's "courage, the strength of his faith, and the sacrifices of his fighters," but rebukes Zarqawi's advocacy of mass sectarian killing of innocents...
...Asked about the country's new government, al-Douri said he respects those in the political process who oppose the presence of the U.S.-led coalition force - a reference to Sunni politicians who have been outspoken critics of the U.S. military presence - but urged them to quit the process "because they and the agents, traitors, and spies who are with them are incapable of offering anything to the people while under the occupation...
...rare admission for a senior Ba'athist, al-Douri said the Saddam regime had blundered in its military strategy at the beginning of the U.S.-led invasion. Rather than allow the Iraqi military to confront the coalition forces in open combat, he believes the leadership "should have husbanded the army's strength and means till the second page had been turned." Still, he claims that Saddam's military bounced back, suggesting that elements of the old army are responsible for 95% of insurgent operations against coalition forces...