The grandson of Saddam Hussein, Iraq's former leader, who was tried and executed in 2006, has written a letter to U.S. President Donald Trump in which he complains about Iran, as the country is reportedly refusing to return the corpses of his relatives.
''I have a request from you as a grandson whose grandfather was executed; the corpses of some of my relatives were hijacked by Iranian Shiite militias and transported to Iran. One of the corpses in question belongs to Watban Ibrahim al-Tikriti, my granfather's brother,'' Massoud Uday Saddam Hussein wrote to Trump.
He also explained that after Watban Ibrahim al-Hassan was killed in a prison located in Baghdad, his mortal remains were handed over to his wife. However, Shiite militias allegedly stole the corpse, which is still missing.
''The Iranian regime still holds and refuses to return the corpses of my father Uday Hussein, my uncle Qusay Hussein, my cousin Mustapha Qusay Saddam Hussein, as well as my grandfather's other cousin Barzan Ibrahim al-Hassan al-Tikriti,'' the former Iraqi dictator's grandson added.
Hussein also complained that innocent people have been detained in prisons since 2003 by the Baghdad government.
Referring to the ongoing military operation organized by the Iraqi army and allied Shiite militias, and supported by the U.S., Hussein said that Shiite militiamen from the Hashd al-Shaabi [Popular Mobilization Forces] execute innocent civilians in the Mosul region randomly and arbitrarily, after torturing them.
In his letter, he noted that the bombardments of the U.S.-led coalition are also causing high numbers of civilian casualties.
''Iran seized the corpses of our martyrs during the Obama administration in violation of both human rights and the international law. We hope that you will show sensitivity regarding our situation, and that you will help us in our effort to recover the mortal remains of our relatives from the terror-sponsoring state of Iran, by using your influence,'' Hussein addressed the new U.S. president.
Saddam Hussein was deposed in 2003 by a U.S.-led coalition force which invaded Iraq, under the pretext of overthrowing his dictatorial regime, which was blamed for owning ''weapons of mass destruction'' by the U.S. and the U.K., with the aim of replacing his regime with a democracy.
Based on charges of crimes against humanity, Saddam Hussein was convicted to death. His execution was carried out on December 30, 2006.
