WI: Saddam Hussein dies in 1959

[Mort the Reaper]

On October 7, 1959, an attempt on the life of Iraqi dictator Abd al-Karim Qasim was made by assassins sent by the Iraqi Ba'ath Party, allegedly with backing from Gamal Abdel Nasser. Among the assassins was a young man named Saddam Hussein. While Saddam was shot in the assassination attempt, the wound wasn't fatal and he managed to escape.

But what if Saddam had died that day?

 

[Byzantion]

On October 7, 1959, an attempt on the life of Iraqi dictator Abd al-Karim Qasim was made by assassins sent by the Iraqi Ba'ath Party, allegedly with backing from Gamal Abdel Nasser. Among the assassins was a young man named Saddam Hussein. While Saddam was shot in the assassination attempt, the wound wasn't fatal and he managed to escape.

But what if Saddam had died that day?

The future Baathist would produce other strongmen and coupists likely.

 

[Resurgam]

The future Baathist would produce other strongmen and coupists likely.

True, but they could have been wildly different than Hussein, leading to wildly different Iraqs and therefore Middle Easts.

 

[Captain Homicide]

True, but they could have been wildly different than Hussein, leading to wildly different Iraqs and therefore Middle Easts.

Authoritarian strongmen are a dime a dozen but after reading a biography of Saddam I can say with certainty he was unique as far as dictators go. He was scarily competent and politically astute (not all the time obviously) like few other dictators are.

An Iraq under a generic strongman President for life would be much different from an Iraq under Saddam just like Germany under Goering would be a world apart from Germany under Hitler.