"Chemical Ali" Executed

The AFP reports that "Saddam Hussein's notorious cousin and henchman "Chemical Ali" was executed on Monday, Iraq's government said, eight days after he was sentenced to death for the 1998 gassing of thousands of Kurds. Ali Hassan al-Majid was better known by his macabre nickname and as the King of Spades in the pack of cards of "most wanted" Iraqis issued by the US military in 2003, and will forever be associated with mass killings. He was "executed by hanging until death," government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said. 'The execution happened without any violations, shouting or cries of joy,' in sharp contrast to Saddam's death on the gallows, he added. State television later aired two still photographs of Majid, in which he was wearing an orange-red jumpsuit and the first of which clearly displayed his face. The second picture showed him on a platform, with a black hood over his head and with two men wearing balaclavas standing on either side." Tweet