EDITORIAL – One way out

US President George W. Bush is the world’s No. 1 warmonger and should step down. That was Baghdad’s reaction to the 48-hour ultimatum issued Monday night by Bush for Saddam Hussein to step down as president and leave Iraq. Saddam, Bush said, should take his two sons with him.

Bush issued the ultimatum as the United States and its staunchest allies Britain and Spain decided not to put a second resolution on Iraq to a vote in the United Nations. The three members of the "coalition of the willing" made the move as France announced it would veto any UN resolution authorizing the use of force to disarm Iraq. Hours later, UN weapons inspectors left Baghdad.

Will Saddam step down? Few people are counting on it. The man has been in power for three decades, during which he made enemies not only of Americans but even of his Arab neighbors and his own people. Saddam unleashed biological weapons on Iraqi Kurds and is responsible for the torture and execution of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis. Invading Kuwait and then retreating, he destroyed 700 oil wells, creating one of the worst environmental disasters in the world. Opposition to his regime has been brutally crushed. He is known to have ordered the execution even of his two sons-in-law, after forcing them to divorce his daughters. His ruthlessness and irrationality have made him "Saddam Insane" to much of the world.

How can such a man relinquish power? Also, even those who have no love lost for Saddam feel uncomfortable with the idea that he should step down because the American president says so.

Still, this last way out of war must be explored. It’s not the first time that regime change in Iraq has been proposed. Several Arab countries have expressed willingness to go along with exile for Saddam, possibly in Saudi Arabia. Arab nations and the Organization of Islamic Conference can still persuade Saddam to accept quiet retirement. It’s not an ideal solution, but under the present circumstances, in an imperfect world, it is the only way to avert war.