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Length: 2:13
PAULA ZAHN: And we are
just hours until polls open in America. And only one
day after former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein was
sentenced to hang, two events that could mean major
changes in Iraq.
Let's turn to Michael Ware, who joins us from Baghdad
to give us a better understanding of what this all
means.
Michael, we know that this verdict will automatically
be appealed. When is the very earliest execution date
that might be in the works?
MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's a
matter for great conjecture, Paula. I mean, there's
some completely unconfirmed reports that the
appellate chamber has said it may hand down its
decision as early as mid-January. However, really
nobody knows, not even the appellate court itself.
The thing to note here, however, is that under the
Iraqi constitution and the pertaining law, there's no
set timeframe for them to make their decision.
Obviously the pressure is on to get it done as
quickly as possible, but there's nothing to force
them to hurry along -- Paula.
ZAHN: Michael, we know that some people in the
country are ecstatic about the possibility he's going
to be hanged, but you also have some of his loyalists
that we have captured pictures of all day long
chanting their allegiance to him. What impact may
this have on the insurgency movement? Might it stoke
it further?
WARE: Most likely not. I mean, by and large, 99
percent of the insurgency is out there fighting for
many, many, many reasons, none of which have anything
to do with Saddam Hussein. Though the military
sometimes like to use the clumsy term "Saddamists,"
they actually don't exist in the insurgency. There's
no one out there fighting Americans to bring back
Saddam.
And whilst there is some lingering support for Saddam
in certain pockets, what you see from the protests is
not so much a rallying call for the dictator himself,
but this is a representation of the Sunni community's
feeling that they are by and large under assault.
ZAHN: Michael Ware, thanks so much for the
update.