Story Highlights
- Historical event:
- 22 July 2003
- As many as 200 American soldiers, several helicopters, and one A-10 Thunderbolt aircraft carried out the attack. After four hours of skirmishes, the Americans demolished an entire wing of the villa. They forced their way into the house and found the bodies of both Saddam's sons and that of his 14-year-old grandson.
On this day the American troops in Iraq carried out a military operation in which they killed two sons of Saddam Hussein – Uday and Qusay.
Uday was the older, at 39, and was intended to become Saddam’s successor. He was known for his extravagant lifestyle and violent temper. He reportedly had approximately 1,200 luxury cars, including a Rolls-Royce. He killed several people, allegedly even a soldier who had refused to salute him.
He was also known for owning a gold AK-47 rifle. However, after an assassination attempt on him carried out in the 1990s, in which he was fired upon with eight shots while he was driving in his Porsche, left him partially disabled.
Therefore, Saddam declared his younger son Qusay (37 years) as his successor. He, unlike his brother, was withdrawn and quieter. He was married to the daughter of a senior military commander, with whom he had three sons (Saddam’s grandchildren).
On this day, both brothers were located in a villa in the city of Mosul. Mustafa Hussein, Qusay’s 14-year-old son, was with them.
The Americans received a tip on their location, probably from the owner of the villa. Since Saddam’s sons were on the list of most-wanted targets in Iraq, special operations Task Force 20, aided by the 101st Airborne Division, commenced an attack.
Uday’s Lamborghini, a gift from Gaddafi, was parked in front of the villa. As many as 200 American soldiers, several helicopters, and one A-10 Thunderbolt aircraft carried out the attack. After four hours of skirmishes, the Americans demolished an entire wing of the villa.
They forced their way into the house and found the bodies of both Saddam’s son and that of his 14-year-old grandson. The fourth casualty was their bodyguard.
After this shooting, Saddam had only one son left alive, the one from his marriage with his younger second wife. His name is Ali Hussein, and his whereabouts remain unknown to this day.
