A new Arabic novel thought to have been penned by Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has won acclaim from critics after hitting the bookstands.
Intellectuals in Baghdad told AFP they were convinced the Iraqi strongman had written "The Impregnable Fortress," even though the book does not bear the name of its author.
The 712-page novel, published by al-Hurriya (freedom) publishing house, tells the story of a son of farmers and holder of a law degree who takes part in both the 1980-1988 war with Iran and the 1991 Gulf War "to defend his country."
The author also relates that "the aberrant situation" in Kurdish-held northern Iraq prevented Sabah al-Hajj Hassan from marrying his Kurdish sweetheart, Shatrin.
This is the second novel attributed to Saddam after "Zabibah wal-Malik" (Zabibah and the King), published in November 2000.
Iraqi state television, which has afforded huge publicity to the new novel, said it was a story of the "fight against evil" and comprised "episodes of a journey in the world of virtue."
According to newspapers, revenues from book sales will go to "the poor, orphans and the needy, as well as works of charity," as was the case for Saddam's first novel. BAGHDAD- (AFP)
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
