He underwent plastic surgery, just like the body doubles for saddam and qusay, in order to look more like uday. The black hole by latif yahia nook book ebook barnes. Latif had to live like uday, eat like uday, talk like uday, walk like uday, be uday. The book is a description of latifs five years 19871991 of compulsory fidaiship to one of the worlds most debauched, cruel, and childish human beings. The devils double original book, which was made into a feature. Very graphic accounts of different torture methods which latif yahia was both forced to watch and also to endure during his time spent as uday husseins body double. Latif, during his army service in the days of the iraniraq war, is recruited by uday to serve as his fidai body double on account of their remarkable shared likeness. The bizarre double life of latif yahia for years he was uday hussein s bulletcatcher, a lookalike surgically altered to be identical to saddams oldest son. Author of hit hollywood film on horrific tale of uday hussein. The iraniraq war is raging when the story begins, and iraqs invasion of kuwait takes place midway through, but these conflicts are in the. Today, latif yahia is now an international human rights lawyer, businessman and an outspoken internet blogger commenting on developments in the arab world, politics, justice and injustice. In december 1996, unknown persons fired at his car with a pistol and machine gun on the campus.
The sadistic lifestyle of eldest hussein son the globe. Around 2003, yahia relayed his story to news outlets throughout the uk and the us. This book will open your eyes to the relative value of human life. Now his story has been turned into a film, the devils double. At first, he refused the role as uday hussein s body double and was incarcerated for a week. Latif yahia is an iraqiborn author and former combatant in the iraniraq war. Were this a fabricated adventure story of life within saddam husseins inner circle as bodydouble to his son uday, it would be somewhat lacking. When he was defeated by kamel, he took out his gun and fired. The devils double original book, which was made into a. He started university at baghdad university college of medicine, but he only lasted three days there. You have been chosen to dine with uday and his aunt, in his palace. Very graphic accounts of different torture methods which latif yahia was both forced to watch and also to endure during his time spent as uday hussein s body double. It vividly describes how latif was forced to become uday hussein s fidai body double and gives a unique insight into the extreme extravagance and cruelty of the saddam regime. After that, he moved to the college of engineering.
This was a very interesting book on the life of latif yahia, a body double to uday hussein, saddams son. This really is a story of survival against the odds. Drunk uday went to kamels house where a party was being held and punched saddam kamel. The tangled tale behind the devils double eoin butler.
Photographs of saddam husseins feared sons laid out in plastic body bags were released by the us today in a bid to convince sceptical. Yes, he was forced to be a double for uday, who saw him when they attended school together, because they threatened his family. Youve got latif yahia on being uday husseins body double duration. And one man was on hand to witness it all udays unwilling body double. It vividly describes how latif was forced to become uday husseins fidai body double and gives a unique insight into the extreme extravagance and cruelty of. Uday hussein simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
The devils double is the ostensibly true life story on which the lee tamahori film of the same name, released earlier this year, was based. Til uday hussein, saddams son, murdered his fathers personal valet and food taster with an electric carving knife in front of dinner guests at suzanne mubaraks birthday party for introducing his father to his second wife. The book was written after the author managed to escape from iraq, and was originally a pages edited down to around 336 pages by the publishers. After the two married, she heard for the first time that yahia claimed to have been udays body double, which she found dubious. Saddams demon seed uday husseins many vices and wanton sadism appalled even his father. Uday was born in tikrit, iraq, to saddam hussein and sajida talfah. The devils double by latif yahia meet your next favorite book. In arabic, fiday means body double or bullet catcher. There is no sense of honour or heroism, for example, except on the part of the dead. It was the year 1987 and latif had just started playing as udays double. When army lieutenant latif yahia is summoned to saddams palace, he is faced with an impossible request to be uday s fiday his body double, or have his family condemned to death. Haytham ajmaya, a former member of udays inner circle, and raad alsheikh, a private guard at saddams presidential palace, have denied latif worked as udays body double.
Aug 06, 2011 saddams demon seed uday husseins many vices and wanton sadism appalled even his father. Its an autobiographical account of the author who lived during saddam husseins regime and was entrusted read. The maddog of sadams family, uday, was an infamous perpetrator of both targeted and indiscriminate sexual assault. Cia, iraq, latif yahia, saddam hussein, torture, uday hussein trackback. The movie, starring dominic cooper as both saddam husseins son uday and his body double or fiday, latif yahia, in the iraq of the late 1980s, was hands down my favourite of 2011. I studied from nine in the morning to muslim evening prayers, practicing how uday hussein sat, held his cigar, everything. Feb 17, 2016 yes, he was forced to be a double for uday, who saw him when they attended school together, because they threatened his family. The devils double released on 5 june 2003 by arrow books ltd. The bizarre double life of latif yahia the national.
Saddam husseins son uday and his body double or fiday, latif yahia, in the iraq of the late 1980s, was hands down my favourite of 2011. This link leads to an excerpt of an interview with a former army body double of uday hussein, one of saddam husseins sons. During his training, he witnesses the true evil of the man that he is forced to imitate and the brutality of the iraqi regime at first hand. He is best known for being the alleged former body double of uday hussein, the son of iraqi dictator saddam hussein. Two journalists have disputed this and other claims made by yahia. In an extraordinary twist of fate and because of his uncanny resemblance to uday saddam hussein, latif yahia is forced to work as the double or fiday of the despots son. Til uday hussein, saddams son, murdered his fathers. The olympic committee was not a sports center, it was uday s world. Us releases photos of saddam sons world news the guardian. Jan 01, 1994 the devils double is the ostensibly true life story on which the lee tamahori film of the same name, released earlier this year, was based. According to the supposed double, latif yahia, he went to school with uday, and in 1988 when he was serving his mandatory stint in the. The restaurant is just around the corner from the house pulverized by huge u. When i went to the palace, i was brought to see uday hussein, saddams older son.
It vividly describes how latif was forced to become uday husseins fidai bodydouble and gives a unique insight into the extreme extravagance and cruelty of the saddam regime. The guards managed to kill one of the attackers by return fire. Sep, 2016 according to the supposed double, latif yahia, he went to school with uday, and in 1988 when he was serving his mandatory stint in the iraqi military, was enlisted to be udays body double. I was shot 26 times for being uday husseins body double. Uday couldnt find anybody resembling him until he remembered his old classmate, latif yahya. This is uday hussein s world and with his depraved lust for debauchery and immorality, he helps himself to whatever turns him on. In 2011, caesar interviewed various people from the time of the hussein regime. Released in cinemas later this month, the film recounts the knucklewhitening autobiography of latif yahia, the supposed body double to saddam husseins psychotic eldest son, uday.
Near the end of the book, yahia offers a vague admission. The devils double the shoes of a psychopath the new. The rector himself received 8 gunshot wounds to the leg and the left part of the body. Saddam was in prison for the first three years of udays life. The bizarre double life of latif yahia for years he was uday husseins bulletcatcher, a lookalike surgically altered to be identical to saddams oldest son. Refusal would have meant a death sentence for his family. The tangled tale behind the devils double eoin butler opinion. Jul 24, 2011 bearing a strong resemblance to uday, mr.
If you like graphic descriptions of torture, and the. In lee tamahoris devils double, dominic cooper plays saddam husseins nihilistic son, uday, as well as latif yahia, who served as his body. When army lieutenant latif yahia is summoned to saddams palace, he is faced with an impossible request to be udays fiday his body double, or have his family condemned to death. As uday hussein drove his golden porsche slowly up a busy street in one of baghdads smartest districts, just after dark on dec. Latif yahia, the solider in question, describes uday as. Author of hit hollywood film on horrific tale of uday. In 2011 a feature film made about his life based on the book the devils double and with a working title of the same name has been filmed in malta. The former body double of uday hussein recounts his harrowing experiences. Uday himself became the target of the assassination. Lee tamahoris the devils double tells the story of latif yahia, a young iraqi officer from a privileged family who is forced to become the body double of saddam husseins psychopathic son uday. Dec 06, 2011 haytham ajmaya, a former member of uday s inner circle, and raad alsheikh, a private guard at saddams presidential palace, have denied latif worked as uday s body double. Youve got latif yahia on being uday husseins body double.
His psychotic personality was depicted in the autobiography of his reported body double latif yahia in the 1997 book i. Uday graduated from high school with very high marks. Official website of latif yahia official website of. Saddam husseins son uday he caught sight of nahle sabet, a pretty architecture student from a respected middleclass christian family hed. This is uday husseins world and with his depraved lust for debauchery and immorality, he helps himself to whatever turns him on. The film is purportedly based on the true story of latif yahia dominic cooper, an iraqi army captain forced to work as a body double for the eldest son of saddam hussein, uday. According to his book, blog and media interviews, he was born into a. Saddams son feeds woman to dogs alive showing 157 of 57 messages. Latif yahia claims that he was the fiday body double of saddam hussein s son uday from 1988 to 1991. The movie, starring dominic cooper as both saddam hussein s son uday and his body double or fiday, latif yahia, in the iraq of the late 1980s, was hands down my favourite of 2011.
Jul 24, 2003 photographs of saddam hussein s feared sons laid out in plastic body bags were released by the us today in a bid to convince sceptical iraqis that neither would follow their father into power. When uday threatened to rape his sisters, yahia finally. The devils double is the latest blockbuster to stretch the limits of the phrase based on. Released in cinemas later this month, the film recounts the knucklewhitening autobiography of latif yahia, the supposed body double to saddam hussein s psychotic eldest son, uday. Gave a good insight into how the secret service in iraq operates.
According to the interrogation book of saddam hussein by john nixon, uday provoked the escape of hussein kamel and saddam kamel in 1995. Latif was traumatized already, he got that how much of a sick freak uday hussein was, there was no option left for him and the only thing he could do was accepting the offer. The devils double original book by latif yahia books on. It vividly describes how latif was forced to become uday husseins fidai body double and gives a unique insight into the extreme extravagance and cruelty of the saddam regime. He is best known for being the alleged former body double of uday hussein. Uday invited the 30strong group to his private club the following evening. Although saddams purported use of body doubles was widely known, two confidantes of uday hussein denied that he used doubles. In these books, yahia says he was forced to be a body double for uday. It is a vicious, unrelenting look at the cruel world of uday hussein, a man considered even more sadistic than his massmurdering. Loosely based on the book by latif yahia the alleged double who, lets be honest, looks nothing like uday hussein, despite his claims to have had surgery, the devils double tells the story of how hardworking, honest latif is forced before uday, the son of saddam with a simple request.
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