Saddam also referred to himself as a martyr:

Saddam said he was giving his life for his country as part of that struggle. ''Here, I offer my soul to God as a sacrifice, and if he wants, he will send it to heaven with the martyrs,'' he said.

As to why Saddam wrote the letter,

The deposed leader said he was writing the letter because his lawyers had told him the Iraqi High Tribunal that tried his case would give him an opportunity to say a final word.

But, they didn't.

''But that court and its chief judge did not give us the chance to say a word, and issued its verdict without explanation and read out the sentence -- dictated by the invaders -- without presenting the evidence,'' Saddam wrote. ''Dear faithful people,'' he added, ''I say goodbye to you, but I will be with the merciful God who helps those who take refuge in him and who will never disappoint any honest believer.''

Saddam should have been tried in an international tribunal. He is now in the midst of a second trial, one that will continue past his execution.