Why did Saddam Hussein attempt to develop nuclear and biological weapons of mass destruction in Iraq? The answer to this question comes from the history of the region, the ideology of the Baath Party, the hasty forming of a country without a common identity, and the weapons of mass destruction held by Israel. .
Saddam Hussein is very aware of the history of his country. Iraq is the location of the first civilization. The area was called Mesopotamia, the land between the two rivers. It was settled around 6000 BC making the area over 8000 years old. It is the land of Hamurabi, Sargon the Great of Akkad, and the great Babylonian empire. .
The Babylonian empire fell to the barbarian Hitites and disorder reigned in the region for over 500 years. Then the Assyrians took over in 9 BC and the barbarism continued. The Assyrians pulled their people together to form a fighting force to insure the survival of their empire. King Nebuchadnezzar of the 6th century conquered Jerusalem, enslaved the Israelites and built the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. He was the leader of the greatest power of that time. Saddam considers Nebuchadnezzar a great man. There are portraits of Saddam and Nebuchadnezzar side by side displayed in Iraq. Saddam would like nothing more than to follow in Nebuchadnezzar footsteps and conquer Israel himself. Saddam, during the Iran - Iraq war actually pulled troops from fighting to rebuild the palace of Nebuchadnezzar. After Nebuchadnezzar's reign ended the land became part of the Persian empire. Then Alexander the Great and many more followed. The Ottoman empire was the last occupier of Iraq before the British threw their hat in the ring to rule the Fertile Crescent after World War I. .
Before the British were victorious in World War I they promised the father of Faisal, that if he launched an attack on Turkey, he would be given an Arab state cut out of the Ottoman Empire.