World reactions to Saddam hanging

Updated at 4.50 pm

The execution of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein on Saturday brought swift reactions from across of the world.   

Following are the main points in initial statements issued by governments and organisations:       

UNITED STATES   

US President George W Bush hailed Saddam's execution as "an important milestone" on the road to building an Iraqi democracy but warned it would not end deadly violence there.   

"Saddam Hussein's execution comes at the end of a difficult year for the Iraqi people and for our troops," Bush said in a statement.   

"Bringing Saddam Hussein to justice will not end the violence in Iraq, but it is an important milestone on Iraq's course to becoming a democracy that can govern, sustain, and defend itself, and be an ally in the war on terror," he said.       

BRITAIN   

Britain said Saddam Hussein had been "held to account" but reiterated its opposition to the use of the death penalty.   

"I welcome the fact that Saddam Hussein has been tried by an Iraqi court for at least some of the appalling crimes he committed against the Iraqi people," said Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett.

"He has now been held to account. The British government does not support the use of the death penalty, in Iraq or anywhere else. We advocate an end to the death penalty worldwide, regardless of the individual or the crime. We have made our position very clear to the Iraqi authorities, but we respect their decision as that of a sovereign nation."         

IRAN

Iran welcomed the execution of its former arch-foe Saddam Hussein, saying his hanging was a victory for all Iraqis, Deputy Foreign Minister Hamid Reza Asefi said, according to the IRNA agency.   

"With regards to Saddam's execution, the Iraqi people are the victorious ones, as they were victorious when Saddam fell," Asefi said.   

Saddam Hussein was universally reviled in Iran for attacking the Islamic republic in 1980, sparking an eight-year war that cost around one million lives on both sides.

PAKISTAN

Pakistan, a key US ally, described the execution as a "sad event" and expressed hope that it would not further exacerbate the security situation in Iraq.

"The execution of former president Saddam Hussein, which can only be described as a sad event, is another poignant reminder of the violence that continues to grip Iraq," the foreign ministry said.

"We hope that this event would not further exacerbate the security situation.

"It remains our earnest hope to see peace, stability and reconciliation so that the people of Iraq regain control of their affairs in a secure environment."

HAMAS

The execution of Iraqi ex-president Saddam Hussein is a "political assassination" and "violates all international laws," the Palestinian ruling Hamas movement said on Saturday.

"Saddam Hussein was a prisoner of war," a spokesman for the Islamist movement, Fawzi Barhum, told media.

"(His) hanging ... is a political assassination that violates all international laws that are supposed to protect prisoners of war." 

Barhum accused the United States of "having crossed all red lines" and denounced Saddam's trial as an "unjust" process.

He also criticised the day chosen for Saddam's execution, just hours before the start of the Muslim feast of Eid Al-Adha.

"The hanging took place on the day of the Eid and this is a message to the Arab street -- the Americans have launched threats to all the Arabs," he said.

KUWAIT

The Gulf state of Kuwait, which was invaded and occupied by Saddam Hussein's forces, said on Saturday the former Iraqi president was executed for committing "crimes against humanity." 

"The execution of Saddam is an Iraqi affair... after he was convicted of crimes against humanity," Minister of Social Affairs and Labour Sheikh Sabah al-Khaled al-Sabah said in a statement carried by the KUNA news agency.

"Kuwait has suffered a lot at the hands of the Saddam regime," the minister said.

Iraqi forces invaded the oil-rich emirate in August 1990 and occupied it for seven months before they were expelled by a US-led international coalition.

Kuwait, which served as a launchpad for US-led forces that invaded Iraq and toppled Saddam's regime in 2003, had demanded the death penalty in an indictment against Saddam for crimes committed during the 1990-91 occupation.

More than 1,000 Kuwaiti civilians were killed and several thousands wounded during the Iraqi occupation.

Saddam's forces also took more than 600 Kuwaitis and third country nationals as prisoners who are now believed to be dead. The remains of more than 300 of them have been identified.

CHINA

China, which opposed the US-led invasion of Iraq, avoided direct comment on Saturday on the execution of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein, state media reported. 

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said merely that Iraq's affairs should be decided by the Iraqi people when asked about Saddam's hanging early on Saturday morning, Xinhua news agency said.

China deflects foreign criticism of its poor human rights record and other issues as interference in Chinese affairs and thus typically avoids directly commenting on sensitive events in other countries.

Saddam was deposed by the US-led invasion in 2003 and convicted of crimes against humanity by an Iraqi court on November 5 and sentenced to death.

"China hopes Iraq can realize stability and deCvelopment at an early date," Xinhua said, quoting the spokesman.

JAPAN   

Japan, a close US ally, said it respected Iraq's decision.   

"This is a decision made by Iraq's new government on the rule of law," a foreign ministry official said. "We respect it."

ISRAEL   

"Justice has been done" with the hanging of Iraqi ex-president Saddam Hussein, a high-ranking Israeli official said on Saturday.   

"We are talking about a man who sparked fire and bloodshed in the Middle East time and again, and who is responsible for the deaths of thousands of people," added the official on condition of anonymity.

RUSSIA

Russia's foreign ministry expressed regret over the execution of toppled Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, saying that international calls for clemency had been ignored, Interfax news agency reported.   

"Unfortunately, the many appeals from representatives of various countries and international organisations for Iraq's authorities to hold back from capital punishment were not heard," a ministry spokesman was quoted as saying.

AUSTRALIA   

Australia, which opposes capital punishment, said it respected Iraq's decision and called the execution a "significant moment" for the country.   

"No matter what one might think about the death penalty, and the government of Iraq is aware of the Australian government's position on capital punishment, we must also respect the right of sovereign states to pass judgement relating to crimes committed against their people, within their jurisdictions," Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said in a statement.   

"He has been brought to justice, following a process of fair trial and appeal, something he denied to countless thousands of victims of his regime."   

"His death marks an important step in consigning his tyrannical regime to the judgement of history and pursuing a process of reconciliation."       

FRANCE   

France, staunchly opposed to the death penalty, said it was a sovereign Iraqi decision and called on the country to work towards reconciliation.   

"France calls upon all Iraqis to look towards the future and work towards reconciliation and national unity. Now more than ever, the objective should be a return to full sovereignty and stability in Iraq," the French foreign ministry said in a statement.    

"France, which like the rest of its European partners advocates the universal abolition of capital punishment, notes the execution of Saddam Hussein on Saturday," the ministry said. "That decision was made by the people and the sovereign authorities of Iraq."       

MALAYSIA/OIC   

Malaysia, the current chair of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), said it risked triggering more bloodshed in Iraq.   

"A lot of people, the international community generally, are not in favour of the hanging and question the due process that took place," Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said.

"We are surprised that they went ahead notwithstanding. I think there will be repercussions. The only thing is we hope they will be able to contain this, because the conflict is not going to end. This is not the answer."

THE VATICAN

The Vatican on Saturday called the execution of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein tragic, saying it could feed a spirit of vengeance.

"There is a risk that it feeds the spirit of vengeance and plants the seeds for fresh violence," Vatican spokesman Frederico Lombardi said.

The hanging of Saddam Hussein, early on Saturday, was "tragic news", he said on Vatican Radio.

"This is a reason for sadness, even if this is about a person who is guilty of serious crimes. The position of the Catholic church, which is against the death penalty whatever the circumstances, needs to be repeated again," he said.

"Putting a guilty person to death is not the way to rebuild justice and reconcile society," Lombardi added.

EUROPEAN UNION

The European Union has condemned the execution of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.   

"The EU condemns the crimes committed by Saddam and also the death penalty," Cristina Gallach, a spokeswoman for Javier Solana, the EU high representative for foreign affairs, said.