On the timing of the execution of Saddam. Can't we do even one thing right?

Instead of having a dead dictator, we now have a martyr. Why you ask? Because we gave him the opportunity to equate himself with the muslim martyrs of the past.
rcald at Daily KOS

As many of you may not know, Saturday morning is the beginning of the Muslim holy days called Eid-ul-Adha. This is the "big Eid" lasting 4 days; the slighter shorter "small Eid" takes place at the end of Ramadan (which this year, was at the end of October). Eid ul Adha has two major elements of signifcance within in Islam.

First, the festival marks the end of the Hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca. Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam. It is one of the most important parts of the muslim year.

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The second, and more significant in this case, aspect of Eid ul Adha is that it marks the muslim prophet Ibrahim’s willingness to sacrifice his son Ismael at the command of God (You may know these characters better as Abraham and Isaac). This festival’s name is often translated as the Feast of Sacrifice. While regional traditions vary, Eid ul Adha is normally celebrated by a family group sacrificing a lamb and sharing it equally amongst relatives and the poor. This is a day which usually combines something akin to American/Christian ideas of Thanksgiving and Easter: there is a pervading sense of thankfulness for the bounty of God and an emphasis on both charity and feasting as a manifestation, at the same time there are constant rememberances of sacrifice in the name of God.

Given the context of this holiday, Saddam Hussein’s statement that "I sacrifice myself. If God wills it, he will place me among the true men and martyrs" takes on a new level of meaning. Hussein is playing into the sensibility Iraqi muslims, as well as more secular Iraqis for whom such a prominent muslim concept will still resonate. He is equating himself to the muslim prophets (the "true men"), like Ibrahim, and at the same time evoking martyrdom.

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