Saddam City

Startling New Satellite Photos show how Saddam Hussein is rebuilding the ancient city of Babylon!Charlie Dyer documents the history of Iraq over the lastseveral decades and Saddam Hussein's three goals forIraq; territory, economic power and the elimination of thenation of Israel. The Rise of Babylon documents the similarities of the ancient empire of Babylon under King Nebuchadnezzar and the new Babylon being rebuilt by Saddam Hussein.Rows and rows of soldiers parade in, dressed in Babylonian tunics and carrying swords, spears, and shields. Interspersed among the ranks of soldiers are groups of musicians playing harps, horns, and drums. Clusters of children carry palm branches and runners bear bowls of incense. Then come soldiers and still more soldiers in a seemingly endless line of men and weapons. After the procession, the guests attend a ceremony paying tribute to Ishtar, the mother goddess of Babylon.Is this a scene of pagan worship from the time of Daniel? No, this is a scene I witnessed when I returned to Babylon in 1988 for the second International Babylon Festival held under the patronage of Saddam Hussein! - excerpt from The Rise of Babylon

Dyer's impetus for writing this book was Saddam Hussein's rebuilding of the ancient city of Babylon, a subject I knew nothing about from news reports over the years. The rebuilding began soon after the start of the Iran-Iraq War, and Dyer argues that this act of reconstruction was meant to serve as a reminder and inspiration to the Iraqi people of their centuries-old antagonism for the Persians who had conquered them. Hussein consciously cast himself in the role of Nebuchadnezzar's successor, implanting an image of himself as not only the man destined to restore the country to greatness but as the man who would unite Arabs against their ancient enemies, the Persians and the Jews. All of this is very interesting, but this book's greatest strength is its presentation of the ancient story that Hussein was consciously trying to manipulate for his own selfish reasons. The Rise of Babylon offers a very readable recounting of the history of both the Babylonians and the Hebrews. The prophecies of both ancient prophets such as Isaiah, Daniel, and Jeremiah as well as those expressed in the New Testament are unchanging, and Babylon's place in Earth's final tribulations is foretold and of great importance, even if Saddam Hussein may not play the direct role in such events suggested in this book. This is not really a book about Hussein; it is a book on Babylon's integral place in Biblical history and prophecy, and for that reason Dyer's very readable text is by no means invalidated by the course of events in the Middle East since the time of its publication.

Now that the 2003 Persian Gulf War is over, let's see if those "weapons of mass destruction" are found in Iraq, as President Bush insisted they would be. Any bets?

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