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200-464: Although he utters only four audible words in the entire first season of the show, the Smoking Man eventually develops into the series' primary antagonist. In his early appearances, he is seen in the offices of Section Chief Scott Blevins and Assistant Director Walter Skinner , Mulder and his partner Dana Scully's supervisors. An influential man working for the powers that be, he is a key member in

400-608: A fifth of the population . In 1979, upon taking office, Saddam purged the Ba'ath Party . He ordered the invasion of Iran in 1980 in a purported effort to capture Iran 's Arab-majority Khuzestan province , thwart Iranian attempts to export its 1979 revolution to the Arab world , and end Iranian calls for the overthrow of the Sunni-dominated Ba'athist regime . The Iran–Iraq War ended in stalemate after nearly eight years in

600-551: A government-conspiracy unit known only as the Syndicate , who are hiding the truth of alien existence and their plan to colonize Earth. His power and influence remain strong, even after most of the Syndicate is destroyed. The Smoking Man is portrayed by Canadian actor William B. Davis . When Davis first took the role, the character was written as an extra for the pilot episode . He returned for small cameo appearances during

800-472: A magnetite substance to seemingly "cure" the baby of his telekinetic powers. The motivation or repercussions of his actions are never fully explained. He testifies for the defense during Mulder's murder trial in " The Truth " where he reveals that Teena Mulder had an affair with CSM, and that he and Fox Mulder are half-brothers. A DNA test conducted on a disfigured Spender in the episode "William" initially leads agents Scully, Doggett, and Reyes to believe he

1000-507: A pueblo saturated with it. C.G.B. Spender , best known as the Cigarette Smoking Man , is portrayed by William B. Davis , and serves as the main antagonist of the series. In Spender's first appearance, he oversaw Dana Scully 's debriefing and disposed of her evidence in the show's pilot episode , and eventually developed into the series' primary antagonist. The character is known initially only by this nickname because he

1200-542: A Tunisian prison when the Cigarette Smoking Man discovered that Krycek had stolen an alien artifact from him. In the last season 7 episode, " Requiem ", Krycek apparently kills the Cigarette Smoking Man by pushing him down a flight of stairs. Later, when Mulder was abducted by aliens and returned in a deathlike state, Krycek attempts to again blackmail Skinner, offering the means to save Mulder's life in exchange for Scully's baby. Skinner refuses, and Krycek has

1400-528: A botched murder attempt on Scully results in the death of her sister, the Cigarette Smoking Man attempts to kill Krycek with a car bomb, but Krycek escapes. He lies low in Hong Kong for a short period, selling secrets acquired from the tape until he is found, beaten and apprehended by Mulder who takes him back to the US. Unbeknown to him, Krycek is under the control of an alien organism and he escapes Mulder before he

1600-655: A ceasefire , after a million people were killed and Iran suffered economic losses of $ 561 billion. At the end of the war, Saddam ordered the Anfal campaign against Kurdish rebels who sided with Iran, recognized by Human Rights Watch as an act of genocide . Later, Saddam accused his ally Kuwait of slant-drilling the Iraqi oil reserves and invaded the country , initiating the Gulf War (1990–1991), which ended in Iraq's defeat by

1800-655: A country rife with factionalism led Saddam to pursue both massive repression and the improvement of living standards. Following the end of the First Iraqi–Kurdish War in November 1970, Saddam signed a peace treaty with Mustafa Barzani, which agreement granted autonomy to the Kurds. However the failure of the agreement and Arabization program in oil-rich regions around Kirkuk and Khanaqin in Northern Iraq,

2000-430: A deal, and offers him a chance to survive the end of humanity in exchange for Skinner helping him find William. The Smoking Man also reveals he was responsible for the creation of William, as he impregnated Scully with the use of alien technology. In the season 11 finale " My Struggle IV ", the Smoking Man and Reyes follow Mulder, Scully and Skinner to an abandoned factory where they are chasing down William. Skinner points

2200-413: A ghost in the series finale , " The Truth ". X is portrayed in the series by Steven Williams , and made his début in the second season episode " The Host ", although the character would not appear on-screen until " Sleepless ", two episodes later. The role had originally been conceived as a female, with Natalija Nogulich cast in the role, however her initial scenes were deemed unsatisfactory by

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2400-664: A girl) and bears a striking resemblance to Garth Algar from Wayne's World . He idolizes Joey Ramone in particular. Of the Lone Gunmen, Langly is an expert in computers, hacking , and programming . He is likely the most paranoid of the Gunmen, taping all incoming phone calls, including those from Fox Mulder . All three of the Lone Gunmen died in the X-Files episode " Jump the Shark ," sacrificing themselves to save thousands from

2600-569: A good instinct for what the " Arab street " demanded, following the decline in Egyptian leadership brought about by the trauma of Israel's six-day victory in the 1967 war, the death of the pan-Arabist hero, Gamal Abdul Nasser, in 1970, and the "traitorous" drive by his successor, Anwar Sadat, to sue for peace with the Jewish state. Saddam's self-aggrandizing propaganda, with himself posing as the defender of Arabism against Zionist or Persian intruders,

2800-419: A group publishing The Lone Gunmen newsletter. Frohike has a deep attraction for Dana Scully . In his first appearance he was taking photographs of Scully, ogling her and calling her “hot”. Whilst this attraction seemed rather lustful at first, he has shown genuine affection for Scully (and Fox Mulder ) on numerous occasions, being the first person to bring her flowers after she returned from her abduction in

3000-436: A gun at them and shoots Reyes dead, and the Smoking Man runs Skinner over in his car. The Smoking Man confronts "Mulder" (who is actually William in disguise) by a waterfront, and during the standoff shoots him in the head and causes him to fall into the water. The real Mulder appears and shoots the Smoking Man, who realizes that he has killed William, and he falls off the edge and into the water, with his body then carried away by

3200-419: A high-containment facility, where she manages to secretly remove an alien fetus for use as collateral in saving Mulder. In the subsequent meeting between the operatives and Deep Throat, he is shot and killed. The character later appears in dreams and visions experienced by Mulder during his recuperation on a Navajo reservation, and again years later while being experimented on by the Smoking Man. Deep Throat

3400-529: A law degree at Cairo Law School (1962–1963). It is possible that Saddam visited the U.S. embassy in Cairo during his exile, and some evidence suggests that he was "in frequent contact with US officials and intelligence agents." A former high-ranking U.S. official told historians Marion Farouk–Sluglett and Peter Sluglett that Iraqi Ba'athists, including Saddam, "had made contact with the American authorities in

3600-649: A master's degree in Religious Studies. In 1990, Reyes enrolled in the FBI at Quantico, Virginia . Her first assignment in the FBI was serving on a special task force investigating satanic rituals. She is a longtime friend of Doggett's and serves as his partner on the X-files after Scully's departure. Shortly after the closure of the X-files in 2002 she was contacted by the Cigarette Smoking Man who offered to secure her

3800-841: A multinational coalition led by the United States . The United Nations subsequently placed sanctions against Iraq . Saddam brutally suppressed the 1991 Iraqi uprisings of the Kurds and Shias , which sought to gain independence or overthrow the government. Saddam adopted an anti-American stance and established the Faith Campaign , pursuing an Islamist agenda in Iraq. In 2003, the United States and its coalition of allies invaded Iraq , accusing Saddam of developing weapons of mass destruction and of having ties with al-Qaeda , accusations that turned out to be false. After

4000-533: A new cemetery for Jews in Baghdad. In 1998, on the day of Jewish festival of Sukkot , a Palestinian entered the Baghdad synagogue and shot four people to death, including two Jews. The preparator was arrested and executed in 1999. A cabinet meeting chaired by him condemned the attack. Saddam also said that: "Anyone who hurt the Jews in Baghdad would pay a heavy price". Saddam was also recognized for safeguarding

4200-554: A pivotal role in the negotiations leading up to the Algiers Agreement, representing Iraq's interests. Saddam Hussein's growing influence within the Iraqi government allowed him to shape Iraq's approach and stance during the negotiation process. Following the agreement, Iraq and Iran restored full diplomatic relations and exchanged ambassadors, representing a significant diplomatic breakthrough. The Algiers Agreement emphasized

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4400-552: A place among the designated survivors of end-times, in exchange for her assistance. Reyes departed the FBI shortly thereafter, electing to take Spender's offer but with the intent on halting the invasion from within the syndicate. FBI assistant director Walter S. Skinner is played by Mitch Pileggi . He served in the United States Marine Corps during the Vietnam War . During this time he shot and killed

4600-406: A shadowy agent and smoking. "Musings of a Cigarette Smoking Man" has the Smoking Man still a young man and not part of the Syndicate in 1963, and he does not smoke yet. The same episode reveals that by the early 1960s he was a United States Army Special Forces captain involved in black operations and intelligence, and that he served alongside Bill Mulder. The Smoking Man was already involved in

4800-411: A son, Jeffrey Spender . He recruits FBI Special Agent Diana Fowley to be a subordinate of his because she has a close relationship with Mulder. In " One Son ", Jeffrey finds out that his father, the Smoking Man, forced his mother Cassandra to undergo medical treatments that led to several nervous breakdowns during his childhood years. When the Smoking Man finds out, he seemingly kills Jeffrey. Knowing of

5000-439: A terrorist-created plague by using fire doors to seal themselves in a closed hallway with the man carrying the plague. Skinner pulls some strings and arranges for them to be interred at Arlington National Cemetery , as a tribute to their brave deeds. Marita Covarrubias is introduced as an informant to Mulder after the death of his former source, X . X scrawls the letters "S.R.S.G." in his own blood as he dies, leading Mulder to

5200-401: A violent confrontation with John Doggett before escaping. In the last season 8 episode, " Existence ", Krycek is shot between the eyes and killed by Skinner during an unsuccessful attempt to kill Mulder. Krycek's ghost briefly showed up to help Mulder escape a military base in the series finale. Knowle Rohrer is portrayed by Adam Baldwin . He served alongside Sergeant John Doggett in

5400-407: A young boy carrying explosives, an episode which scarred him for life. Skinner is originally the direct supervisor of Mulder and Scully, and of the X-files. He later serves the same position for Special Agents John Doggett and Monica Reyes . Although he is originally portrayed as a somewhat malevolent character, Skinner eventually becomes a close friend of his subordinates. Skinner is responsible for

5600-616: Is Fox Mulder, thus lending further credence to Spender's claim that both he and Mulder are the children of the Cigarette-Smoking Man. John Fitzgerald Byers is portrayed by Bruce Harwood . Byers was born in Sterling, Virginia on November 22, 1963, the day on which John F. Kennedy was assassinated , and was named after the fallen president—his parents were originally planning to name him Bertram, after his father. Byers idolized his namesake, but always had suspicions about

5800-569: Is a feeling that at least three million Iraqis are watching the eleven million others." —"A European diplomat", quoted in The New York Times , April 3, 1984. Iraqi society fissures along lines of language, religion and ethnicity. The Ba'ath Party, secular by nature, adopted Pan-Arab ideologies which in turn were problematic for significant parts of the population. Following the Iranian Revolution of 1979, Iraq faced

6000-493: Is able to interpret DNA strands, instantly informing Mulder that Scully's blood had been tampered with in " One Breath ". All three of the Lone Gunmen die in the episode " Jump the Shark ," sacrificing themselves to save thousands from a terrorist created plague. Skinner arranges for them to be interred at Arlington National Cemetery , as a tribute to their brave deeds. Melvin Frohike is portrayed by Tom Braidwood . Frohike

6200-478: Is actually an undercover agent working for the Cigarette Smoking Man . Krycek plays an important part in several events that are harmful to Mulder and Dana Scully : he assists in Scully's abduction, and murders Mulder's father, Bill Mulder . Krycek also assaults Assistant Director Walter Skinner and acquires a secret tape from him which reveals a US government coverup regarding alien visits to Earth . After

Cigarette Smoking Man - Misplaced Pages Continue

6400-545: Is almost always seen chain-smoking Morley Cigarettes , and is usually surrounded by clouds of smoke. In the first seasons of the show, he was usually present in Walter Skinner 's office, which was often a sign to discredit Fox Mulder 's work on the X-Files . He is involved in the Syndicate , a shadow organization within the United States government that exists to hide the fact that aliens are visiting Earth from

6600-502: Is also learned that his attempted murder of his son failed, which led him to subject his son to terrible experiments. In the series finale , " The Truth ", Mulder and Scully travel through remote New Mexico and reach a pueblo where a "wise man" reputedly lives: he is, in fact, the Smoking Man. His condition has worsened since his disappearance, and he lives a primitive life in hiding from the "New" Syndicate. After taunting Mulder and Scully, he reveals to Scully what Mulder already knew, that

6800-457: Is approached by Scully , who pleads that she needs to know where Mulder is, believing his life to be in danger. X reluctantly gives her the information after a fight with Skinner . In " 731 ", X's loyalty to Mulder is further confirmed. Trapped on a train car equipped with a time bomb , Mulder is attacked by an assassin. X fatally shoots the assassin as he is about to step off the car, and boards with only enough time left to save either Mulder or

7000-402: Is explained by Scully, who states, "Diana Fowley was found murdered this morning." Her death is not witnessed, though. Deputy Director Alvin D. Kersh is played by James Pickens, Jr. Kersh was a Navy A-6 Intruder weapons officer during the Vietnam War . He is known for using the same instincts that served him as an aviator in the military to guide his career in the FBI . His role in

7200-430: Is generally accepted that Egypt, in some capacity, was involved in the assassination attempt, and that "[t]he United States was working with Nasser on some level." Sale and Darwish's account has been disputed by historian Bryan R. Gibson who concludes that available U.S. declassified documents show that "while the United States was aware of several plots against Qasim, it had still adhered to [a] nonintervention policy." On

7400-421: Is in the conspiracy (which he calls "the game") because he believes that the secrets he keeps could, if publicly revealed, threaten the social order that preserves society: "If people were to know of the things that I know... it would all fall apart". He is at times shown working towards that goal, particularly in connection with developing a vaccine to protect people from the " black oil ", a parasitic agent which

7600-477: Is infected with the black oil and taken to Antarctica , it is the Well-Manicured Man who, having grown disillusioned with the Syndicate, gives Mulder the coordinates needed to find her and a sample of the vaccine needed to cure Scully. The colonists had kept secret a secondary characteristic of the black oil—that those infected with it for prolonged periods would gestate a new colonist lifeform, killing

7800-512: Is later partnered with Monica Reyes, and together they depart the X-files in 2002, when the unit is shut down. Monica Reyes is played by Annabeth Gish , an FBI special agent who was born and raised in Mexico City , where her parents still reside as of 2002. Because she was raised in Mexico, Reyes speaks fluent Spanish. She majored in folklore and mythology at Brown University , and has

8000-709: Is not believed to have received any training outside of Iraq, as he was a late addition to the assassination team. Richard Sale of United Press International (UPI), citing former United States diplomat and intelligence officials, Adel Darwish , and other experts, reported that the unsuccessful assassination attempt on Qasim was a collaboration between the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and Egyptian intelligence . Pertinent contemporary records relating to CIA operations in Iraq have remained classified or heavily redacted, thus "allow[ing] for plausible deniability." It

8200-586: Is provided during the fourth-season episode " Musings of a Cigarette Smoking Man ", in which the conspiracy theorists known as The Lone Gunmen claim Smoking Man was first documented in Baton Rouge, Louisiana , on August 20, 1940. His father was an ardent communist activist and a spy for the Soviet NKVD who was executed under the Espionage Act of 1917 "before his boy could walk". His mother

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8400-428: Is revealed that he's supposedly Mulder's biological father . In the series finale , Mulder and Scully travel through remote New Mexico , and reach a pueblo where a "wise man" reputedly lives. It is in fact the Smoking Man. He is shown to be in the same condition as when he disappeared, but has degenerated further and is now quite unkempt. He has a shock of long white hair, and is living a primitive life in hiding from

8600-469: Is seen being present during the faking of the Moon Landing in 1969. In his first appearance in the series, he oversees FBI agent Dana Scully's ( Gillian Anderson ) briefing and debriefing, and later disposes of evidence Fox Mulder ( David Duchovny ) and Scully had brought back from their investigation of an alien abduction. With the Smoking Man hiding truth from the public, Mulder seeks to reveal it to

8800-469: Is shown to have been active back sometime after the Roswell incident and oversaw an experiment on a grey alien . These events preceded the Syndicate, with this new origin retconning the original series run by claiming that the Smoking Man was in fact playing against the Syndicate, despite having previously being seen taking orders from them. He is also confirmed to be the real killer of John F. Kennedy and

9000-708: Is taken to a missile silo in North Dakota by the Cigarette Smoking Man. Having ejected the alien influence into an alien craft, he is left locked in a missile bay, screaming and banging on the door. When escaping a gulag in Russia, where Krycek pursues a mysterious rock, his left arm is amputated to prevent some experiments on him. Later in the series, Krycek can be seen switching sides as it suits him, occasionally helping Mulder, Cigarette Smoking Man and other people. He attempted to blackmail Skinner by infecting him with lethal nanotechnology , but ended up being thrown into

9200-481: Is the leader of the Syndicate . The Strughold mine in remote West Virginia , where the Syndicate secretly kept files on and tissue samples of abductees , is named after him. In the film, he authorizes Dana Scully 's abduction, seeing it as a way to effectively break Fox Mulder 's spirit, and as a more profitable alternative to outright killing Mulder. He lives in Tunisia . It is believed that he has Nazi ties and

9400-475: Is thrown into chaos as the Syndicate plan for depopulation gets underway. However, in " My Struggle III ", this is shown to be a vision experienced by Scully. It is revealed that the Smoking Man is trying to find Scully's son William in order to fulfill his plans, and that he is in conflict with a group led by two other surviving Syndicate members, who want the Smoking Man dead in order to carry out their own agenda. The Smoking Man approaches Walter Skinner to make him

9600-564: Is unable to enter the United States because it would draw too much attention to the Syndicate. Strughold survived the demise of the Syndicate in season 6, though as of the end of the series, he is probably either dead, in hiding, or working with the New Syndicate (though the last option is unlikely). Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein (28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician and revolutionary who served as

9800-597: The 1941 Iraqi coup d'état and Anglo-Iraqi War , and often mentored and told tales of his exploits to the young Saddam. In 1958, a year after Saddam had joined the Ba'ath party, army officers led by General Abd al-Karim Qasim overthrew Faisal II of Iraq in the 14 July Revolution . The Ba'ath Party was originally represented in Qasim's cabinet; however, Qasim—reluctant to join Nasser's newly formed union between Egypt and Syria —sided with various groups within Iraq (notably

10000-588: The Al-Bu Nasir tribe, which was descended from Ahmed Bin Hussein 'Nasiruddin', a descendant of Husayn ibn Ali . The Al-Bu Nasir tribe had settled in Tikrit after migrating from Yemen . Saddam's name means "the fighter who stands steadfast". His father died before his birth. This made Saddam's mother, Subha, so depressed that she unsuccessfully attempted to abort her pregnancy and commit suicide . His mother

10200-771: The Buffalo Bills from ever winning the Super Bowl , drugging the Soviet goalkeeper Vladislav Tretiak before the Miracle on Ice , and executing extraterrestrials that survived landing on American soil. Nevertheless, X-Files writer Frank Spotnitz stated that this version of events is only one possibility and is not accepted canon. In the eleventh-season episode " My Struggle III ," the Cigarette-Smoking Man reveals his name to be Carl Gerhard Busch (the name of series creator Chris Carter's grandfather). In this backstory, he

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10400-757: The Chaldean Catholic minority , was selected by Saddam to serve as Iraq’s Deputy Prime Minister from 1979 to 2003 and Foreign Minister from 1983 to 1991. A close advisor to him, Aziz was also appointed as a member of the Revolutionary Command Council and the Regional Command of the Iraqi Branch of the Ba'ath Party . Michel Aflaq , the founder of Ba'athism , was also a Christian . Cardinal Fernando Filoni , who

10600-471: The Department of Defense . The work he did there is unknown, but it is safe to assume that he was involved in classified operations. When Doggett became assigned to the X-Files, he re-established contact with Rohrer. Doggett became suspicious of Rohrer when information was given to him from Rohrer that got a man killed, but it was not until Doggett saw Rohrer meet with Alex Krycek that he realized Rohrer

10800-603: The Iraqi economy . He presided over the Second Iraqi–Kurdish War (1974–1975) and the Algiers Agreement which settled territorial disputes along the Iran–Iraq border . Following al-Bakr's resignation in 1979, Saddam formally took power, although he had already been the de facto head of Iraq for several years. Positions of power in the country were mostly filled with Sunni Arabs, a minority that made up about

11000-634: The Mandaean minority in Iraq. Mandaeans were given state protection under his government. As a sign of respect, the Mandaean Book of John's first copy translation into Arabic was given to Saddam. After this he vowed to construct temples for the Mandaeans, with quoting, "Iraqis have religious freedom, whether they are Muslims, Christians or Sabaeans ". The Sabian–Mandaean Mandi in Baghdad

11200-493: The Second Iraqi–Kurdish War . In Iraq, especially compared to other middle-eastern countries such as Iran , Turkey , and Syria , Iraqi Kurds were treated well under the regime of Saddam when compared to the situation in neighbouring countries, with the Kurdish language being tolerated under Saddams regime in education, and media, and spoken as a official language. Saddam also had multiple Kurdish ministers and generals, with

11400-517: The Syndicate conspirators and working against Mulder in his pursuit of the truth within the X-files. As Fowley is an old fling of Mulder's, additional tension was generated on the show and among viewers because of a perceived rekindling of her former close personal relationship with agent Mulder and the possibility of Fowley coming between him and his trusted partner, Special Agent Dana Scully . The character of Diana Fowley subsequently vanishes during " The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati ". Her absence

11600-507: The U.S. Marine Corps with the 24th Marine Amphibious Unit in Beirut, Lebanon . Doggett and Rohrer were friends, but lost touch when Rohrer and Shannon McMahon were taken out of their company to be the first people transformed into Super Soldiers , a new type of alien-human hybrid intended by the alien Colonists as replacements for normal humans. Knowle reached the rank of Master Sergeant and continued on with his military career by joining

11800-566: The United Nations and had an air of "intelligent seriousness". Writer Frank Spotnitz has described Covarrubias as "young, attractive, vital [and] dangerous" compared to the other characters working for the Syndicate. Holden has compared the character to Mata Hari , adding that "you can't really read what she's saying or what her intentions are". Robert Shearman and Lars Pearson, in their book Wanting to Believe: A Critical Guide to The X-Files, Millennium & The Lone Gunmen , felt that

12000-499: The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). At the center of this strategy was Iraq's oil. On 1 June 1972, Saddam oversaw the seizure of international oil interests, which, at the time, dominated the country's oil sector. A year later, world oil prices rose dramatically as a result of the 1973 energy crisis , and skyrocketing revenues enabled Saddam to expand his agenda. With

12200-464: The alien-human hybrid the car was transporting, opting to save Mulder. In the season 4 opener " Herrenvolk ", X's position as an informant is discovered by the Syndicate, and he is assassinated, but not before leading Mulder to his successor, Marita Covarrubias . After his death, X appears two more times—in The Lone Gunmen origin story " Unusual Suspects ," set before his death, and as

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12400-572: The conspirators knew where they were. Rohrer, alive and well, followed, intending to kill them all (including the Cigarette Smoking Man, who had long since outlived his usefulness to the conspiracy). However, as he approached Doggett and Reyes in the New Mexican desert, Rohrer died from exposure to magnetite . It turned out that the Cigarette Smoking Man figured out that magnetite killed the Super Soldiers, and consequently chose to hide in

12600-465: The murder of Luke Doggett came to light. John Doggett sought Follmer's assistance because he had worked on organized crime in New York City before coming to Washington . Reyes, however, recalled seeing Follmer accept a bribe from a mobster. Although he had convincingly claimed he was only paying an informant, the truth was as Reyes suspected: Follmer was crooked. Once the truth of Luke's fate

12800-664: The social democrats and the Iraqi Communist Party ) that told him such an action would be dangerous. Instead, Qasim adopted a wataniyah policy of "Iraq First". To strengthen his own position within the government, Qasim also had an alliance with the Iraqi Communist Party, which was opposed to the notion of pan-Arabism. His policies angered several pan-Arab organisations, including the Ba'ath Party, which later began plotting to assassinate Qasim at Al-Rashid Street on 7 October 1959 and take power. Saddam

13000-475: The "voice of reason" within the Syndicate, the character has been seen as representing an opposing viewpoint to that of The Smoking Man. The character has been positively received by critics. MTV 's Tami Katzoff has called him a "legendary TV character", noting his "moral ambivalence about the work of his shadow organization" and his ability to show "empathy for Mulder and Scully". The San Francisco Chronicle 's Bob Graham has praised Neville's portrayal of

13200-717: The 1980s. Later he joined the New York City Police Department and was eventually promoted to the rank of detective . After his son's death, Doggett took a job in the FBI working in the Criminal Investigations Division. In 2000 Deputy Director Alvin Kersh assigned him to the X-files office as Scully's partner after an unsuccessful task force attempt to find a missing Mulder in " Without ". He grows to rely on Scully's friendship, even though he knows he can never replace Mulder. He

13400-428: The 90's Iraqi-healthcare decreased in its effectiveness with the sanctions restricting basic-medical equipment and supplies from getting into Iraq. Nationalization of oil was implemented, which aimed to achieve economic independence. By the late 1970s, Iraq experienced significant economic growth, with a budget reserve surpassing US$ 35 billion. The value of 1 Iraqi dinar was worth more than 3 dollars, making it one of

13600-400: The American civil rights movement . At the same time, the Smoking Man was an aspiring writer of espionage (and later, science fiction) novels starring a fictional version of himself called Jack Colquitt, based on his own secret activities, but all his drafts were rejected or altered by publishers who found them unrealistic and poorly written. This left him no choice but to continue working for

13800-462: The Ba'ath Party had a large following in Syria at the time, but in 1955 there were fewer than 300 Ba'ath Party members in Iraq, and it is believed that Saddam's primary reason for joining the party as opposed to the more established Iraqi nationalist parties was his familial connection to Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr and other leading Ba'athists through his uncle. Revolutionary sentiment was characteristic of

14000-595: The Ba'ath Party in response to the Marxist takeover of the Syrian Ba'ath earlier that year, resulting in the Party's formalized split into two separate factions . Saddam then created a Ba'athist security service, which he alone controlled. In July 1968, Saddam participated in a bloodless coup led by Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr that overthrew Abdul Rahman Arif , Salam Arif's brother and successor. While Saddam's role in

14200-402: The Ba'ath Party's civilian wing upon his return. Unlike during the Qasim years, Saddam remained in Iraq following Arif's anti-Ba'athist purge in November 1963, and became involved in planning to assassinate Arif. In marked contrast to Qasim, Saddam knew that he faced no death penalty from Arif's government and knowingly accepted the risk of being arrested rather than fleeing to Syria again. Saddam

14400-473: The Ba'ath party. Relationships with fellow party members were carefully cultivated, and Saddam soon accumulated a powerful circle of support within the party. In 1979, al-Bakr started to make treaties with Syria, also under Ba'athist leadership, that would lead to unification between the two countries. Syrian President Hafiz al-Assad would become deputy leader in a union, and this would drive Saddam to obscurity. Saddam acted to secure his grip on power. He forced

14600-521: The Ba'athists in the rural areas. After nationalizing foreign oil interests, Saddam supervised the modernization of the countryside, mechanizing agriculture on a large scale, and distributing land to peasant farmers. The Ba'athists established farm cooperatives and the government also doubled expenditures for agricultural development in 1974–1975. Saddam's welfare programs were part of a combination of "carrot and stick" tactics to enhance support for Saddam. The state-owned banks were put under his thumb. Lending

14800-526: The Baghdad Metro project in 1980, though it did not ultimately come to fruition, due to troubles concerning the Iran-Iraq War . Throughout the 24 years of his presidency, Saddam built more than 100 palaces across the country. With a Muslim majority, Iraq consists of a multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-sectarian population. During his rule, numerous religious and ethnic groups existed in

15000-596: The CIA-backed failed invasion of Cuba and the assassinations of Patrice Lumumba and Rafael Trujillo before he was enlisted by a secret cabal to assassinate President John F. Kennedy in Dallas, Texas. The assassination was motivated by Kennedy's mishandling of the Bay of Pigs Invasion and the subsequent Cuban Missile Crisis . As part of the mission, the Smoking Man told the designated patsy, Lee Harvey Oswald , to bring

15200-412: The FBI permanently in 2002. Sometime between then and 2008 she finds work as a surgeon. In 2008 she returns to consult with the FBI. She returns to the bureau permanently in 2016 alongside Mulder. John Doggett is played by Robert Patrick , an FBI special agent who makes his first appearance in " Within ," the eighth-season premiere. Doggett served in the United States Marine Corps during the 1970s and

15400-438: The FBI, which he eventually does in " Two Fathers ". Later on he reinstates Mulder and Scully to the X-files but appears to be shot in the head and killed by his father in " One Son ". Three years later, it is revealed in " William " that Spender survived the gunshot, but that he was subjected to horribly disfiguring experiments at the hands of his father. Posing as Mulder, he infiltrates Scully's house and injects William with

15600-433: The FBI. Mulder considers the X-files and the truth behind the supposed conspiracy so important that he has made their study the main purpose of his life. After seven years partnered with Scully, Mulder is abducted by aliens at the end of the seventh season. Upon returning, he officially hands the X-files to Special Agent John Doggett, who was hired in his absence. Mulder returns to assist the FBI in 2008, and permanently rejoins

15800-468: The First Elder ordered one of his operatives to carry out a specific task. The operative followed CSM as he tried to recruit Mulder to work with the Syndicate , watching their movements through the scope of a sniper rifle. Shortly after the discovery of Scott Blevins ' betrayal, the First Elder's operative shot CSM, who had been holding a photograph of Mulder and his sister . He was killed along with

16000-658: The Gulf War, Iraq was sanctioned by the UN , which caused economic decline. In 1995, then U.S. president Bill Clinton introduced Oil-for-Food Programme , in which Iraq sold oil on the world market in exchange for humanitarian needs. The program was accepted by the Ba'athist government in 1996. By 1995, GDP of Iraq dropped to US$ 9 billion from US$ 44.36 billion in 1990. Iraq had lost around US$ 170 billion of oil revenues. The economy of Iraq began improving in 2000, as its GDP increased to U$ 23.73 billion by 2000. Saddam pursued to beautify

16200-401: The Kurds to an extent, with Kurds being allowed to speak Kurdish in schools, on television, and even in newspapers, with textbooks being translated for the Kurdish regions, and Kurds in Iraq being able to elect a Kurdish representative to go to Baghdad. Saddam had already signed a deal in 1970 to grant the Kurds autonomy , but Mustafa Barazani eventually disagreed with the deal, which incited

16400-672: The Middle East in the 1950s and 1960s, with the collapse of the monarchies of Iraq , Egypt , and Libya . Nasser inspired nationalists throughout the Middle East by fighting the British and the French during the Suez Crisis of 1956 , modernizing Egypt, and uniting the Arab world politically. Saddam's father-in-law, Khairallah Talfah , was reported to have served five years in prison for his role in fighting against Great Britain in

16600-524: The New Syndicate. He reveals to Mulder and Scully all he has left to tell, including the fact that the aliens are scheduled to invade in 2012 . Shortly after he is supposedly killed by a missile shot from a helicopter ordered by Knowle Rohrer , but is shown alive in the 2016 episode " My Struggle ". The Well-Manicured Man is a British member of the Syndicate. An Englishman, he is an important member, along with The Smoking Man and The Elder , and

16800-526: The Shatt al-Arab, which had been under Iranian control. Saddam Hussein aimed to secure Iraq's territorial claims, particularly regarding the Shatt al-Arab waterway, which had been a longstanding source of contention between Iran and Iraq. Both parties recognized each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity, affirming the principle of non-aggression. The Algiers Agreement called for the restoration of full diplomatic relations between Iran and Iraq, including

17000-421: The Smoking Man as evil, making him out to be the villain. Series creator Chris Carter once called him "the devil", producing a mixed reaction among fans. Some fans, along with the portraying actor, see him as a hero, as he is forced to make choices others are not. The Smoking Man is involved in the Syndicate , a shadow organization which includes members of the United States government that exists to hide from

17200-431: The Smoking Man had two different characters, the first being the one played by Davis and the second was the cigarettes. He further stated that the cigarette smoke could tell a "whole story" by itself, thanks to Davis's talent. Fans of the series were active in debating if the Smoking Man was actually dead after the events of the season five premiere " Redux ". In his first response, Chris Carter said he had left clues in

17400-401: The Smoking Man. He contacted Scully in person while Mulder pursued evidence of an alien autopsy on a train. He also obtained photographs taken by X of a meeting between The Smoking Man and Teena Mulder as proof that one of the Smoking Man's henchmen was a traitor. The First Elder set up a trap to reveal the identity of the traitor and dispatched an assassin to kill him. X fell for

17600-678: The Special Representative to the Secretary-General of the United Nations . However, it is later revealed that Covarrubias is working for the Smoking Man and the Syndicate . The Syndicate later discovers that Covarrubias has betrayed them and is providing information to Mulder. As a result, Syndicate scientists infect her with the black oil virus, so as to test a vaccine they have been working to create. A cured Covarrubias later makes contact with Krycek at

17800-561: The Syndicate. His confidence in Jeffrey falters after a failed assassination attempt and later on Jeffrey's betrayal, he confronts his son and apparently kills him. The episodes also presented further evidence suggesting that he is Mulder's father. Eventually, Fowley also splits from him, which leads to her death. After the fall of the Syndicate, Smoking Man has no more fellow conspirators who can match his power, so he begins to operate as he wishes. However, his cancer resurfaces and he requires

18000-566: The Syndicate. Together with Fowley, the Smoking Man escapes the destruction of the Syndicate. Later in the sixth season, there is more evidence that suggested that the Smoking Man is Mulder's biological father. Eventually in " The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati ", Smoking Man tells Mulder, "I am your father," while Mulder has a flashback to his childhood of walking on the beach with his parents. Fowley comes in disagreement with him. Because of his plans to kill Mulder, Fowley helps Scully in her investigation to locate Mulder, which leads to her death. After

18200-603: The United States government. By 1991, the Smoking Man's power was pretty much absolute. He was in direct talks with Saddam Hussein and involved in one way or another on the Anita Hill – Clarence Thomas controversy, moving the Rodney King trial to Simi Valley, California, keeping the United States government from interfering in the independence of Bosnia and Herzegovina , the Academy Awards nominations, keeping

18400-586: The ability to pass their citizenship down to their children even if they married a non-Iraqi, which Iraqi women no longer have the ability to do. Women's education no longer was a luxury, with women having the same opportunities as men in higher education. He also introduced social security programs, with the notable parts of the program consisting of disability benefits, with disabled people in Iraq becoming eligible for financial assistance. It also introduced healthcare coverage, ensuring Iraqi citizens had access to healthcare and medication when needed, Although during

18600-696: The age of 10, Saddam fled the family and returned to live in Baghdad with his uncle Khairallah Talfah , who became a fatherly figure to Saddam. Talfah, the father of Saddam's future wife, was a devout Sunni Muslim and a veteran of the 1941 Anglo-Iraqi War between Iraqi nationalists and the United Kingdom , which remained a major colonial power in the region. Talfah was appointed the mayor of Baghdad during Saddam's time in power, until his notorious corruption compelled Saddam to force him out of office. Later in his life, relatives from his native city became some of his closest advisors and supporters. Under

18800-438: The ailing al-Bakr to resign on 16 July 1979, and formally assumed the presidency. Saddam convened an assembly of Ba'ath party leaders on 22 July 1979. During the assembly, which he ordered videotaped, Saddam claimed to have found a fifth column within the Ba'ath Party and directed Muhyi Abdel-Hussein to read out a confession and the names of 68 alleged co-conspirators. These members were labelled "disloyal" and were removed from

19000-413: The alien Colonists use to propagate themselves. When first cast for the role, portraying actor William B. Davis thought a show about the paranormal would not last for long. Before joining The X-Files cast, Davis had not smoked a cigarette in twenty years. For the first two episodes he appeared in, he smoked "real" cigarettes, but later changed to herbal cigarettes , giving the reason that smoking

19200-486: The alien re-colonization of Earth is set for December 22, 2012. Shortly after, Smoking Man is again apparently killed by a rocket shot from a helicopter ordered by Knowle Rohrer . For the next 14 years, he is presumed dead. However, he appears again alive, but seriously burned and disfigured at the end of " My Struggle " (2016), the first episode of the X-Files miniseries , stating that the X-Files have been reopened. In

19400-475: The archives of the Hoover building in order to find out what happened to his missing sister. The first seven seasons feature recurring appearances by Walter Skinner ( Mitch Pileggi ), conspiracy theorists The Lone Gunmen ( Tom Braidwood , Dean Haglund , and Bruce Harwood ), and secretive informants Deep Throat ( The X-Files ) ( Jerry Hardin ) and X ( The X-Files ) ( Steven Williams ). The eighth season and

19600-478: The behest of The Smoking Man, who wishes to resume the work of the now-eradicated Syndicate. However, Covarrubias and Krycek betray the Smoking Man and leave him for dead. In the series finale " The Truth ," Skinner seeks Covarrubias as a witness in Mulder's trial for murder. She is called upon to testify, and she speaks about her involvement with the Syndicate. However, when she is pressed for further information about

19800-467: The bureau in 2016. He and Scully have a son together, named William. Dana Katherine Scully is played by Gillian Anderson , a medical doctor assigned to debunk the work of Special Agent Fox Mulder. Together they work out of a cramped basement office at the FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C. , to investigate unsolved cases labeled "X-files". In contrast to Fox Mulder's "believer" character, Scully

20000-494: The case, forcing them to pay out of their own pocket. He also attempted to separate Mulder and Scully, believing that Mulder threw away a promising career as a criminal profiler , but that Scully's career could still be saved. When Mulder and Scully were reassigned to the X-Files Section, Kersh continued to climb the ladder, culminating in an assignment as deputy director. It was not long after his promotion that Mulder

20200-556: The category "Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series" by the Screen Actors Guild Awards in 1997, 1998 and 1999, but did not win. The character was regularly voted "The Nastiest Villain" on television polls during the '90s. TV Guide listed Cigarette Smoking Man 20th in their "25 Greatest TV Villains" list. According to the portraying actor, the character had garnered protest from "pro-smokers". Entertainment Weekly writer Jennifer Armstrong cited

20400-554: The character as an example of the old tradition of having only "bad guys" smoking on television. Davis was included in Entertainment Weekly ' s list of the 50 Biggest Emmy Snubs, the list's author saying that the presence of the "Cigarette Smoking Man" was as important as "black oil, alien implants, and Scully's skepticism". The Malaysian newspaper the New Straits Times called the Smoking Man one of

20600-409: The character in the feature film, calling his expository monologue "a Wagnerian demonstration of the art of declamation". X , sometimes referred to as Mr. X , serves as an informant to Mulder , replacing Deep Throat in this capacity. While X's loyalties and his own agenda were often unclear, he has more than once proven that he at least does not want Mulder dead. In the episode " End Game ", he

20800-445: The character was "used so perfunctorily since her introduction" that her appearances added little to the episodes she featured in, describing her as a "bad parody" of the earlier characters Deep Throat and X . Deep Throat is the first of Mulder's informants, leaking information to him to aid his investigations. As a member of the then-unseen Syndicate , he is in a position to know a great deal of information. Deep Throat feels that

21000-560: The cities of Iraq. He launched various projects across the cities, beautifying it. Many monuments were constructed in Baghdad, such as the Al-Shaheed Monument and Monument to the Unknown Soldier , which helped in beautifying the city of Baghdad. Under his regime, Iraq engaged in rapid infrastructural development. Baghdad Airport was inaugurated in 1982, bearing his name "Saddam International Airport". He also proposed

21200-561: The colonization plan, the Alien rebels return to Earth to try to persuade the Syndicate to join their side against their war with the Colonists. Not believing in the strength of the Alien rebels, the Syndicate members meet at El Rico Air Base to be transported to a spaceship to survive the colonization. However, the rebels appear instead of the Colonists and kill all remaining chief members of

21400-458: The comic-book continuation was made canonical with The X-Files: Cold Cases , an Audible adaptation of the series set between the events of the ninth and tenth seasons of The X-Files , in which the Smoking Man presented in the series is revealed to be a shape-shifting alien imitating him. Kim Manners , a director of several X-Files episodes, said that the Smoking Man was the show's version of Darth Vader . Some X-Files fans have categorized

21600-481: The conspiracy surrounding Mulder's disappearance. The investigation turned up nothing. Although Doggett seemed convinced that Kersh was involved in the conspiracy, Kersh insisted that he was actually protecting Mulder. During the ninth season , the Toothpick Man , a key conspirator, could be seen in the company of Kersh, much like Cigarette Smoking Man before. In the end, Kersh showed a heroic side when during

21800-410: The continuation of the conspiracy, she clams up, and at Mulder's request she is dismissed from the stand, for fear that if she divulges certain knowledge, she will be killed. The character of Marita Covarrubias was portrayed by Laurie Holden in all her appearances. When auditioning for the role, Holden was not allowed access to an episode script, instead simply being told that her character worked for

22000-402: The country. Saddam, contrary to popular belief, was not inherently sectarian. While he did place his close relatives in key security and military positions, he also promoted individuals from other communities and minorities to the highest levels of power in Iraq. His primary criterion for these appointments was unwavering loyalty to him and his regime. Muhammad Saeed al-Sahhaf , a Shia Muslim,

22200-645: The countryside and roughly two-thirds were peasants. This number would decrease quickly during the 1970s as global oil prices helped revenues to rise from less than a half billion dollars to tens of billions of dollars and the country invested into industrial expansion. He nationalised independent banks, eventually leaving the banking system insolvent due to inflation and bad loans. The oil revenue benefited Saddam politically. According to The Economist , "Much as Adolf Hitler won early praise for galvanizing German industry, ending mass unemployment and building autobahns, Saddam earned admiration abroad for his deeds. He had

22400-494: The coup was not hugely significant (except in the official account), Saddam planned and carried out the subsequent purge of the non-Ba'athist faction led by Prime Minister Abd ar-Razzaq an-Naif , whose support had been essential to the coup's success. According to a semi-official biography, Saddam personally led Naif at gunpoint to the plane that escorted him out of Iraq. Arif was given refuge in London and then Istanbul . Al-Bakr

22600-516: The coup. Ba'athist leaders were appointed to the cabinet and Abdul Salam Arif became president. Arif dismissed and arrested the Ba'athist leaders later that year in the November 1963 Iraqi coup d'état . Being exiled in Egypt at the time, Saddam played no role in the 1963 coup or the brutal anti-communist purge that followed; although he returned to Iraq after the coup, becoming a key organizer within

22800-411: The current. Prior to the tenth televised series of The X-Files in 2016, Chris Carter worked with IDW Publishing in 2013 to produce a comic-book continuation of the show. It hints that the Smoking Man is alive and indirectly feeding information to both Mulder and The Lone Gunmen . Carter later said that the story from these comics would be disregarded in future television productions. A variation of

23000-602: The curtain rods as a way to frame him for the murder. By 1968, the Smoking Man had progressed enough in the hierarchy to push himself for the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. , concerned that King was "talking like a Maoist " and a threat to the American war effort in Vietnam . He did the deed himself because he had "too much respect for the man," and chose to frame a white racist because of his own sympathy for

23200-428: The destruction of the Syndicate, the Smoking Man starts to operate as he wishes. However, his cancer resurfaces, and he begins using a wheelchair and has a tracheotomy . In the end, Alex Krycek and Marita Covarrubias betray him in the episode " Requiem ", throwing him down a flight of stairs, where they presume him to be dead. The Smoking Man is revealed to be alive in the ninth season episode " William ", where it

23400-500: The diverse elements of Iraqi society and mobilizing mass support, he closely followed the administration of state welfare and development programs. Within just a few years, Iraq was providing unprecedented social services among Middle Eastern countries. Saddam established and controlled the "National Campaign for the Eradication of Illiteracy" and the campaign for "Compulsory Free Education in Iraq", and largely under his auspices,

23600-471: The end of the eighth season, Scully departs the X-files, accept a teaching position at the FBI Academy. Thereafter she acts as only a consultant to Doggett. Annabeth Gish (as Monica Reyes ), and Pileggi (as Skinner), join the main cast during the ninth season after recurring previously. The tenth season once again stars Duchovny, Anderson, and Pileggi, while Patrick is notably absent. Gish guest-stars in

23800-411: The ensuing scuffle Rohrer is electrocuted. Mulder is then taken into military custody and put on trial for Rohrer's supposed death. Eventually, Mulder breaks out with the help of Alvin Kersh , and with Dana Scully , headed to New Mexico for a final confrontation with the Cigarette Smoking Man , whom he discovered was still alive. Doggett and Monica Reyes went after Mulder and Scully to warn them that

24000-535: The episode " One Breath ". All three of the Lone Gunmen die in the X-Files episode " Jump the Shark ". They intentionally lock themselves in a closed hallway with a man carrying a terrorist-created plague, saving thousands. Skinner arranges for them to be interred at Arlington National Cemetery . Richard “Ringo” Langly is portrayed by Dean Haglund . Langly was born circa 1968/69 in Saltville, Nebraska. He showed an aptitude for computers from an early age, which

24200-428: The episode, and he later officially announced that the character would appear in the X-Files movie. In one of his last comments on the matter, he said, "Not that we haven't brought deceased characters back before, in flashbacks or more paranormal ways. The great thing about The X-Files is that anything can happen." The Smoking Man is the only character in the series, in addition to Mulder and Scully, to appear in both

24400-409: The era in Iraq and throughout the Middle East. In Iraq, progressives and socialists assailed traditional political elites (colonial-era bureaucrats and landowners, wealthy merchants and tribal chiefs, and monarchists). Moreover, the pan-Arab nationalism of Gamal Abdel Nasser in Egypt profoundly influenced young Ba'athists like Saddam. The rise of Nasser foreshadowed a wave of revolutions throughout

24600-418: The exchange of ambassadors. The agreement emphasized the importance of economic cooperation between the two countries, particularly in areas such as trade, transport, and joint development projects. The signing of the Algiers Agreement occurred during a period of relative stability in Iraq, with Saddam Hussein gradually consolidating power within the ruling Ba'ath Party. As Vice President, Saddam Hussein played

24800-443: The fifth president of Iraq from 1979 to 2003. He also served as prime minister of Iraq from 1979 to 1991 and later from 1994 to 2003. He was a leading member of the revolutionary Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party and later its Iraqi regional branch . Ideologically, he espoused Ba'athism , a mix of Arab nationalism and Arab socialism , while the policies and political ideas he championed are collectively known as Saddamism . Saddam

25000-478: The finale as Reyes. Fox William Mulder is played by David Duchovny , a trained FBI profiler who believes in the existence of extraterrestrial visitors and a government conspiracy to hide or deny the truth regarding extraterrestrial life. Mulder and his partner Special Agent Dana Scully work in the FBI's X-files office , which is concerned with cases with particularly mysterious or possibly supernatural circumstances that were marked as unsolvable and shelved by

25200-471: The first episode, " Pilot " and the last, " The Truth ". Portraying actor William B. Davis was listed as CIA Agent in the first season episode " Young at Heart ", instead of his usual character, the Smoking Man. Chris Owens for a time portrayed the Smoking Man as a young man in flashbacks . He later plays his son, Jeffrey Spender . Young Cigarette Smoking Man was first played by Craig Warkentin, with Davis' voice dubbed over in " Apocrypha ". The character

25400-410: The first season, making increasingly more appearances in the seasons that followed. Davis never received an award for his portrayal alone, but he was nominated for ensemble awards. TV Guide included him in their 2013 list of The 60 Nastiest Villains of All Time. The birth date, birthplace, and most of the history of the Smoking Man are never categorically confirmed. One possible version of his past

25600-415: The government established universal free schooling up to the highest education levels; hundreds of thousands learned to read in the years following the initiation of the program. The government also supported families of soldiers, granted free hospitalization to everyone, and gave subsidies to farmers. Iraq created one of the most modernized public health systems in the Middle East, earning Saddam an award from

25800-465: The government issued a decree inviting Jews back to Iraq, who were expelled. The Israeli government panned the decree by calling it political propaganda. Only a few Jewish families returned to Iraq. Thus the decree failed in attracting large swaths of Jews. In 1972, Saddam signed a 15-year Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation with the Soviet Union . According to historian Charles R. H. Tripp ,

26000-460: The government. As the ailing, elderly al-Bakr became unable to execute his duties, Saddam took on an increasingly prominent role as the face of the government both internally and externally. He soon became the architect of Iraq's foreign policy and represented the nation in all diplomatic situations. He was the de facto leader of Iraq some years before he formally came to power in 1979. He slowly began to consolidate his power over Iraq's government and

26200-656: The grounds that the party should not have initiated the attempt on Qasim's life. At the same time, Aflaq secured seats in the Iraqi Ba'ath leadership for his supporters, one of them being Saddam. The assassins, including Saddam, all eventually escaped to Cairo , Egypt "where they enjoyed Nasser's protection for the remainder of Qasim's tenure in power." Saddam initially escaped to Syria and then to Egypt itself in February 1960, and he continued to live there until 1963, graduating from high school in 1961 and unsuccessfully pursuing

26400-466: The guidance of his uncle, he attended a nationalistic high school in Baghdad. After secondary school, Saddam studied at an Iraqi law school for three years, dropping out in 1957 at the age of 20 to join the revolutionary pan-Arab Ba'ath Party , of which his uncle was a supporter. During this time, Saddam apparently supported himself as a secondary school teacher. Ba'athist ideology originated in Syria and

26600-417: The help of increasing oil revenues, Saddam diversified the largely oil-based Iraqi economy . Saddam implemented a national infrastructure campaign that made great progress in building roads, promoting mining, and developing other industries. The campaign helped Iraq's energy industries. Electricity was brought to nearly every city in Iraq, and many outlying areas. Before the 1970s, most of Iraq's people lived in

26800-966: The highest ranking one being Taha Yassin Ramadan , an Iraqi Kurd —was appointed by Saddam, largely due to his loyalty, as one of Iraq's three Vice Presidents. He was also made Deputy Secretary of the Regional Command of the Iraqi Branch of the Ba'ath Party and commander of the People's Army. Saddam himself personally enjoyed Kurdish culture, often wearing traditional Kurdish clothing in state visits to northern Iraq. Under Saddam's regime , substantial reforms in education and literacy took place, with Saddam Hussein introducing mandatory reading groups for adults, with punishments for not attending consisting of heavy fines, and even jail time. UNESCO awarded Iraq for having "Most effective literacy campaign in

27000-418: The hit team at a hospital; the calculating shrewdness that helped him save himself minutes before the police broke in leaving his wounded comrades behind; and finally the long trek of a wounded man from house to house, city to town, across the desert to refuge in Syria . Michel Aflaq , the leader of the Ba'athist movement, organized the expulsion of leading Iraqi Ba'athist members, such as Fuad al-Rikabi , on

27200-454: The host. Upon discovering this, the Syndicate vowed to work more closely with the colonists in the hope of being spared this fate, while only the Well-Manicured Man wished to continue working on a vaccination for resistance. This rejection led to his betrayal of the Syndicate, and to him committing suicide by car bomb before his duplicity was discovered. The Well-Manicured Man was portrayed by John Neville in all his appearances. Conceived as

27400-413: The importance of economic cooperation between Iraq and Iran, particularly in areas like trade and joint development projects. This agreement, while ultimately unable to prevent future hostilities, remained a notable diplomatic achievement for Iraq during Saddam Hussein's early political career. In 1976, Saddam rose to the position of general in the Iraqi armed forces, and rapidly became the strongman of

27600-571: The late 1950s and early 1960s." Army officers with ties to the Ba'ath Party overthrew Qasim in the Ramadan Revolution coup of February 1963; long suspected to be supported by the CIA, however, pertinent contemporary documents relating to the CIA's operations in Iraq have remained classified by the U.S. government, although the Ba'athists are documented to have maintained supportive relationships with U.S. officials before, during, and after

27800-545: The military on innocent civilians. Enlisting the help of Melvin Frohike and Richard Langly , who were also at the electronics show, they succeeded in helping Modeski, although she was later kidnapped. Modeski had awakened a desire in all three of them to uncover the truth, which subsequently led to the formation and publication of a newsletter entitled The Lone Gunmen , providing information on government cover-ups and conspiracy theories. Byers appears to have some working knowledge of medicine , genetics , and chemistry ; he

28000-427: The most "intriguing" characters of the show. However, Christianity Today said that the mystery behind the Smoking Man had evaporated by the late season episodes . Likewise, Ken Tucker from Entertainment Weekly felt that "the monotonous evil of Cancer Man" had "become actively annoying" in later seasons of the show, being that his lurking presence did not seem as mysterious anymore. Salon reviewer Jeff Stark felt

28200-427: The most notable economic expansions in the region. Saddam Hussein's regime aimed to diversify the Iraqi economy beyond oil. The government invested in various industries, including petrochemicals, fertilizer production, and textile manufacturing, to reduce dependence on oil revenues and promote economic self-sufficiency. By the 1970s, women employment rate also increased. Following the invasion of Kuwait which initiated

28400-488: The mysterious, enigmatic nature they share, the references to smoking present in Half-Life: Alyx , and spoken lines themselves, G-Man's infamous line "Prepare for unforeseen consequences" bearing a slight resemblance to the Smoking Man's line "There have been unforeseen events". While not being nominated for any of his work alone on The X-Files , William B. Davis and several other cast members were nominated in

28600-433: The new government by aiding attempts to strengthen and unify the Ba'ath party and taking a leading role in addressing the country's major domestic problems and expanding the party's following. Saddam actively fostered the modernization of the Iraqi economy and created a strong security apparatus to prevent coups within the power structure and insurrections apart from it. Ever concerned with broadening his base of support among

28800-474: The ninth season represent a change in the direction of the show: Duchovny departs the regular cast and thereafter takes the role of intermittent lead. Scully, now a reluctant believer, is partnered with Special Agent John Doggett ( Robert Patrick ), a former NYPD detective and a strict skeptic who is still grief-stricken over the death of his son, Luke. As Doggett begins to work on the X-files, Scully continues her search for Mulder, while also carrying his child. At

29000-454: The other hand, historian Kenneth Osgood writes that "the circumstantial evidence is such that the possibility of US–UAR collaboration with Ba'ath Party activists cannot be ruled out," concluding that "[w]hatever the validity of [Sale's] charges, at the very least currently declassified documents reveal that US officials were actively considering various plots against Qasim and that the CIA was building up assets for covert operations in Iraq." At

29200-401: The potentially hostile population. Membership in the Ba'ath Party remained open to all Iraqi citizens regardless of background, and repressive measures were taken against its opponents. The major instruments for accomplishing this control were the paramilitary and police organizations. Beginning in 1974, Taha Yassin Ramadan (himself a Kurdish Ba'athist), a close associate of Saddam, commanded

29400-548: The producers, leading to her replacement. Williams' portrayal of X was intended to introduce a personality completely different from the character's predecessor, Deep Throat, and has been positively received by critics and fans. Conrad Strughold is a fictional character played by Armin Mueller-Stahl in the 1998 motion picture The X-Files: Fight the Future . Strughold, a German scientist and entrepreneur ,

29600-452: The prominent pieces created for The X-Files were created by "accident". According to Manners, Davis was nothing more than an extra leaning on a shelf. At the start, the producers of the show were not sure about making the Smoking Man the main antagonist. Paul Rabwin commented once that he did not know if Davis could handle the role, because he was not sure if he was a "good enough" actor for the role. Manners later commented that Davis knew that

29800-444: The prospect of régime change from two Shi'ite factions ( Dawa and SCIRI ) which aspired to model Iraq on its neighbour Iran as a Shia theocracy. A separate threat to Iraq came from parts of the ethnic Kurdish population of northern Iraq which opposed being part of an Iraqi state and favored independence (an ongoing ideology which had preceded Ba'ath Party rule). To alleviate the threat of revolution, Saddam afforded certain benefits to

30000-442: The public and the truth about the disappearance of his sister, Samantha . This leads to a rivalry that lasts until the end of the series. In later seasons, it is revealed that he is a member of a group known as the Syndicate, a shadowy organization within the United States government. The episode " Two Fathers " reveals his birth name or alias as C.G.B. Spender, and that he was formerly married to Cassandra Spender , with whom he had

30200-424: The public the fact that aliens are planning to colonize Earth . The Smoking Man often ruthlessly protects the secrets of the conspiracy, and serves as the main antagonist to Mulder, who has an equally consuming devotion to reveal the truth in the first seven seasons . His stated justification is a desire to prevent the alien colonization for as long as possible; in the episode "One Breath", he tells Mulder that he

30400-502: The public. Spender is the leader of the Men in Black (MIB) in the series. In the season 6 two-part episodes " Two Fathers " and " One Son " it is learned that his birthname or alias is C.G.B. Spender and was formerly married to Cassandra Spender , with whom he had a son, Jeffrey Frank Spender . Diana Fowley is revealed to be a subordinate of his; together, they escape the annihilation of

30600-656: The quick coalition victory in the war, the Ba'ath Party was banned and Saddam went into hiding. After his capture on 13 December 2003, his trial took place under the Iraqi Interim Government . On 5 November 2006, Saddam was convicted by the Iraqi High Tribunal of crimes against humanity related to the 1982 Dujail massacre and sentenced to death by hanging . He was executed on 30 December 2006. A highly polarizing and controversial figure, Saddam dominated Iraqi politics for 35 years and

30800-789: The real cause of his death. Byers worked as a public affairs officer for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in Baltimore until May 1989. At that time he met Susanne Modeski at a consumer electronics show in Baltimore and instantly fell in love with her. Initially lying about her identity to him, she revealed herself to be a scientist working for the Army Advanced Weapons facility and appealed to him for help in stopping one of her developments—a gas causing fear and paranoia—from being used by

31000-514: The reopening of the X-files in 2016. Brad D. Follmer is portrayed by Cary Elwes . Follmer was an assistant director at the FBI . He had a romantic history with Monica Reyes that he brought up while trying to keep her away from the X-files. His true motives were more political in nature and part of his sycophancy to Alvin Kersh . He did not believe in the X-files and deliberately showed disrespect to John Doggett by calling him "Mr. Doggett" instead of "Agent". In 2002, new evidence concerning

31200-418: The rest of the Syndicate by a group of Alien rebels in 1999. Alex Krycek is portrayed by Nicholas Lea . Krycek is a Russian-American who makes his first appearance in " Sleepless ", where Krycek, a young FBI special agent , is assigned as a temporary investigation partner to Fox Mulder . Krycek proceeds to work with Mulder and attempts to gain his trust. However, it later becomes evident that Krycek

31400-533: The room one by one and taken into custody. After the list was read, Saddam congratulated those still seated in the room for their past and future loyalty. The 68 people arrested at the meeting were subsequently tried together and found guilty of treason ; 22 were sentenced to execution. Other high-ranking members of the party formed the firing squad. By 1 August 1979, hundreds of high-ranking Ba'ath party members had been executed. Although his position on Kurdish politics has been debated, Saddam has allowed autonomy for

31600-482: The season finale, " My Struggle II ", the Smoking Man puts into motion the conspiracy he had been working on all these years, releasing chemtrails into the atmosphere which trigger immune system breakdowns throughout the American population, which had been infected by the Spartan virus through mandatory flu vaccinations. Out of fondness for Mulder, he offers him the cure to the disease, but is rebuffed. The United States

31800-412: The season finale, he helped Doggett and Skinner free Mulder from a military prison. Following this, Kersh had to permanently close the X-Files to appease his irate superiors. The X-Files are still officially closed when Mulder consults with the FBI 6 years later when FBI Agent Monica Bannon goes missing, however, Kersh is noticeably absent. Jeffrey Frank Spender is portrayed by Chris Owens . Spender

32000-515: The series . They appeared in a range of episodes across several seasons. The first seven seasons of The X-Files star Gillian Anderson as Dana Scully , a medical doctor and hard-line scientist assigned to work alongside Fox Mulder ( David Duchovny ), an esteemed FBI profiler who left his coveted position to head up a unit that investigates the paranormal and the unexplained. Tasked with debunking Mulder's work, Scully eventually comes to question her own faith, while Mulder continues to search through

32200-709: The series is primarily that of a foil to Mulder, Scully and Doggett, constantly trying to undermine and get in the way of their work in the belief of his own superiority. As an assistant director, he temporarily became supervisor to Agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully when they were assigned away from the X-Files unit. During this time, the Cigarette Smoking Man could be seen in his office, reminiscent of his silent presence in Walter Skinner 's office in earlier seasons. Kersh assigned Mulder and Scully mostly to menial tasks, such as terrorist details and Federal background checks. When they did investigate an X-File behind his back, Kersh would charge them for expenses they incurred on

32400-483: The show was at its best when you "didn't exactly know the motivations of the Smoking Man". Works cited List of minor The X-Files characters#Scott Blevins The X-Files is an American science fiction television series first broadcast in September 1993 and followed by two feature films: The X-Files and The X-Files: I Want to Believe . The characters defined the overarching mythology of

32600-414: The story ad nauseam—tells of his familiarity with guns from the age of ten; his fearlessness and loyalty to the party during the 1959 operation; his bravery in saving his comrades by commandeering a car at gunpoint; the bullet that was gouged out of his flesh under his direction in hiding; the iron discipline that led him to draw a gun on weaker comrades who would have dropped off a seriously wounded member of

32800-451: The time of the attack, the Ba'ath Party had fewer than 1,000 members; however, the failed assassination attempt led to widespread exposure for Saddam and the Ba'ath within Iraq, where both had previously languished in obscurity, and later became a crucial part of Saddam's public image during his tenure as president of Iraq . Kanan Makiya recounts: The man and the myth merge in this episode. His biography—and Iraqi television, which stages

33000-399: The trap and was executed. After Mulder shot Department of Defense agent Scott Ostlehoff in his head to obscure his identity, Mulder and Scully used the situation to effectively fake Mulder's death. CSM spoke with the First Elder at a horse track about Mulder's death, which CSM saw as unfortunate and unhelpful. However, the fact that Mulder was alive soon became known to both men, upon which

33200-592: The treaty upset "the US-sponsored security system established as part of the Cold War in the Middle East. It appeared that any enemy of the Baghdad regime was a potential ally of the United States." In response, the US covertly financed Kurdish rebels led by Mustafa Barzani during the Second Iraqi–Kurdish War ; the Kurds were defeated in 1975, leading to the forcible relocation of hundreds of thousands of Kurdish civilians. Saddam focused on fostering loyalty to

33400-481: The truth being kept secret from the public by the Syndicate needs to be known. He believes Mulder to be the one person capable of exposing this knowledge. However, he believes that there are certain truths that the public are not yet ready to know. In " The Erlenmeyer Flask ," the finale of the first season, Mulder is taken hostage following his investigation into an alien-human hybridization program. Fearing for Mulder's life, Deep Throat helps Scully to gain access to

33600-441: The use of a wheelchair . At the end of the seventh season , Alex Krycek and Marita Covarrubias betray him and throw him down a flight of stairs, where they presumed him dead. Through the eighth and ninth seasons, he was presumed dead until Jeffrey Spender appeared in " William ". It is learned that his attempted murder on his son failed which led him to subject his son to terrible experiments. In this very same episode it

33800-816: The world.", with estimates being that in 1979 alone, over 2 million Iraqi adults were studying in more than 28,735 literacy schools, with over 75,000 teachers. Saddam Hussein's regime also mandated education for primary to high school, with Saddam's regime also mandating free tuition for university students. Saddam also took steps to promote women's rights within Iraq. By the late 1970s, women in Iraq held significant roles in society, representing 46% of all teachers, 29% of all doctors, 46% of all dentist and 70% of all pharmacists. These advancements signaled progress in women's participation in various professional fields. Women also saw drastic increase in rights in other-aspects of life, with women being given equal-rights in marriage, divorce, inheritance, and custody. Women in Iraq also had

34000-546: Was abducted by aliens . Kersh assigned John Doggett to run the manhunt for Mulder. When Mulder returned, Kersh refused to assign him to the X-Files, keeping Doggett in that position. When Mulder and Doggett pursued an unauthorized case, Kersh was prepared to fire them both, but Mulder accepted full responsibility and was dismissed from the FBI. Shortly thereafter, Mulder disappeared again, and Doggett brought in Monica Reyes to help him investigate Kersh's involvement in

34200-668: Was Saddam's minister of foreign affairs from 1991 to 2001 and later information minister , until 2003 Taha Yassin Ramadan, Saddam's deputy was from the Shabak community —a small, quasi-Shiite sect. During the Iran–Iraq War, Saddam sought to gain support from Shia community. As 80% of the Iraqi Armed Forces were Shia Muslim personnel, who chose Iraq over Iran. Before 2003, more than 1.2 million Christians lived in Iraq . Tariq Aziz , an ethnic Iraqi Assyrian and member of

34400-477: Was Vatican's ambassador to Iraq, stated that under his regime, Christians were free to practice their faith in the majority-Muslim country. In 2003, Pope John Paul II visited Saddam in March 2003 and addressed the message for peace. During his rule, Iraq retained a substantial Jewish community , around 1,000. The Jews in Iraq were treated by Saddam. It is said that he had a soft spot for Jews because his mother

34600-466: Was a skeptic who was assigned to The X-Files after Fox Mulder 's forced leave. Spender is the son of the Cigarette Smoking Man (also known as C. G. B. Spender, or CSM) and his ex-wife, multiple abductee Cassandra Spender . Heavily involved in the Syndicate at that time, CSM abandoned the family when Spender was 12 years old. Subsequently, his mother was driven insane by what she claims were multiple alien abductions. Shortly after Samantha Mulder

34800-411: Was a "skeptic", basing her beliefs solely on what science can prove. However, as the series progresses she becomes more open to the possibility of paranormal happenings. After Mulder is abducted by aliens , the eighth season sees the assignment of a new partner to Scully: Special Agent John Doggett . Later in the same season, she leaves the X-files office to teach at the FBI Academy. Scully departs from

35000-501: Was a cigarette smoker who died from lung cancer , also when he was an infant. Since he had no surviving family, he became a ward of the state and was sent to various orphanages in the Midwestern United States . He made no friends and spent most of his time reading. This episode contradicts the season 3 episode " Apocrypha " where young Smoking Man was seen in 1953 with Bill Mulder (Fox Mulder's father) as already

35200-404: Was a friend of Bill Mulder earlier in his life. The Well-Manicured Man is instrumental in the Syndicate's secondary agenda, to develop a vaccination against the black oil used by the aliens as a means of mind control. To this end, he works with Alex Krycek to develop a vaccine, eventually testing it—successfully—on Marita Covarrubias. In the 1998 feature film The X-Files , when Scully

35400-445: Was a member of the conspiracy. In "Nothing Important Happened Today II", he is decapitated by fellow Super Soldier , Shannon McMahon, but owing to his hybrid abilities, manages to then impale her with his arm, and they both fall into a water reservoir, presumably both now dead. However, in the series finale, " The Truth ", it is revealed that he survived, when Mulder breaks into Mount Weather . Rohrer chases down Mulder and in

35600-492: Was a strong behind-the-scenes party politician. Al-Bakr was the older and more prestigious of the two, but by 1969 Saddam had become the moving force behind the party. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, as vice chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council, formally al-Bakr's second-in-command, Saddam built a reputation as a progressive, effective politician. At this time, Saddam moved up the ranks in

35800-520: Was abducted and then returned, Jeffrey and Samantha were raised together by his father in California . Spender met Agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully in 1998. That same year CSM began sending him letters, however Spender would return them unopened. After his father set fire to the X-Files in " The End ," Spender and Agent Diana Fowley start working on the X-Files. Spender receives orders from CSM to push for Mulder and Scully to be dismissed from

36000-526: Was arrested in October 1964 and served approximately two years in prison before escaping in 1966. In 1966, Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr appointed him Deputy Secretary of the Regional Command. Saddam, who would prove to be a skilled organizer, revitalized the party. He was elected to the Regional Command, as the story goes, with help from Michel Aflaq—the founder of Ba'athist thought. In September 1966, Saddam initiated an extraordinary challenge to Syrian domination of

36200-606: Was based on cronyism. A peace treaty, which aimed to address the Shatt al-Arab dispute, was signed in 1975. Under the accord, Iraq was granted sovereignty over the eastern bank of the waterway, while Iran retained control over the western bank. The agreement also allowed for joint navigation and other provisions. The 1975 Algiers Agreement, also known as the Algiers Accord, was a significant diplomatic agreement signed between Iran and Iraq on 6 March 1975, to settle border disputes and improve bilateral relations. The agreement

36400-410: Was based on the principles of territorial integrity, respect for sovereignty, non-interference in internal affairs, and the peaceful resolution of disputes. The agreement established a new border line along the Shatt al-Arab, dividing the waterway equally between Iran and Iraq up to the midpoint. Iran made significant concessions in the agreement, including relinquishing its claims on the eastern bank of

36600-582: Was born circa 1953 in Pontiac, Michigan . Prior to joining The Lone Gunmen, he was an acclaimed tango dancer in Miami (under the stage name "El Lobo"). On giving up the tango, he toured the country with hippies before founding Frohike Electronics Corp., specializing in cable intrusion hardware. In 1989 at a consumer electronics show in Baltimore , where his company had a trade stand, he met John Fitzgerald Byers and Richard Langly and they subsequently formed

36800-491: Was born in the village of Al-Awja , near Tikrit in northern Iraq , to a Sunni Arab family. He joined the Ba'ath Party in 1957, and later in 1966 the Iraqi and Baghdad-based Ba'ath parties. He played a key role in the 17 July Revolution and was appointed vice president of Iraq by Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr . During his time as vice president, Saddam nationalized the Iraq Petroleum Company , diversifying

37000-455: Was built on land donated by the Ministry of Finance. Mandaeans were some of the best goldsmiths and jewelers in Iraq, with Saddam's personal jeweler being of Mandaean background. However, after his downfall, Mandaeans faced severe persecution, and constant kidnappings. They often expressed that they were better under Saddam's rule, and praise him for the protection they received. "There

37200-537: Was cast as Deep Throat based on his role in 1993's The Firm . Hardin's performance has been cited as "the spine of the series", and his portrayal of the character has been met with positive reviews from critics. The First Elder is portrayed by Don S. Williams . He was a high-ranking member of the Syndicate . His exact position in the Syndicate was unclear, especially in regard to the Well-Manicured Man , though at times he seemed higher-ranking than

37400-440: Was dangerous for his health. In at least one early script draft from the " Pilot ", a Special Agent named Lake Drazen is present at the meeting near the start of the episode, having chosen Scully for an assignment to evaluate the validity of Mulder's work on the X-Files . The scene was eventually deleted and replaced, and several crew members have hinted that Agent Drazen became the Smoking Man. Kim Manners said that it seemed all

37600-466: Was frowned upon by his parents. In 1989 he met Melvin Frohike and John Fitzgerald Byers at a consumer electronics show in Baltimore , and they subsequently formed a group publishing The Lone Gunman newsletter. Langly wears thick black-rimmed glasses, heavy metal and punk T-shirts (favoring the Ramones in particular) and jeans. He has long blonde hair (which sometimes leads to him being mistaken for

37800-563: Was heavy-handed, but consistent as a drumbeat. It helped, of course, that his mukhabarat (secret police) put dozens of Arab news editors, writers and artists on the payroll." After the Ba'athists took power in 1968, Saddam focused on attaining stability in a nation riddled with profound tensions. Long before him, Iraq had been split along social, ethnic, religious, and economic fault lines: Sunni versus Shi'ite , Arab versus Kurd , tribal chief versus urban merchant, nomad versus peasant and Jews versus anti-Semites. The desire for stable rule in

38000-482: Was inspired by the historical Deep Throat , FBI Associate Director Mark Felt . Also cited as an influence on the fictional Deep Throat was X, the character portrayed by Donald Sutherland in the 1991 Oliver Stone film JFK . The character was intended to bridge the gap between Mulder and Scully and the shadowy conspirators who were working against them; and was conceived as someone "who works in some level of government that we have no idea exists". Jerry Hardin

38200-422: Was mediated by the then-President of Algeria, Houari Boumediene . Prior to the Algiers Agreement, Iran and Iraq had been engaged in a long-standing territorial dispute over the Shatt al-Arab waterway, which serves as the border between the two countries. Algeria played a crucial role in mediating the negotiations between Iran and Iraq, with President Boumediene acting as the chief mediator. The Algiers Agreement

38400-413: Was named president and Saddam was named his deputy, and deputy chairman of the Ba'athist Revolutionary Command Council . According to biographers, Saddam never forgot the tensions within the first Ba'athist government, which formed the basis for his measures to promote Ba'ath party unity as well as his resolve to maintain power and programs to ensure social stability. Although Saddam was al-Bakr's deputy, he

38600-502: Was one of the triggers for the Second Iraqi–Kurdish War. On the other hands Feyil Kurds were also systamically persecuted . During the early years of the Ba'ath rule, Jews were oppressed under the government. Saddam was given the charge of publicly hanging 13 men , including many Jews. They were accused by the government of spying for Israel. Later government abolished its repressive policies on Jews. In November 1975,

38800-486: Was partly inspired by E. Howard Hunt (1918 - 2007), a CIA operative who was allegedly involved in a range of major conspiracies during the mid-20th century, and who also published a series of espionage novels under multiple pen names. The Smoking Man potentially inspired the portrayal of the videogame series Half-Life ' s overarching antagonist, the G-Man . Similarities between the two have been pointed out, such as

39000-465: Was recruited to the assassination conspiracy by its ring-leader, Abdul Karim al-Shaikhly, after one of the would-be assassins left. During the ambush, Saddam (who was only supposed to provide cover) began shooting prematurely, which disorganised the whole operation. Qasim's chauffeur was killed and Qasim was hit in the arm and shoulder. The assassins thought they had killed Qasim and quickly retreated to their headquarters, but Qasim survived. Saddam himself

39200-471: Was responsible for the murder or disappearance of 250,000 to 290,000 Iraqis . Saddam's government has been described by several analysts as authoritarian and totalitarian , and by some as fascist , although the applicability of those labels has been contested. Saddam Hussein was born in al-Awja , a small village near Tikrit , to Hussein Abd Al-Majid and Subha Tulfah Al-Mussallat. They were both from

39400-523: Was revealed, Follmer shot and killed the mobster who had nevertheless threatened to blackmail him concerning his bribe acceptance. Follmer's future at the FBI was left unresolved, although he would have likely faced criminal charges for his actions. Diana Fowley is an FBI agent played by Mimi Rogers and first appeared in the fifth-season finale " The End ". In keeping with the show's history of ambiguity, Fowley's motivations were never explained, although many viewers assumed her to be deeply associated with

39600-577: Was saved by Jewish neighbors. Saddam reportedly helped the estimated 150 remaining Iraqi Jews, allowing many to leave the country. There was a Jewish representative in the government. Shaul Sasson, the Technical Head of state-owned enterprises under the Ministry of Industry , was a Jew. A Jewish chemist from Basra was also sent by him on a trade mission to China in 1988. Saddam helped in restoration of Meir Taweig Synagogue and construction

39800-457: Was saved by a Jewish family. Subha "would have nothing to do with him", and Saddam would eventually be taken in by an uncle. His mother remarried, and Saddam gained three half-brothers through this marriage. His stepfather, Ibrahim al-Hassan, treated Saddam harshly after his return, and (according to a psychological profile created by the CIA ) beat him regularly, sometimes to wake him up. At around

40000-506: Was the subject of a cult of personality . Many Arabs regard Saddam as a resolute leader who challenged Western imperialism , opposed the Israeli occupation of Palestine , and resisted foreign intervention in the region. Conversely, many Iraqis, particularly Shias and Kurds, perceive him negatively as a dictator responsible for severe authoritarianism , repression, and numerous injustices. Human Rights Watch estimated that Saddam's regime

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