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Saddam sworn in for another term
( 2002-10-18 10:29 ) (7 )

Iraqi President Saddam Hussein puts his hand on the holy Quran as he is sworn in as president for the next seven years in Baghdad Thursday, Oct. 17, 2002. [AP]

President Saddam Hussein swore himself in for another seven years in power Thursday with a speech warning the United States and ordinary Iraqis that bloodshed could be at hand.

The Iraqi leader choked back tears as he took the oath of office, self-administered after a popular referendum Tuesday in which Iraq said Saddam won 100 percent turnout and 100 percent approval for his more than two-decade rule. The ceremony was broadcast live on Iraqi TV.

The vote, dismissed by exile groups and the United States, came in the shadow of a US congressional resolution authorizing military force against Saddam.

Referring to what he called "the American tyrant," Saddam said Americans "found it easier to take the road of blood and violence."

"The road of blood takes you to more blood, and he who tries to shed the blood of others must expect his blood to be spilled," Saddam said in a speech following the ceremony before Parliament, his ruling Baath Party and Iraq's top Revolutionary Command Council.

"Saving the world from the evils of the American administration ... will spare the peoples of the United States the animosities and tragedies created by their administration," Saddam said.

The Iraqi leader's No. 2 man, Izzat Ibrahim of the Revolutionary Command Council, presented Saddam with a sword and a mock-up of a giant pencil in tribute to the swearing-in.

"We present the sword to be used at its own time, and the pencil at other times," Ibrahim said.

Saddam appeared to seek to rally Iraq for any possible conflict with the United States, saying of "evildoers" that "their defeat was in the near future."

"Therefore, if God the Almighty ... decides to put you again to the test in a situation of fighting on a large scale, then the Almighty, the nation and history will expect you to deliver an effective stand," Saddam told Iraqis.

"Your reward in this world and the next will be truly compatible with your genuine and faithful struggles," he said.

Saddam said Iraqi people at all levels were facing "the coercion and evil brought by the futile policies of the United States." He cited his open letters to American leaders after the Sept. 11 terror attacks, in which he said he urged them to reconsider their policies.

Saddam choked with tears as he took the oath on the Quran, the Islamic holy book, swearing to protect the people and the nation of Iraq.

Senior officials applauded as Saddam appeared to briefly struggle to contain his emotion.

The vote came the week President Bush signed a congressional resolution authorizing military force to disarm Saddam of any nuclear, chemical or biological weapons programs.

Iraq has been under U.N. sanctions over weapons programs since the 1991 Gulf War.

Iraqi officials said this week's referendum showed Iraq's people steadfast behind Saddam in any conflict with the United States.

Gunfire popped on the streets of Baghdad as Saddam spoke. It was the third straight night of celebratory firing following the vote.

Separately Thursday, Iraq's Foreign Ministry said it would return Kuwaiti government archives in Iraqi hands since the Gulf War.

The records, belonging to the Foreign Ministry, Interior Ministry, national security officials and other Kuwaiti agencies, would be handed over in five trucks in the no-man's land between Kuwait and Iraq on Friday, the Foreign Ministry said.

Iraq has been seeking improved relations with its neighbors in the face of threats of a US-led attack.