Israel kills Saddam Hussein in 1998

In 1992 the Israeli military planed an Operation code named "Bramble Bush" the idea was that IDF commandos, would cross out of Israel, into Jordan and than to Iraq and attacking Saddam Hussein while he was at his uncle's funeral, however during rehearsal for the operation there was a live fire accident leading to 5 deaths in front of than IDF chief of staff Ehud Barak so the plan was canned, it was brought back in 1998, this time by the Mossad, under the name Bramble Bush II this time it was canned due to American and British bombing of Iraq in Operation Desert Fox and worries that it'd hurt the Israeli-Arab peace process, but what if it hadn't been, what if Mossad some time in 1998 ambushed and killed Saddam Hussein?
 
Oh, I think Israel whacking Saddam during the Iraq War would cause all kinds of interesting butterflies.

I just think it makes the Iraq War uglier for the Americans, it gets panted as an Israeli front (which happened any ways)

I think 1998 is more interesting because Saddam was weak but not weak enough to be pushed over, his base was divided, also though his older son (Uday) had long been sliding out of Saddam's favor and a 1996 attack had left Uday with a bad limp (something seen as antithetical to a Arab Strongman) Saddam's second son, Qusay, wasn't named heir apparent till 2000, Uday was barking mad I could see a civil war between the brothers
 
I just think it makes the Iraq War uglier for the Americans, it gets panted as an Israeli front (which happened any ways)

I think 1998 is more interesting because Saddam was weak but not weak enough to be pushed over, his base was divided, also though his older son (Uday) had long been sliding out of Saddam's favor and a 1996 attack had left Uday with a bad limp (something seen as antithetical to a Arab Strongman) Saddam's second son, Qusay, wasn't named heir apparent till 2000, Uday was barking mad I could see a civil war between the brothers

If the movie "The Devils Double" is to believed I would pray that Qusay wins any such civil war.
 

Paul MacQ

Donor
Well I am thinking it would be more interesting if Bramble Bush 1992. happened. and the power struggle back then.
 
I think 1998 is more interesting because Saddam was weak but not weak enough to be pushed over, his base was divided, also though his older son (Uday) had long been sliding out of Saddam's favor and a 1996 attack had left Uday with a bad limp (something seen as antithetical to a Arab Strongman) Saddam's second son, Qusay, wasn't named heir apparent till 2000, Uday was barking mad I could see a civil war between the brothers

There's not going to be a civil war. Uday never had any real power in the regime (quite simply, he couldn't be trusted enough) whereas Qusay controlled the Republican Guard and the internal security service since an internal reorganisation of the regime after the Gulf. Eveyerone knew that Uday was bonkers and he's not going to get any support except from a few personal die-hards. Qusay was never officially named heir apparent as far as I know btw, he didn't really need to be.

This would be an absolutely nutty thing for the Israelis to do btw, certainly in 1998 anyroad.
 

Hyperion

Banned
There's not going to be a civil war. Uday never had any real power in the regime (quite simply, he couldn't be trusted enough) whereas Qusay controlled the Republican Guard and the internal security service since an internal reorganisation of the regime after the Gulf. Eveyerone knew that Uday was bonkers and he's not going to get any support except from a few personal die-hards. Qusay was never officially named heir apparent as far as I know btw, he didn't really need to be.

This would be an absolutely nutty thing for the Israelis to do btw, certainly in 1998 anyroad.

This of course is if they even get caught carrying out the hit or admit after the fact to a successful kill.

If Saddam goes, aside from his sons, it should be quite fascinating, in a horrifically sickening kind of way, to see what happens to the rest of his inner circle. Maybe with daddy dead and out of the way, and the children prepared to possibly kill each other to take power, some of the generals or other bureaucrats might decide they need or deserve a bigger slice of the pie themselves.
 
This of course is if they even get caught carrying out the hit or admit after the fact to a successful kill.

I doubt they'd be able to successfully pop off Saddam, certainly by 1998, when he'd already been through many failed assasination attempts, most notably at Dujail, and his internal security was well acclimatised to this kind of thing. That being said, it won't be hard for people to piece together things and come to a reasonable conclusion even should they be successful. It is nigh-on impossible to perform a totally traceless assasination, and Mossad do not, shall we say, have a greatly professional track record in this department.
 
i imagine if they succeeded, then iraq would probaly decalre war against isreal (if found out), mabye bringing in the arab league again...be interesting to see how the clinton administration wouldve reacted, as well as the un

itd probaly butterfly away 9/11, but some mass terrorism plot would still happen, either in reataliation for deafeat or as a warning
 
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