The Psychological Assessment of Political Leaderstorious, and each further day would only magnify the scope of their
victory.
It was revealed in January that under Saddam's opulent palace was
a mammoth bunker, fortified with steel and prestressed concrete.
The architecture of this complex is Saddam's psychological architec-
ture: a defiant, grandiose facade resting on the well-fortified founda-
tion of a siege mentality. Attacked on all sides, Saddam remains
besieged and defiant, using whatever aggression is necessary to con-
solidate his control and ensure his survival.
Saddam after the Conflict^3
Iraqi domestic support for Saddam Hussein was drastically eroded
after the Gulf War. By late 1996, a series of betrayals, failures, and
disappointments had left him in a more precarious domestic position
than at any time since March 1991. There have been three main areas
of change for Saddam since the conflict:- increased security vulnerabilities
- strengthening international support
- increased importance of the weapons of mass destruction
program
- increased importance of the weapons of mass destruction
Increased Security Vulnerabilities
A principle of Saddam's leadership that has always been true—
ensuring his domestic stability and eliminating internal threats to
his regime—has intensified in the postwar period and is Saddam's
central concern. The three greatest threats to Saddam's domestic sta-
bility have come from a dramatically weakened military, fractures in
tribal loyalties, and fault lines in his family.Weakened Military
Immediately after the conflict was terminated in March 1991, Sad-
dam's major source of support, the Iraqi army, was gravely weak-
ened. Once the fourth largest army in the world, the Iraqi army, its
proud reputation as the most powerful military force in the Gulf
shattered, its ranks and materiel depleted, and its morale destroyed,
now represented a grave threat to Saddam's survival.- The Iraqi armed forces, including the Republican Guard,
became disillusioned with Saddam's regime.