Kamel Sajid al-Janabi () was a General of the

Iraqi Republican Guard The Iraqi Republican Guard () was a branch of the Iraqi military from 1969 to 2003, which existed primarily during the presidency of Saddam Hussein. Initially a praetorian guard unit tasked with the sole purpose to protect the president of ...

. He was detained by the Iraqi government on 16 December 1998, the same day that

Operation Desert Fox The 1998 bombing of Iraq (code-named Operation Desert Fox) was a major bombing campaign against Iraqi targets, from 16 to 19 December 1998, by the United States and the United Kingdom. On 16 December 1998 Bill Clinton announced that he had order ...

began, and was executed on 2 March 1999 as part of a larger crackdown on a group of over 20 senior Iraqi officials accused of planning a coup against the government.

Career

At the time of the First Battle of Al Faw Kamel was in command of the I Corps, having earlier commanded a division of the Republican Guard. Kamel was also Corps Commander for the 66th Special Forces Brigade. Kamel was described by

Ra'ad al-Hamdani Lieutenant General Ra'ad Majid Rashid al-Hamdani () is a retired Iraqi military officer and former General of the Iraqi Republican Guard, and was one of Saddam Hussein's favourite generals. Early career Hamdani graduated from the Iraqi Militar ...

during the Iraqi Perspectives Project as a courageous and honest person, but not a particularly competent commander, who often shrugged responsibility. Despite his shortcomings and repeated failures he escaped punishment due to Saddam's admiration for him due to his representation of the physical fitness of the Iraqi Special Forces. He later became the governor for

Muthanna Province Muthanna Governorate ( ''Al Muthannā'') or Al Muthanna Province, is a Governorates of Iraq, province in Iraq, named after the 7th-century Arab general al-Muthanna ibn Haritha. It is in the south of the country, bordering Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. ...

, and also became deeply religious later in life, brought on in part by his intense feelings of guilt for his actions during the war.

Family

Kamel had several brothers, two of whom fled Iraq, and later began issuing statements critical of the Ba'athist government, exposing abuses committed against prisoners in Iraq. Their mother was detained following their flight to try and pressure the brothers to return, and was released in order to secure their return. When the brothers failed to return to Iraq their mother was tortured to death. His son reportedly joined

al-Qaeda , image = Flag of Jihad.svg , caption = Jihadist flag, Flag used by various al-Qaeda factions , founder = Osama bin Laden{{Assassinated, Killing of Osama bin Laden , leaders = {{Plainlist, * Osama bin Lad ...

during the

Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...

References

Governors of Muthanna Governorate Iraqi generals Year of birth uncertain 1999 deaths 20th-century executions by Iraq {{Iraq-mil-bio-stub