Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Christopher Graham Remains found at mass gravesites, located near a farm on the outskirts of Al Mahawil, Iraq, May 7, The cruelty of Saddam's regime is evident in its brutality toward Iraqi citizens.
Mass grave sites across Iraq provide further evidence of Saddam's atrocities. Below, the Iraqi people share their stories of brutality, torture, fear, and death. For more personal stories of life after Saddam, visit Liberation Update. For more information on Coalition assistance to protect mass graves, click here. I saw my relatives being tortured. One time, they buried my uncle in the sand up to his neck and left him in the heat.
It was awful to watch. But the worst day was when they came for my father. Even then, I knew I would never see him again. I could feel it. Handcuffed prisoners are executed with sticks of dynamite shoved into their pockets. Screaming men plead for their lives as they are beaten by Saddam Hussein's secret police. Crimson fragments of bodies lie in the street, moments after a huge explosion, to the soundtrack of an Arab lament.
The crowds gather round. People mutter and shake their heads. Then they queue to pay 1, Iraqi dinars about 33p [50 cents] for laser discs containing footage of the appalling scenes. These are the atrocity discs of Iraq, a booming mini-industry in a country still stricken by the consequences of the war. They are produced in home factories, with the simplest computer equipment. And she looked down her street, and there were black banners on almost every house.
On some houses it looks like a long shopping list. She said to her neighbour, 'You too? Everyone was suffering terribly, but they were suffering alone. They just didn't know that everyone else was hating it too. Many fled the country, including Mr. Samarrai, who defected on a trip to Switzerland in and returned here after the war. Others were smeared with feces and jailed. Some were placed in a sarcophagus with nails pointed inward so that they would be punctured and suffocated, he said.
