"Since the Gulf War he has not left the country,
and only a week ago he declared in a defiant address that he would never desert
in the event of war. But if, as reported, he is converting some of his fortune
into jewels that can be transported easily, he may not mean what he
says."
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London, Mar 9 (ANI): Saddam Hussein's personal jeweller has been in Thailand on a secret mission to buy millions of dollars' worth of diamonds, according to a report in The Sunday Times. The trip has prompted speculation that the Iraqi leader may be planning to flee or to send his family into hiding.
Quoting "sources with knowledge of the trip", the report says the jeweller travelled to Bangkok via Jordan and bought the diamonds in the Thai capital in a pre-arranged deal. This was his second trip, Saddam's son Uday having sent him there three months ago to buy a ring from an American dealer for 750,000 dollars, the report adds.
Saddam has been a perennial member of Forbes magazine's list of the world's richest people. Before the 1991 Gulf War he was said to be worth 10 billion dollars, but that estimate has now been reduced to 2 billion dollars, following sanctions imposed by the United Nations on Iraq.
Since the Gulf War he has not left the country, and only a week ago he declared in a defiant address that he would never desert in the event of war. But if, as reported, he is converting some of his fortune into jewels that can be transported easily, he may not mean what he says. (ANI)
