Saddam's Palace

On the way to Amedi, our driver got a little lost. After backtracking a few times, Tf confirmed that we were on the right path as he recognized a wall and a road leading up to one of Saddam's former palaces. Our driver was loathe to go, but curiosity got the better of us and we climbed the hill. This first picture is of Tiziana with a view of Zawita (?) in the background. I am not really sure where we are because there are a couple of destroyed palaces in the region; both somewhere near Amedi. The one below is the one NOT on the top of a mountain that had to be accessed by helicopter. The other pictures are various views of the palace itself. What a beautiful setting and how horrible for the Kurds living below this place.





Is it possible this is the palace in this article that was blown up while the media watched as a political gesture?