WALKER -- Georges Sada is uncharacteristically chipper for a man whose Iraqi homeland continues to walk a political and religious tightrope.

When dictator Saddam Hussein's regime toppled in 2003, the discord between the Shiite Muslim majority and Sunni minority was uncorked, said Sada, a retired Iraqi general with Assyrian roots.

Compounding the strife is a steady stream of car bombs, suicide bombers and insurgent fighting.

Yet Sada, a former adviser to Saddam, is not disheartened. His Christian faith gives him hope to see light at the end of Iraq's war-weary tunnel.

"We will need time until our nation will manage to rule themselves and exercise freedom in a better way," said Sada who spoke last Friday at The DeltaPlex at the invitation of the Rev. Terry Law, who heads the Tulsa-based ministry, World Compassion.

"A lot of freedom was given to Iraqis who were not ready to exercise it," said Sada.

Sada, director of Iraqi Institute of Peace, claims a precarious distinction of his own as the only Christian Iraqi officer who persuaded Saddam against attacking Israel with chemical weapons and lived to talk about it.

Saddam grew to trust his advice, said Sada, 66, who said he did not hide the fact he was a Christian.

"I was not a threat to him," said Sada, who retired from military life in 1986 but later became an adviser to Saddam.

"I was not an adviser to please him. After making his own analysis, he found I was right."

Sada said his book, "Saddam's Secrets" (Integrity Publishers) released in January is an insider's look into Saddam's "evil genius."

Among the claims Sada makes are U.S.-led coalition forces failed to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq because 50-plus ground and air sorties transported them to Damascus, Syria, starting in September 2002.

Why are Sada's claims not widely reported in the world? Sada provides a laconic answer.

"I was surprised how much Americans don't know," he said.

For the approximately 2,000 who came to The DeltaPlex, Sada's message centered on love, forgiveness and a plea the United States keep swinging a velvet hammer.

"Jesus is our prince of peace," said Sada.

"I don't want revenge. I learn from Jesus: Forgive them for they know not what they do. We need dialogue, wisdom and understanding."

But shelve any mercy for Saddam, Sada added.

"This man was a Satan. God told us to love everybody, but not a Satan."

Political overtones are fluently woven into Sada's religious message.

He sings the praises of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He warns that "politicizing" the war on terror and the Muslim population growth in the West leaves Western civilization vulnerable to future terrorist attacks.

Compounding the problem in this global war is distinguishing who is a terrorist among a growing, largely peaceful Muslim population, said Sada.

"There's nobody in your rifle's sights," Sada said. "The moment you see the enemy, he's exploded himself and you're dead."

By Paul R. Kopenkoskey
The Grand Rapids Press