Reforming Iraq

Harzan Ibrahim al Tikriti, Saddam Hussein's half brother, has for many years been Iraq's representative at the UN in Geneva. Although a former head of the intelligence service and reputed to control the regime's foreign bank accounts, he is regarded by many in the Arab world and the West as an acceptable alternative to Saddam. At the very least, his post in Geneva enables him to understand the outside world better than Saddam in his Baghdad bunker. It is thus not surprising that Barzan has emerged as a potential agent of reform in Iraq. Nonetheless, he is probably too closely associated with the current regime to lead real reform.