Two months later, however, Abu Halima encountered Uday Hussein again, and came away with a slightly less favorable opinion. It was October 1989 and Abu Halima was walking along a Baghdad side street when he spotted a girl he knew walking ahead of him. A moment later, two black Mercedes screeched up along side her. Several men jumped out, grabbed her and began trying to force her into one of the cars.
Dressed in his army uniform and carrying his AK-47, Abu Halima ran toward the struggling girl. He toyed with the idea of shooting, but hesitated. It was a good thing he did, because an instant later, Uday Hussein's pearly white Rolls Royce pulled up.
"He remembered me right away, Abu Halima said, and Uday Hussein sputtered at Abu Halima. "It's you again! Are you stupid or crazy? Do you think you can go around Baghdad protecting all the girls?"
It wasn't respect for brotherhood or courage that saved Abu Halima's life that night, he told Crime Library. It was vanity. That night, Uday Hussein happened to be wearing a white Christian Dior suit. "The only reason that I haven't shot you is that I don't want your blood on my car or my suit and I don't want to be late for dinner engagement," Uday said.
Uday made a promise. "The next time I see you," he told Abu Halima, "I will shoot you between the eyes."
There would be one more confrontation between the two. In 1992, Uday again stumbled across Abu Halima in a Baghdad nightclub. This time, he brutally ordered the young lieutenant to perform sex acts for his amusement. Abu Halima refused, and when he threatened to make sure that Saddam learned about Uday's odd voyeuristic tendencies, Uday relented, but not before having Abu Halima beaten. A short time later, Abu Halima told Crime Library, he slipped out of the country.
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