Saddam Hussein's Half-Brother Dies of Cancer
Saddam Hussein's half-brother and former advisor has died, according to the Daily Mail.
Sabawi Ibrahim al-Hassan, who served as Hussein's head of security before his exile and subsequent capture, spent his last years on death row awaiting death by hanging. When his health began to deteriorate, he was transferred from his cell to the hospital where he later passed away.
Al-hassan - the six of diamonds in the most-wanted Iraqi playing card deck - is the latest member of the Baathist regime to die. At the time of his capture near the Syrian border in 2005, Al-Hassan ranked among the 55 most-wanted Iraqis.
A $1 million reward was offered for information that would lead either to his arrest or death.
His brothers Watban Ibrahim Hassan and Barzan Ibrahim Hassan al-Tikriti were also captured and sentenced to death for their involvement in the mass killings that took place under Hussein's regime.
Barzan's execution was carried out in 2007. In 2011, Watban was transferred to the custody of Iraqi authorities. As of 2013, he is reportedly still awaiting his execution.
Watban garnered attention in 1995, when he was shot in the leg nine times by Hussein's son, Uday Hussain, in an argument over popularity.
During the 1991 Gulf War, al-Hassan served with the Hussein administration as head of Iraq's intelligence and security service. He went on to run the general security service until 1996, when he became Hussein's presidential adviser.
In 2009, Al-Hassan was sentenced to death by hanging - the same punishment his half-brother received when a trial found him guilty of war crimes that included the killing of 148 Iraqi Shi'ite Muslims. He allegedly rose from his seat when the verdict was read, proclaiming "God is great," and that he was proud to be a martyr.