Ofra Bengio

For decades, Saddam Hussein's fall has been called imminent. But Saddam has held on because of his ruthless personality, clumsy foes, and mastery of Iraq's military, ruling Baath Party, security apparatus, and powerful clans. His most likely successors are his sons, both apt to be as thuggish as their father. The West should nudge Iraq's battered elites to replace Saddam with a less megalomaniacal autocrat from inside his regime and outside his immediate family. But it should not hold its breath.