Fedayeen say they earn �50 bonus for every soldier killed
by Mark Franchetti of the sunday times in Nasiriya
Bribes are the last line of defence
MEMBERS of the militia headed by Saddam Hussein�s psychopathic son Uday and assigned to some of the Iraqi forces� most ruthless operations have been promised a cash bonus equivalent to four months� wages for each coalition soldier they kill.
The Fedayeen Saddam have been told to expect 250,000 dinars (about �50) for shooting a soldier dead and 500,000 dinars for taking one alive. The men are promised 750,000 dinars for destroying anything from a four-wheel-drive vehicle to a tank, and 1m dinars for bringing down a plane or helicopter.
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During the past two weeks, the fedayeen � often dressed in civilian clothes � have enhanced their notoriety by using women to report on enemy positions and children as human shields.
The man ordered to undertake a suicide mission confessed under interrogation that he had intended to blow up a target south of Baghdad, and had been given drugs to strengthen his resolve. Hidden under his clothes, wrapped in tinfoil, were five sets of small white pills which have now been sent to America for tests.
A marine interrogator said more and more drugs were being found on fedayeen captives prepared to die in their attacks on American forces. �They hide the pills in their clothes; sometimes they sow them into a sleeve or in the back of their jacket.
�These are very strong drugs. They are meant to get the suicide attacker excited shortly before a mission. It gets them psyched up.�
The captive provided the Americans with an unusual insight into what drives the fedayeen. A man from a poor background, with next to no education, he needed little persuasion from recruiters offering money and status. He spoke of Saddam as a �father� and said he had received training in small arms, explosives and urban guerrilla tactics.
�They choose them very carefully,� said a marine officer. �They look for young, impressionable men who have little in their life.
�They look after them, making them feel they owe everything to Saddam and the fedayeen. It�s not unlike a religious cult. Once they�re in, it�s very difficult to get out.�
by Mark Franchetti of the sunday times in Nasiriya
Bribes are the last line of defence
MEMBERS of the militia headed by Saddam Hussein�s psychopathic son Uday and assigned to some of the Iraqi forces� most ruthless operations have been promised a cash bonus equivalent to four months� wages for each coalition soldier they kill.
The Fedayeen Saddam have been told to expect 250,000 dinars (about �50) for shooting a soldier dead and 500,000 dinars for taking one alive. The men are promised 750,000 dinars for destroying anything from a four-wheel-drive vehicle to a tank, and 1m dinars for bringing down a plane or helicopter.
>>
During the past two weeks, the fedayeen � often dressed in civilian clothes � have enhanced their notoriety by using women to report on enemy positions and children as human shields.
The man ordered to undertake a suicide mission confessed under interrogation that he had intended to blow up a target south of Baghdad, and had been given drugs to strengthen his resolve. Hidden under his clothes, wrapped in tinfoil, were five sets of small white pills which have now been sent to America for tests.
A marine interrogator said more and more drugs were being found on fedayeen captives prepared to die in their attacks on American forces. �They hide the pills in their clothes; sometimes they sow them into a sleeve or in the back of their jacket.
�These are very strong drugs. They are meant to get the suicide attacker excited shortly before a mission. It gets them psyched up.�
The captive provided the Americans with an unusual insight into what drives the fedayeen. A man from a poor background, with next to no education, he needed little persuasion from recruiters offering money and status. He spoke of Saddam as a �father� and said he had received training in small arms, explosives and urban guerrilla tactics.
�They choose them very carefully,� said a marine officer. �They look for young, impressionable men who have little in their life.
�They look after them, making them feel they owe everything to Saddam and the fedayeen. It�s not unlike a religious cult. Once they�re in, it�s very difficult to get out.�
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