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_SBCRERZA_ U.S. Department of Justice Federal Bureau of Investigation In Reply, Please Refer to Baghdad Operations Center File No. February 16, 2004 DECLASSIFIED BY uc/baw 60324 ON 05-20-2009 Interview Session Number: 6 Interview Conducted by: SSA_ George SSA b6 Arabic/English Translation: BIC f8— Saddam Hussein (High Value Detainee #1) was interviewed on February 16, 2004 at a military detention facility at Baghdad International Airport (BIAP), Baghdad, Iraq. Hussein provided the following information: BK At the beginning of the interview, Hussein was informed that today's dialogue would be a continuation of yesterday's discussion regarding the years following the 1968 revolution and about prominent members of the Ba'ath Party. pa The interviewer mentioned to Hussein that he understood that the attempted coup in 1973 was undertaken by a protege of Hussein, Nadhim Kazzar, Director of the Ba'ath Party's Security Service and a Shi'a from the city of Al-Amarah. Hussein related that at the time, the Party did not know which members were Sunni or Shi'a Muslims er Christians. As an example, he pointed out that it was not until later that he learned that one of the Party's leaders, Tarig Aziz, was a Christian. The Party was successful because it related to the people, and, thus, no distinction was made on members based on their religion or ethnicity. -*S1 Hussein related that among the Party's leadership between 1958-63, very few members were Sunni. The Secretary General was Shi'a from the city of Al-Nasiriyah. Hussein claimed that when he attempted to assassinate President Qassem in 1959, he knew nothing about the Sunnis and Shi'as. In 1963, with the exception of two or three Party members, almost all members of the Ba'ath Party were Shi'as. After the revolution, people began inquiring which members were Sunni and which were Shi'a. at the time, it was difficult to know because they were all mixed together. However, by 1968, nearly all Party members were Sunnis. Because the Party had previously operated secretly, few knew or cared about one's religion. However, after the This document contains neither recommendations nor conclusions of the FBI. It is the property of the FBI and is loaned to your agency; it and its contents are not to be distributed outside your agency. Ny