and do you think this renewed pressure, then, can force, can pressure iran into renewed negotiations? well, this is where history is imperative because there are only a handful of times in the four-decade history of the islamic republic of iran where iran s leaders have done an about-face. the iran-iraq war is one of them. in the first 7 1/2 years of the eight-year conflict khomeini, the founding father of the islamic revolution, said war, war, war until victory. his goal like president bush was to topple the baathist rejeechl saddam hussein in baghdad. he failed. but only after immense cost and immense pressure did he do a 180 and accept a u.n. ceasefire resolution which he like toend accepting which he likened to drinking from a poison chalice. the goal now is to get khamenei, khomeini s successor, to feet pain of the successions and to come to the negotiating table even though he is today saying he will not come and talk with america. so it needs to be maximum pressure for ira
it was ten years ago yesterday or today, depending on the time zone, that u.s. marines pulled town a big metal statue of saddam hussein in baghdad. that wasn t how it was reported at home. i went to baghdad with richard engel in baghdad at the famous hotel when it happened and saw it come down. marines come in. group of iraqis look at them tentatively then start to go after the statue. the statue is like that height, it is tall. there was a guy with a big sledgehammer, wailing at the base of it. they started yanking on it, and it wasn t going anywhere. right. if i wanted to take that down with 100 of my closest friends u it is not going to happen. they start yanking on it,
it was ten years ago yesterday or today, depending on the time zone, that u.s. marines pulled town a big metal statue of saddam hussein in baghdad. that wasn t how it was reported at home. i went to baghdad with richard engel in baghdad at the famous hotel when it happened and saw it come down. marines come in. group of iraqis look at them tentatively then start to go after the statue. the statue is like that height, it is tall. there was a guy with a big sledgehammer, wailing at the base of it. they started yanking on it, and it wasn t going anywhere. right. if i wanted to take that down with 100 of my closest friends u it is not going to happen. they start yanking on it, then the americans said we ll give you a hand, you want to do it, otherwise it will take all day. it wouldn t make local radio in massachusetts. a bunch of people yanked on a statue, it wouldn t come down.
it was ten years ago yesterday or today, depending on the time zone, that u.s. marines pulled town a big metal statue of saddam hussein in baghdad. that wasn t how it was reported at home. i went to baghdad with richard engel in baghdad at the famous hotel when it happened and saw it come down. marines come in. group of iraqis look at them tentatively then start to go after the statue. the statue is like that height, it is tall. there was a guy with a big sledgehammer, wailing at the base of it. they started yanking on it, and it wasn t going anywhere. right. if i wanted to take that down with 100 of my closest friends u it is not going to happen. they start yanking on it, then the americans said we ll give you a hand, you want to do it, otherwise it will take all
the scenes of free iraqis celebrating in the streets, tearing down statues of saddam hussein in baghdad are breathtaking. watching them, one can t help but think of the fall of the berlin wall and collapse of the iron curtain. we are seeing history unfold, events that will shape the course of a country. that was ten years ago on this very day, april 9th, the day u.s. marines helped topple the statue of saddam hussein in baghdad. as you will recall before the statue fell, a marine climbed the ladder, placed an american flag over the face of saddam hussein. less than two minutes later, that was replaced with an iraqi flag, but photographic images of the american flag over his face were already being sent all over the world. today on salon.com, jordan