In Iraq, on December 30, 2006, Saddam Hussein “was hanged in a dank and rancid execution room in the former headquarters of the Istikhbarat, the military intelligence services in the Kadhimain area, a site chosen for its symbolic significance. …The official version of the execution showed a subdued Saddam quietly mounting the gallows. However, a video shot from one of the witnesses’ mobile phones showed an entirely different picture of Saddam’s last minutes. He was seen to be taunted by the guards and some of the witnesses as he mounted the scaffold, all the while maintaining his composure and a remarkable degree of equanimity and courage in the face of certain death.”
– Ali A. Allawi, The Occupation of Iraq, Pages 454-455