Saddam is a psychopathic killer. If confronted with the reality of his own near term death, he may opt to kill as many of his own people as possible. There is the possibility that he would order VX or something worse released in Bagdad to kill his own population. There are historical examples, e.g. the Nazi mayor of Breslau destroyed his own city rather than allow the Soviets to invade it intack. A few weeks before the end of WW-II, the mayor of Halberstadt refused to surrender his city even though he was told the city would be destroyed. Immediately after sending his refusal, he got in his car and fled. The US then proceeded to level the city.

Gary