Chemical Ali
Ali Hassan al-Majeed, a cousin of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, was known for his brutal and decisive roles in various military campaigns and crackdowns. He was given the nickname “Chemical Ali” after his involvement in the 1988 gas attack on the Kurdish town of Halabja, where 5,000 Kurds were killed.
After the overthrow of Saddam’s regime, Majeed was captured in 2003. He was sentenced to death multiple times for various crimes against ethnic Kurds and Shi’ites. The first sentence was in June 2007, for his role in the Anfal campaign against the Kurds in 1988. He received additional death sentences for his parts in crushing a Shi’ite revolt in 1991, and killing and displacing Shi’ites in 1999. However, legal issues have delayed his execution.
Majeed’s rise to power was closely tied to his family connections with Saddam Hussein and his clan, based around Tikrit. He was deeply involved in the purging of the Baath party in 1979, a display of loyalty that cemented his position in Saddam’s inner circle.1
During the Gulf War, Majeed was appointed as the military governor of Kuwait but was replaced due to his brutal reputation. After the U.S.-led coalition expelled Iraqi forces from Kuwait, Saddam appointed him interior minister to suppress the Shi’ite rebellion in southern Iraq.
Majeed’s name has become synonymous with some of the most brutal episodes in Iraq’s recent history, and his association with Saddam Hussein’s regime has left a lasting mark on the country’s collective memory.
The nickname “Chemical Ali” was given to Ali Hassan al-Majeed by Western journalists. The moniker stems from his role in orchestrating the chemical attack on the Kurdish town of Halabja in 1988, in which around 5,000 Kurds were killed. This attack was part of the Anfal Campaign, where chemical weapons were used against Kurdish fighters and civilians, earning Majeed his notorious nickname.
The use of chemical weapons marked a particularly brutal chapter in Iraq’s history and left a lasting impact on international relations and warfare ethics. Majeed’s association with these events led to the name “Chemical Ali,” which has since become emblematic of his cruelty and his key role within Saddam Hussein’s regime. 1Reuters Staff. “Factbox: Who is “Chemical Ali?”” Reuters, 17 January 2010, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iraq-trial-ali-factbox-idUSTRE60G0IK20100117. Accessed 18 August 2023.
References
- Reuters Staff. “Factbox: Who is “Chemical Ali?”” Reuters, 17 January 2010, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iraq-trial-ali-factbox-idUSTRE60G0IK20100117. Accessed 18 August 2023.
Links in the document
- Wikipedia User, Brandmeister. “1979 Ba’ath Party Purge.” Wikipedia, 17 August 2023, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1979_Ba%27ath_Party_Purge. Accessed 18 August 2023.
