约旦媒体8月21日刊登了伊拉克前总统萨达姆的一份信件，萨达姆在信中呼吁阿拉伯人沿着他的道路走下去，并暗示自己将为巴勒斯坦和伊拉克事业而牺牲。据美联社报道，这封信是萨达姆通过国际红十字会转交给住在约旦的一个老朋友的。萨达姆在信中说："我的灵魂和我的生命都将献给我们宝贵的巴勒斯坦和我们热爱的、坚忍的、苦难的伊拉克。"请看外电报道：

Facing trial and possible execution for the massacre of his fellow Muslims, ousted Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein sought in a letter published Sunday to cast himself as a martyr, writing that his "soul and existence is to be sacrificed" for the Arab cause.

A Jordanian friend received the letter through the International Committee of the Red Cross, which verified its authenticity and said it had been censored by Saddam's American captors in Iraq.

"My soul and my existence is to be sacrificed for our precious Palestine and our beloved, patient and suffering Iraq," said the letter, published in two Jordanian newspapers and made available to The Associated Press.

文中的martyr意思是"烈士；殉难者"。如：My wish is that the martyrs who died for the liberty of our country did not die for nothing.（我希望为了国家自由而死去的烈士不会白白牺牲。）

martyr还可以用作动词，表示"被杀害；遇难"，如：Hundreds of people are reported to have been martyred (killed) for their political beliefs.（据报道说，成百上千的人因其政治信仰而遭杀害。）