Iraqis don’t know where is Saddam’s body, but Indians exhume it every year!

coastaldigest.com web desk
April 20, 2018

Within a day after his execution on the first day of Eid ul-Adha on December 30, 2006, the mortal remains of the dethroned Iraqi president Saddam Hussein were buried in a tomb in his birthplace, Al-Awja (near Tikrit), about 95 miles north of the capital city of Baghdad.

Reports say that then-US president George W Bush had personally authorized the immediate transfer of the slain leader’s body on an American military helicopter from Baghdad to the northern city of Tikrit. 

Sheikh Manaf Ali al-Nida, a leader of the Albu Nasser tribe to which Saddam's clan belongs, held on to a letter his family signed when they received the body, agreeing that Saddam be buried without delay. The place turned into a richly-adorned pilgrimage site to which supporters and groups of local school children would flock on his birthday, April 28, every year.

However, in March 2015, the mausoleum where the grave of Saddam lies was partially destroyed in an Iraqi air strike after the Daesh group, the so-called Islamic State (IS), posted snipers on its roof. This attacked fuelled a series of theories on the mortal remains of Saddam.

Some believe that hours before the air strike on the mausoleum, a Sunni tribal group shifted his body to a secret location, fearful of what may happen.  Shaikh Nida was not there to witness the blast — but he is convinced that Saddam's tomb was "opened and blown up". On the other hand, one of his fighters speculated that Saddam's exiled daughter Hala had flown in on a private plane and whisked her father's body away to Jordan. Jaafar al-Gharawi, the Hashed's security chief, argue that the body is still there. 

Today, visitors need special authorization to enter, the site lies in ruins, and Sheikh Nida has been forced to leave the village and seek refuge in Iraqi Kurdistan. 

Amidst all these confusions, some of the ardent fans of Saddam Hussein believe that he’s still alive. According to them it was one of Saddam’s body doubles who was hanged.

Indians, Pakistanis keep exhuming the body!

On the other hand, thousands of miles away, in countries like India, Pakistan and Bangladesh people keep spreading “miraculous” rumours about Saddam’s body through social media in general and WhatsApp in particular.

For past few days a morphed image of the smiling face of Saddam has been going viral on WhatsApp groups in these countries. The image also bears a caption: “Saddam’s body was exhumed today. Even 12 years after his burial the body was in same condition. People were surprised to see his smiling face.” Ironically, similar messages had gone viral in this part of the world in April 2017 and Apirl 2016 too!

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News Network
May 6,2024

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Several women, believed to be victims of Prajwal Revanna, have left their homes in Karnataka's Hassan district over the last ten days, according to media reports.

These departures reportedly come amid fear and stigma after their identities became public due to the circulating video clips showing the women who were allegedly sexually assaulted by Prajwal Revanna.

"The entire district is in H D Revanna’s control. You speak ill about them and chances are high that it will reach them, because the family and the party have a large following," a shopkeeper in Hagare - 20 km from Hassan – was quoted as saying by the news paper. 

Hassan is the bastion of the JD(S) supremo Deve Gowda, and Prajwal, his grandson, is the sitting MP.

The family of the woman whose complaint was the basis of the first FIR against Prajwal has now left their home, the publication reported, citing a neighbour who said, "The woman worked at Revanna’s house as a house help. Some of her videos started to circulate and then, her house was seen locked. We don’t know when she left."

Notably, a former Zilla Panchayat member has also filed a rape case against Prajwal, and in that village many women who worked for the party formerly are now incommunicado, a JD(S) leader told the publication. "We noticed many of the party women deleting their photos with Prajwal on social media. In some instances, men are questioning their wives about their association with the MP. It is shattering the lives of many women in the district," he said.

The local leader added that the former Zilla Panchayat member was there on April 24, but no one had seen the family since the videos came out.

The case is currently being probed by an SIT team and when they reached the Revanna residence, party workers were reportedly heard talking about the women. "I know this woman, she lived close to our residence and was very active in JD(S) activities. Her house is locked… she has small children," one said, as per IE.

Another shopkeeper added, "It was really wrong to reveal the faces of the women. I know some of them, and they have gone into hiding. We don’t know whether they can return."

He noted that it is impossible to survive in Hassan while fighting a case against the Revanna family.

While Prajwal's father, H D Revanna is in SIT custody, a Blue Corner notice has been issued against the sitting MP.

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News Network
May 12,2024

Mangaluru, May 12: In a shocking development, a group of pilgrims which had travelled from Mangaluru International Airport to Saudi Arabia earlier this month, to perform Umrah has alleged that 26,432 Saudi Riyals, which were kept in a bag, have been stolen. 

In a complaint submitted to the Bajpe Police, Soukath Banu, wife of Ahmed Iqbal of Ajyad Tours and Travels, said that her husband, Ahmed Iqbal, along with 35 members, planned and scheduled to perform the Umrah and were travelling from Mangaluru International Airport (MIA) via Mumbai to Jeddah. 

Soukath Banu had given Ahmed Iqbal 2,000 Saudi Riyals for performing Umrah and other expenses. The group members were also told to bring Saudi Riyals to meet their expenses.

In her plaint, Soukath stated that the group had left for Jeddah on an IndiGo flight via Mumbai, and their return ticket to India was booked for May 13. 

At the airport, she said that 26,432 Saudi Riyals were collected in total, and they decided to keep them in baggage that had a lock. Accordingly, it was kept in the bag of Mohammad Badruddin Kadambar. The airport staff had even questioned what he had kept in the bag. 

The group reached Jeddah on May 1. To their surprise, Kadambar found that the baggage lock was broken open, the zip was damaged, and cash was stolen upon reaching Jeddah.

DCP (Law and Order) Sidharth Goyal said that following the complaint, one round of CCTV checks was conducted at the MIA along with the CISF personnel. The loading at the MIA was intact.

Further checks have to be carried out at Mumbai and Jeddah Airport as the victim found out that cash was missing only when they got the bag at the final destination, he added.

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News Network
May 10,2024

Mangaluru: A teenage boy from a remote village in Dakshina Kannada district, who was undergoing treatment for stomach pain for past few days, breathed his last after hospitalization. 

The deceased has been identified as Nithin Kumar, 19, who had completed PUC and was attending computer classes. 

According to police, on May 4, when he informed his family that he had been suffering from a stomach-ache for the past 4-5 days, his family members took him to a clinic in Kaniyoor.

The doctors who examined him advised him to undergo scanning. He was informed about a kidney stone and later, they returned home. That same night, he suffered from stomach-ache again and was rushed to a private hospital in Puttur.

On May 7, as per doctors’ advice, he was discharged around 12:45pm. However, when he came home around 2:30pm, he again suffered from stomach-ache and was taken to another private hospital in Puttur, where doctors conducted a surgery.

On Wednesday, as per doctors’ advice, he was asked to be shifted to Mangaluru for better treatment.

He visited a private hospital in Derakatte, where doctors suggested that he be shifted to government Wenlock Hospital.

The doctors who examined him at the Wenlock Hospital declared him dead. A case has been registered at the Bellare police station, and an investigation is on.

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