Watban Ibrahim al-Nasiri (‎; 1952 – 13 August 2015) was an Iraqi politician and former

interior minister An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a Cabinet (government), cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and iden ...

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

. He was the

half-brother A sibling is a relative that shares at least one parent with the other person. A male sibling is a brother, and a female sibling is a sister. A person with no siblings is an only child. While some circumstances can cause siblings to be raised ...

Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein (28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician and revolutionary who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 1979 until Saddam Hussein statue destruction, his overthrow in 2003 during the 2003 invasion of Ira ...

and the brother of

Barzan al-Tikriti Barzan Ibrahim Hassan al-Tikriti (; 17 February 1951 – 15 January 2007), also known as Barzan Hassan, was an Iraqi politician, diplomat and intelligence officer. He was one of three half-brothers of Saddam Hussein and served as the leader of t ...

. He was taken into

coalition A coalition is formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political, military, or economic spaces. Formation According to ''A G ...

custody on April 13, 2003, following his capture as he tried fleeing to

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

. He died in prison of natural causes in 2015. As Saddam's half-brother, Watban was a close advisor of his, belonging to Saddam's inner circle while also holding several high-profile security apparatus roles. In those roles, he allegedly took part in the genocidal

Al-Anfal Campaign The Anfal campaign was a counterinsurgency operation which was carried out by Ba'athist Iraq from February to September 1988 during the Iraqi–Kurdish conflict at the end of the Iran–Iraq War. The campaign targeted rural Kurds because its pu ...

against the Kurds in Northern Iraq. He became Interior Minister in 1991, and in that role was accused of having overseen the detention, torture, and executions of hundreds of prisoners. Some of those executions were reportedly taped, with copies kept at the ministry. As Interior Minister, Watban was also involved in suppressing the

1991 uprisings in Iraq The 1991 Iraqi uprisings were ethnic and religious uprisings against Saddam Hussein, Saddam Hussein's Ba'athist Iraq, Ba'athist regime in Iraq that were led by Shia Islam in Iraq, Shia Arabs and Kurds in Iraq, Kurds. The uprisings lasted f ...

, specifically in the Baghdad suburbs of Thawra, Shu'la, Hurriya' Bayya', the village of Yousiffiya and the nearby districts of Mahmoudiyah. Government suppression of the uprising in these districts often involved mass executions. Watban was a member of the

Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party The Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party ( ' ), also known simply as Bath Party (), was a political party founded in Syria by Michel Aflaq, Salah al-Din al-Bitar, and associates of Zaki al-Arsuzi. The party espoused Ba'athism, which is an ideology mixi ...

. Despite his high-profile roles, he was believed to not have been fully trusted by Saddam. In 1995, he was shot nine times in the leg by

Uday Hussein Uday Saddam Hussein (; 18 June 1964 – 22 July 2003) was an Iraqi politician and businessman. He was the eldest son of Iraqi president Saddam Hussein and his first wife Sajida Talfah. Owing to his family connections, Uday held various roles i ...

, Saddam's oldest son, reportedly during an argument over Watban's growing popularity among Iraqis. He reportedly lost his leg, genitals, and part of his stomach as a result. After the incident, Saddam ordered Watban to a position of relative obscurity in

Tikrit Tikrit ( ) is a city in Iraq, located northwest of Baghdad and southeast of Mosul on the Tigris River. It is the administrative center of the Saladin Governorate. In 2012, it had a population of approximately 160,000. Originally created as a f ...

. After the 2003

invasion of Iraq An invasion is a military offensive of combatants of one geopolitical entity, usually in large numbers, entering territory controlled by another similar entity, often involving acts of aggression. Generally, invasions have objectives ...

by a United States-led coalition, Watban was the

five of spades The standard 52-card deck of French-suited playing cards is the most common pack of playing cards used today. The main feature of most playing card decks that empower their use in diverse games and other activities is their double-sided design, wh ...

in the U.S. military's

most-wanted Iraqi playing cards During the 2003 invasion of Iraq by a United States–led coalition, the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency developed a set of playing cards to help troops identify the most-wanted members of President Saddam Hussein's government, mostly high-ran ...

. He was taken into coalition custody on April 13, 2003, following his capture as he tried fleeing to Syria. On 11 March 2009, Watban was sentenced to death by hanging for his role in the execution of 42 merchants accused of manipulating

food prices Food prices refer to the average price level for food across countries, regions and on a global scale. Food prices affect producers and consumers of food. Price levels depend on the food production process, including food marketing and food di ...

. On the morning of 14 July 2011, the U.S. handed Watban over to Iraqi authorities, expecting that he would be executed within a month. Instead, he remained imprisoned until his death from natural causes on 13 August 2015. In 2017, Uday’s son Massoud claimed, without sharing any evidence, that his body had been stolen by the

Iranian government The Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran (), known simply as ''Nezam'' (), is the ruling State (polity), state and current political system in Iran, in power since the Iranian Revolution and fall of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. Its Const ...

. The claim was never proven.

References

External links

* permanent dead link''">wikipedia:Link rot">permanent dead link'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Watban Ibrahim 1952 births 2015 deaths Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party – Iraq Region politicians Interior ministers of Iraq Iraq War prisoners of war Iraqi generals Iraqi mass murderers Iraqi people who died in prison custody Iraqi prisoners of war Iraqi prisoners sentenced to death Prisoners sentenced to death by Iraq Prisoners of war held by the United States Prisoners who died in Iraqi detention Tulfah family