Zarqawi’s death removes ‘heinous and dangerous man’ – Annan
United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan said today the reported death in Iraq of the Jordanian insurgent Abu Musab
al-Zarqawi was a “relief” since such a “such a heinous and dangerous man” will no longer be around to continue harming
Iraqis, even though violence was unlikely to end with his elimination in the war-torn country.
“This is an individual who has been responsible for many heinous crimes, caused lots of problems in Iraq for the
Government and the people of Iraq – the people of Iraq who are afraid to step out, the people of Iraq who are only
demanding peace, stability, and to have their streets back,” Mr. Annan told reporters at a press encounter.
“I think they will all be relieved that he is gone. And of course, we cannot pretend that that will mean the end of the
violence. But it is a relief that such a heinous and dangerous man who has caused so much harm to the Iraqis is no
longer around to continue his work.”
Asked whether he thought Mr. Zarqawi might stray somewhat dangerously close to the line drawn by the Geneva Convention
against targeted assassinations, he replied that Iraq was a war zone.
“And there are lots of groups fighting with each other. There are lots of militias, armies and others. And with Zarqawi,
if it is him indeed who has been killed, has been at war. He’s been in a fight. So I don’t think you can equate it to
targeted assassination of the kind that we have seen elsewhere,” Mr. Annan said.