Saddam In Somerset

Updated:07:48, Thursday June 05, 2003

A statue of Saddam Hussein has been erected in Somerset.

The nine-foot monument was taken from Iraq by Royal Marines.

This statue was in Baghdad

They transported it from Al Faw near Basra to their camp near Taunton.

It is currently in the officer's mess at Norton Manor Camp at Norton Fitzwarren.

But its "final resting place" will be the camp's main drive, a Royal Navy spokesman said.

The servicemen from 40 Commando brought the statue of the fallen Iraqi leader back on warship HMS Ocean, which docked last week.

It was taken from Al Faw town after the commando unit secured it and stabilised potentially hazardous surrounding oil fields.

Memento

The spokesman said: "Part of the directive was to destroy and dismantle anything which was part of Saddam Hussein's regime.

"In Iraq everywhere we went there were pictures and images of Saddam Hussein and locals were smashing these things as fast as they could.

"This statue was taken down by 40 Commando. It was two months in storage and brought back as a curio."

The statue, which is complete, is thought to be made of metal.

Asked if he thought the action was insensitive, the spokesman said "mementoes" had been brought back from military campaigns for "hundreds of years".

"If we hadn't brought it back, it would have been destroyed. It seemed an appropriate thing to bring back. It is a memento of a hard-fought battle."

Import

A spokesman for HM Customs and Excise said taking the statue was "no big deal" and they had made the right decision in allowing it in.

He said: "We had officers on HMS Ocean who were aware of the statue and they allowed it to be taken to the base while we confirmed that it did not require an import licence.

"Since the UN passed a resolution last week ending sanctions against Iraq the items can be brought into the UK without restriction."

He said the officer who dealt with it was taking advice to make sure the decision was correct.