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Saddam is buried in home village Saddam is buried in home village
(10 minutes later)
Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, hanged for crimes against humanity in Baghdad on Saturday, has been buried in his home village.Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, hanged for crimes against humanity in Baghdad on Saturday, has been buried in his home village.
In a sparsely attended ceremony in Awja, in the Tikrit region north of Baghdad, the former Iraqi leader was laid to rest in a family plot. In a sparsely attended ceremony in Awja, in the Tikrit region north of the capital, the former Iraqi leader was laid to rest in a family plot.
His sons Uday and Qusay, killed by US troops in 2003, are also buried there.His sons Uday and Qusay, killed by US troops in 2003, are also buried there.
Earlier, his family said he would be buried in Ramadi - a Sunni insurgent stronghold - citing security concerns.Earlier, his family said he would be buried in Ramadi - a Sunni insurgent stronghold - citing security concerns.
Just hours after his execution, Saddam Hussein's body was reportedly flown to Awja aboard a US aircraft and handed to clan leaders for burial.Just hours after his execution, Saddam Hussein's body was reportedly flown to Awja aboard a US aircraft and handed to clan leaders for burial.
I feel saddened by the death of Saddam, not because he deserved to live but because it is taking place under US occupation of Iraq Nafeesa Zafar, Pakistan Saddam death: Your reaction Saddam's last moments
"Saddam Hussein has been buried today at 0400 (0100 GMT) in a place that was constructed during his regime in the centre of Awja," said relative Musa Faraj, quoted by AFP news agency."Saddam Hussein has been buried today at 0400 (0100 GMT) in a place that was constructed during his regime in the centre of Awja," said relative Musa Faraj, quoted by AFP news agency.
The BBC's John Simpson in Baghdad says the Iraqi government will not be worried that Saddam's grave may turn into a place of political pilgrimage.The BBC's John Simpson in Baghdad says the Iraqi government will not be worried that Saddam's grave may turn into a place of political pilgrimage.
Ministers here think that his practical influence in Iraq has been entirely finished by his execution, our correspondent says.Ministers here think that his practical influence in Iraq has been entirely finished by his execution, our correspondent says.
'Frightened and terrified'
The former president was sentenced to death by an Iraqi court on 5 November over the killings of 148 Shias from the town of Dujail in the 1980s.
They felt very proud as they saw their father facing his executioners so bravely Spokeswoman for Saddam Hussein's daughters Reaction in quotes Insurgency to outlive Saddam Timeline: Saddam's Iraq
Images of Saddam Hussein, 69, being taken to the gallows in a Baghdad building his intelligence services once used for executions were broadcast on state TV on Saturday. However the moment of his execution was not shown.
The hanging took place just days after he lost an appeal and hours after he was handed over from US custody.
Saddam Hussein's execution has closed a dark chapter in Iraq's history, Prime Minister Nouri Maliki said.
In a statement, the prime minister said: "Justice, in the name of the people, has carried out the death sentence against the criminal Saddam, who faced his fate like all tyrants, frightened and terrified during a hard day which he did not expect," it read.
US President George W Bush hailed the execution as "an important milestone" on the road to building an Iraqi democracy, but warned it would not end the deadly violence there.
'Very broken'
A small group of Iraqis - including a representative of the prime minister - witnessed the execution at 0600 (0300GMT) on Saturday in a spartan, concrete-lined chamber in the suburb of Khadimiya.
Iraqi National Security Adviser Mouwafak al-Rubaie told the BBC the former leader went to the gallows quietly:
What amazed me is that I could not see any remorse Mowaffaq al-Rubaie Iraqi National Security Adviser Hanging sparks media storm Pictures of aftermath
"We took him to the gallows and he was saying some few slogans. He was very, very, very, broken."
Pictures broadcast later on Iraqi TV showed a subdued Saddam Hussein being led to the gallows by a group of masked men.
Dressed in a white shirt and dark overcoat, rather than prison garb, Saddam Hussein was led up onto the gallows platform. A dark piece of cloth placed around his neck, followed by the noose.
But when the hangman stepped forward to put a hood over his head, Saddam Hussein made it clear he wanted to die without it.
Later, images of Saddam Hussein's body were also broadcast on Iraqi TV, still dressed in his overcoat and wrapped in a white sheet.
Tikrit curfew
Hours after Saddam was executed, the bloodshed continued As news of Saddam Hussein's demise spread, there were jubilant scenes in the Baghdad Shia stronghold of Sadr City, with people dancing in the streets and sounding their car horns. Similar scenes were witnessed in the Basra and Najaf.
But in Tikrit, where a curfew was imposed, the news sparked protests from supporters. Protests were also reported in Samarra and Ramadi.
Hours after the execution, at least 31 people died when a car bomb exploded at a market in the southern town of Kufa.
Angry crowds killed a man who police said got out of the vehicle shortly before the bomb exploded.
Later in the day, at least 37 people died and 76 were injured in at least two blasts in the Hurriya district of Baghdad.