‘It was like losing a family member’: The US soldier who cried after Saddam Hussein’s execution
In August 2006, Specialist Adam Rogerson was standing metres away from Saddam Hussein as he slept in his cell beneath the Iraqi High Tribunal building in Baghdad.
The American soldier had not yet laid eyes on the Iraqi dictator who was widely considered to be one of the most evil men on the planet.
The US had invaded Iraq in March 2003, with President George W Bush saying he wanted to end “Saddam Hussein’s support for terrorism”.
The Iraqi president went on the run as airstrikes rained down on the country he had ruled since 1979.
Months later, US soldiers found him hiding in a small hole barely big enough to fit one person in Ad-Dawr, central Iraq.
The now heavily-bearded and dishevelled despot, who was estimated to be responsible for the deaths of at least 250,000 Iraqis, would be put on trial for multiple charges including war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity.
When he wasn’t being kept in a cell beneath the Iraqi High Tribunal building, one of Hussein’s many former palaces was now his prison, and Mr Rogerson was among 12 US soldiers tasked with guarding him.
With Hussein’s reputation for mass murder, torture, and brutal repression, the young soldier can be forgiven for being unenthusiastic when he found out he would be spending so much time with the so-called “Butcher of Baghdad”.
Saddam Hussein appears in video footage on the day the Iraq War began on 20 March 2003
But in the months that followed they struck up the unlikeliest of friendships – with Mr Rogerson breaking down in tears when Hussein was executed in December 2006.
It’s not how the 22-year-old soldier would have been expecting to feel after he first made eye contact with the murderous dictator months earlier.
“I was told I would be the first one on guard. It was very intimidating for me because I knew who he was,” Mr Rogerson told the latest episode of the Sky News Daily podcast.
“At first it was dark and I could hear him sleeping but I couldn’t see him… A bit later he woke up and looked at me and I looked back at him.
“That was the start of our relationship – it was very surreal.”
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Hussein looked far from presidential after he was captured
Hussein was found hiding in this hole in Ad-Dawr
The soldiers make a new friend
Mr Rogerson and the other guards, who became known as the Super Twelve, were tasked with guarding Hussein for 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The soldiers were told not to interact with the man who was perhaps the most famous prisoner in the world – but it didn’t take long for them to break this rule.
“Saddam was a people person. Whether he was trying to manipulate us, or genuinely be friends with us, it’s not clear. But if you’re living with someone, you’re going to interact with them.”
Hussein was being kept prisoner in one of his former palaces called The Rock, with the guards having to regularly transport him to the Iraqi High Tribunal for his hearings.
“We would hear mortars going off, gunfire, we could hear all the sounds of war. Saddam would just look at us and laugh. He never showed signs of worry.
“On more than one occasion he would look over and jokingly say ‘I’m getting out, they’re coming to get me’.”
Mr Rogerson never doubted Hussein was a “maniacal dictator” who was guilty of the crimes he had been accused of – but says as he got to know him he found the tyrant could be genuinely good-humoured.
On one occasion, the guards were talking about how another of the Super Twelve soldiers had wet themselves. Hussein is said to have burst out laughing when he heard the story.
Read more:
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Adam Rogerson guarded Saddam Hussein between August and December 2006
Hussein and the soldiers trade gifts
Mr Rogerson also says the mass-murdering despot appeared to have a softer side that helped them form a friendship as the weeks went by.
“We would trade stories. We would take him to see his family and they would bring him handkerchiefs and candy.
“He would share the candy with us, and then we sort of started giving stuff we’d received from our families to him.”
During the mission, Mr Rogerson’s wife sent him some scented candles and the soldier decided to give one to Hussein.
The president-turned-prisoner carved a poem into the side of it in Arabic and had it sent to his daughter as a gift.
Mr Rogerson continues: “I got to see a side of him that wasn’t evil, even though I knew he was. I only saw the 69-year-old man.
“He never came off as arrogant or as a dictator – he was just a person.”
Hussein would sometimes become animated during his trial. Pic: AP
Hussein speaks about relationship with Castro
In between trial hearings, Hussein would beat the soldiers at games of chess and listen to Western music on his radio.
One evening Hussein was sitting outside in his recreation area smoking cigars when he called Mr Rogerson over.
“He had this photo book and he was showing me all these photos of him having a good time with Fidel Castro. To me it was unbelievable.
“He told me it was Castro who taught him to smoke cigars.”
Mr Rogerson says although he was impressed by Hussein, it was always in the back of his mind that he was talking to a “master manipulator” and that this “wasn’t his first rodeo”.
Whether Hussein had genuine affection for Mr Rogerson and the rest of the Super Twelve will never be known – but the soldiers themselves clearly developed a deep connection to the man who was supposed to be their enemy.
In November 2006, Hussein’s trial came to an end and he was sentenced to death by hanging.
Saddam Hussein with former Cuban leader Fidel Castro
‘I almost felt like a murderer’
Mr Rogerson was among the handful of Super Twelve soldiers who cried tears of grief after the execution, while many Iraqis themselves celebrated the brutal death of their former dictator.
Speaking about the historical day of Hussein’s execution, Mr Rogerson says: “It was emotional. We were watching him comb his hair and pace around. He knew what was going to happen that day and it was sad to see.
“He was sad and upset, and we’re all upset ourselves. I’d gotten to know him, spent all my time with him, and then all of a sudden he was about to die.”
Mr Rogerson later told the author Will Bardenwerper that Hussein’s execution “was like losing a family member”.
“I almost feel like a murderer, like I killed a guy I was close to”, he added.
Iraqis celebrate after Hussein’s execution
Mr Rogerson, now in his 40s, has since left the military and is living in Ohio where he works as an American football coach.
The father-of-two, who has a 15-year-old daughter and nine-year-old son, has suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder since returning from Iraq.
He says it was caused by his experience guarding Hussein and then witnessing his execution.
He continues: “One day my grandkids will know that I did something for my country.
“That makes it worth it.”
Donald Trump has announced his “highly anticipated” meeting with Vladimir Putin will take place next Friday in the US state of Alaska.
The two presidents are expected to discuss the war in Ukraine – with the talks potentially leading to a breakthrough in Mr Trump’s effort to end the conflict.
But there’s no guarantee it will stop the fighting since Moscow and Kyiv remain far apart on their conditions for peace.
Earlier, the US president told reporters “we’re getting very close to a deal” that would end the war.
Mr Trump added there will be “some swapping of territories to the betterment of both sides”.
Follow latest: Ukraine war live updates
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‘I’m not against meeting Zelenskyy’
The meeting between the two leaders will be the first US-Russia summit since 2021, when former US President Joe Biden met Mr Putin in Switzerland.
Mr Trump wrote on Truth Social: “The highly anticipated meeting between myself, as President of the United States of America, and President Vladimir Putin, of Russia, will take place next Friday, August 15, 2025, in the Great State of Alaska. Further details to follow. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
The meeting was also confirmed by Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov, who said the leaders will “focus on discussing options for achieving a long-term peaceful resolution to the Ukrainian crisis”.
He added that the two presidents could meet in Russia in future and that an invitation has already been extended to Mr Trump.
Yesterday, Mr Trump had told reporters at the White House that he couldn’t announce where or when the meeting would take place but he would do so soon.
He also suggested that his meeting with the Russian leader could come before any discussion involving Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
“We’re going to have a meeting with Russia, start off with Russia. And we’ll announce a location. I think the location will be a very popular one,” Mr Trump said.
The US president added: “President Putin, I believe, wants to see peace, and Zelenskyy wants to see peace … in all fairness to President Zelenskyy, he’s getting everything he needs to, assuming we get something done.”
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Donald Trump, right, and Vladimir Putin at a summit in Vietnam in 2017. Pic: Reuters
Territory to form part of talks
Speaking about the role that territory will play in the peace talks, Mr Trump said: “You’re looking at a territory that’s been fought over for three-and-a-half years. A lot of Russians have died. A lot of Ukrainians have died.
“So we’re looking at that, but we’re actually looking to get some back, and some swapping.
“It’s complicated, actually. Nothing is easy. It’s very complicated. But we’re going to get some back.
“We’re going to get some switched. There’ll be some swapping of territories to the betterment of both.”
Analysts, including some close to the Kremlin, have suggested that Russia could offer to give up territory it controls outside of the four regions it claims to have annexed.
Pressed on if this was the last chance to make a major peace deal, Mr Trump said: “I don’t like using the term last chance … when those guns start going off, it’s awfully tough to get them to stop.”
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Trump says he will meet Putin
Western officials ‘to meet in UK’
Meanwhile, senior officials from the US, Ukraine and several European countries are due to meet in the UK this weekend to try and reach common positions ahead of the Trump-Putin meeting, according to Axios.
Ukraine and several NATO allies are reported to be privately concerned that Mr Trump might agree to Mr Putin’s proposals for ending the war without taking their positions into consideration.
Since his return to the White House in January, Mr Trump has moved to mend relations with Russia and sought to end the war – with public comments veering between admiration and sharp criticism of Mr Putin.
In a sign of his growing frustration with Russia’s refusal to halt its military offensive, Mr Trump had threatened to impose new sanctions and tariffs against Moscow – and countries that buy its exports – unless the Kremlin agreed to end the conflict.
A deadline was set for yesterday, but it is unclear whether these sanctions are taking effect, or if they will be delayed or cancelled in light of the talks.
Ukrainian servicemen of the 148th artillery brigade load ammunition into a M777 howitzer before firing in Zaporizhzhia.
Pic: AP
War grinds on ahead of talks
The meeting has been arranged as Russia’s bigger army is slowly advancing deeper into Ukraine at great cost in troops and armour while it relentlessly bombards Ukrainian cities.
Ukrainian forces are locked in intense battles along the 620-mile frontline that snakes from northeast to southeast Ukraine.
The Pokrovsk area of the eastern Donetsk region is taking the brunt of punishment as Russia seeks to break out into the neighbouring Dnipropetrovsk region.
US
Chris Hemsworth describes ‘gear shift’ after learning he’s 10 times more likely to get Alzheimer’s
Chris Hemsworth has told Sky News that finding out he had a greater chance of developing Alzheimer’s disease was a “gear shift” in his life motivations.
During a genetic test in season one of Limitless: Live Better Now, the Australian actor discovered that he is, biologically, eight to 10 times more likely than others to have the brain disorder during his lifetime as he carries two copies of the APOE4 gene.
He had first taken part in the National Geographic show to be its “guinea pig” and face new experiences that challenge the body and mind.
But after having the test, the 41-year-old Thor, Furiosa and Transformers star was faced with an unexpected truth.
Reuters file pic
One in every 50 people inherit two copies of the APOE4 gene and research has found that nearly all double carriers showed key early signs of the disease which causes dementia by the age of 55.
Everyone’s risk is different, and evidence suggests there are things you can do to reduce your risk whether you’re a carrier of the gene or not, including not smoking, reducing alcohol intake, daily exercise, monitoring cholesterol and blood pressure and eating a balanced diet.
Speaking of when he found out he was a double carrier, Hemsworth told Sky News: “It was just kind of this point in my life where up until your 40s, you’re kind of gathering data and information and it’s all reactionary and then you get to a point where you think, oh some of this sort of identity that I’ve sort of built doesn’t hold true anymore.
“There’s some inner sort of protest or inner voice that has a deeper need to understand and there’s deeper questions and what is the purpose and the why behind what I’m doing … and what am I seeking, what am I contributing, as opposed to just what I am collecting.”
Reacting on screen, he said it made him shift his focus to living better and increase the chances of him spending as much time as possible with his family and friends.
Pic: Disney
What’s changed in the second series?
The change in mindset is evident in season two.
“This time around, I was very involved in the orchestration and the sort of production and bringing together spaces that I was interested in or there was a deep curiosity or were deeply personal to me. And it was more sort of experiential journalism as opposed to a contestant in a challenging kind of fun, reality show.
He adds: “I was much more committed or invested in the experience.
“And I was a bit more educated on the topics too. I had to research, I had a deeper point of view, I suppose, personally, but also sort of the education I was given prior and I enjoyed that more, to be honest, I didn’t like that I felt very uncomfortable in the first season because I was standing around all these experts and I knew nothing about these topics, yet I was kind of asked to speak on them and so I felt like an imposter the entire time.”
Limitless: Live Better Now looks at the ways in which you can improve your brain and body’s health through endurance challenges and learning a new instrument.
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Chris Hemsworth with Ed Sheeran. Pic: Disney
Teaming up with Sheeran
Hemsworth chose the drums and, taking it to the extreme, was set the task of joining his friend Ed Sheeran on stage to play Thinking Out Loud.
“That fear and that anxiety was incredibly overwhelming,” Hemsworth says, detailing how he felt “underwater” in the weeks leading up to the event.
“It’s weird the way intense situations actually cause a hyper focus; it’s a survival mechanism of the brain.
“Some of the other challenges where if I did the training it was beneficial, but I could kind of muscle my way through it. You can’t do that with a musical instrument and then the realisation that the entire band is relying on you to keep time. And then 70,000 people are sitting there going, ‘please don’t wreck our favourite song’.”
Reflecting on the moment, he says it’s one of the most magical feelings he’s ever had.
“The joy was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. You know, if you could bottle that and have it in a healthy way and not have all the negatives that someone may have for it, it was amazing. It was a true kind of one of my first probably proper out of body experiences, I suppose.
“It was like, I kind of remember being in the out, looking down at myself almost, kind of going, wow, I’m kind of floating along with this thing that’s so much bigger than me and I’m in true sort of flow state with it.”
National Geographic’s Limitless: Live Better Now is available to stream on Disney+ from 15 August.
It could be diplomatic dynamite.
The first meeting between a sitting US and Russian president in more than four years, following one of the bleakest periods in the history of their countries’ bilateral relations.
But a Putin–Trump summit does not necessarily mean there will be a ceasefire.
Ukraine war latest: Kremlin aide’s full statement on Trump-Putin talks
On the one hand, it could signal that a point of agreement has been reached and a face-to-face meeting is needed to seal the deal.
That has always been Russia’s stance. It’s consistently said it would only meet at a presidential level if there’s something to agree on.
On the other hand, there might not be anything substantive. It might just be for show.
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‘Good chance’ Trump will meet Putin soon
It might just be the latest attempt by the Kremlin to diffuse Donald Trump’s anger and dodge his deadline to end the war by Friday or face sanctions.
It would give Trump something that can be presented as progress, but in reality, it delivers anything but.
After all, there has certainly not been any sign that Moscow is willing to soften its negotiating position or step back from its goals on the battlefield.
Tellingly, perhaps, it’s this latter view which has been taken by some of the Russian press on Thursday.
Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin have not met face to face since the US president returned to the White House. File pic: Reuters
“Putin won” is the headline in Moskovsky Komsomolets regarding the Kremlin leader’s meeting with Witkoff.
The state-run tabloid quotes a political scientist, Marat Bashirov, who claims Putin “bought time” ahead of Friday’s deadline.
“It is noteworthy that in his rhetoric [on sanctions] Trump did not mention Russia at all,” the paper notes.
Komsomolskaya Pravda is similarly dismissive.
“Donald Trump has two simple interests in connection with Ukraine: to earn money for America, and political whistles and the Nobel Peace Prize for himself,” it says.
“Russia has its own interests,” it adds, “securing them is what Vladimir Putin will seek at a meeting with Trump.”
At this stage, the most likely location is the United Arab Emirates. Putin met the country’s president in the Kremlin today, and afterwards said it would be a “suitable location”. It felt like a strong hint.
And the UAE certainly makes sense.
It’s played mediator for a number of the prisoner swaps between Russia and Ukraine; it has good relations with the US (and was one of Trump’s stops on his recent Middle East tour); and most importantly for Moscow, it’s not a member of the International Criminal Court. So Putin doesn’t have to worry about being arrested.
But if NBC’s reports are correct, that a Putin-Trump summit is conditional on the Russian president meeting with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy, then the summit may not happen at all.
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Until now, Putin has refused to meet Zelenskyy, despite numerous demands from Kyiv, because he views him as illegitimate.
The Kremlin said the prospect of a trilateral meeting between the leaders was mentioned by Witkoff on Wednesday, but the proposal was left “completely without comment” by Russia.
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