In an interview yesterday with Alan Cowell of the New York Times, King Abdullah II of Jordan offered his thoughts on the future of Iraq, opining that it should be run by a strongman, possibly one drawn from the ranks of Saddam Hussein's army.
I would say that the profile would be somebody from inside, somebody who's very strong, has some sort of popular feeling. I would probably imagine - again, this is off the top of my head - somebody with a military background who has experience of being a tough guy who could hold Iraq together for the next year.
He suggested that some officers might not be acceptable:
There were a lot of heroes; there are strong community leaders who are products of the Iraq-Iran war" of the 1980's. They are national heroes that do appeal to the Iraqi street.
This, of course, echoes what I have been arguing for over a year. (May 18, 2004)
