The devils double original book, which was made into a feature. The iraniraq war is raging when the story begins, and iraqs invasion of kuwait takes place midway through, but these conflicts are in the. The former body double of uday hussein recounts his harrowing experiences. Two journalists have disputed this and other claims made by yahia. The tangled tale behind the devils double eoin butler.
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. He started university at baghdad university college of medicine, but he only lasted three days there. Jul 24, 2011 bearing a strong resemblance to uday, mr. 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.
Latif had to live like uday, eat like uday, talk like uday, walk like uday, be uday. The maddog of sadams family, uday, was an infamous perpetrator of both targeted and indiscriminate sexual assault. 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. Although saddams purported use of body doubles was widely known, two confidantes of uday hussein denied that he used doubles. He is best known for being the alleged former body double of uday hussein. 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. According to his book, blog and media interviews, he was born into a. Its an autobiographical account of the author who lived during saddam husseins regime and was entrusted read. I was shot 26 times for being uday husseins body double. This was a very interesting book on the life of latif yahia, a body double to uday hussein, saddams son. The bizarre double life of latif yahia the national. Latif yahia is an iraqiborn author and former combatant in the iraniraq war. Uday hussein simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This book will open your eyes to the relative value of human life. 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. The restaurant is just around the corner from the house pulverized by huge u. 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. You have been chosen to dine with uday and his aunt, in his palace. Youve got latif yahia on being uday husseins body double duration. The tangled tale behind the devils double eoin butler opinion. 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. Cia, iraq, latif yahia, saddam hussein, torture, uday hussein trackback. The sadistic lifestyle of eldest hussein son the globe.
Drunk uday went to kamels house where a party was being held and punched saddam kamel. The rector himself received 8 gunshot wounds to the leg and the left part of the body. Near the end of the book, yahia offers a vague admission. 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. Saddams son feeds woman to dogs alive showing 157 of 57 messages. Uday invited the 30strong group to his private club the following evening. In 2011, caesar interviewed various people from the time of the hussein regime. 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. After the two married, she heard for the first time that yahia claimed to have been udays body double, which she found dubious.
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. Official website of latif yahia official website of. The devils double the shoes of a psychopath the new. Saddam husseins son uday he caught sight of nahle sabet, a pretty architecture student from a respected middleclass christian family hed. 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. 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. As uday hussein drove his golden porsche slowly up a busy street in one of baghdads smartest districts, just after dark on dec.
The devils double original book by latif yahia books on. The devils double is the latest blockbuster to stretch the limits of the phrase based on. If you like graphic descriptions of torture, and the. Til uday hussein, saddams son, murdered his fathers. Latif yahia, the solider in question, describes uday as. Author of hit hollywood film on horrific tale of uday. Saddam was in prison for the first three years of udays life. 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. Now his story has been turned into a film, the devils double. Photographs of saddam husseins feared sons laid out in plastic body bags were released by the us today in a bid to convince sceptical.
Refusal would have meant a death sentence for his family. 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. In lee tamahoris devils double, dominic cooper plays saddam husseins nihilistic son, uday, as well as latif yahia, who served as his body. He is best known for being the alleged former body double of uday hussein, the son of iraqi dictator saddam hussein.
Gave a good insight into how the secret service in iraq operates. In november 1987, yahya had to become uday s body double after torture and he claimed that he was assassinated 11 times as uday s stuntman. This really is a story of survival against the odds. The devils double by latif yahia meet your next favorite book. 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. 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. And one man was on hand to witness it all udays unwilling body double. Youve got latif yahia on being uday husseins body double. Author of hit hollywood film on horrific tale of uday hussein. Yes, he was forced to be a double for uday, who saw him when they attended school together, because they threatened his family. Latif yahia claims that he was the fiday body double of saddam hussein s son uday from 1988 to 1991. At first, he refused the role as uday hussein s body double and was incarcerated for a week. 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. His psychotic personality was depicted in the autobiography of his reported body double latif yahia in the 1997 book i.
This is uday hussein s world and with his depraved lust for debauchery and immorality, he helps himself to whatever turns him on. 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. 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. 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. 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. I studied from nine in the morning to muslim evening prayers, practicing how uday hussein sat, held his cigar, everything. It is a vicious, unrelenting look at the cruel world of uday hussein, a man considered even more sadistic than his massmurdering. 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. The devils double original book, which was made into a. The black hole by latif yahia nook book ebook barnes. It was the year 1987 and latif had just started playing as udays double. Saddams demon seed uday husseins many vices and wanton sadism appalled even his father. When he was defeated by kamel, he took out his gun and fired. 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.
When uday threatened to rape his sisters, yahia finally. Uday graduated from high school with very high marks. Yahia was forced in 1987 to serve as his fiday, or body double. Were this a fabricated adventure story of life within saddam husseins inner circle as bodydouble to his son uday, it would be somewhat lacking. 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. Uday was born in tikrit, iraq, to saddam hussein and sajida talfah. 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. According to the interrogation book of saddam hussein by john nixon, uday provoked the escape of hussein kamel and saddam kamel in 1995. Us releases photos of saddam sons world news the guardian. He underwent plastic surgery, just like the body doubles for saddam and qusay, in order to look more like uday. 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. In arabic, fiday means body double or bullet catcher. Uday couldnt find anybody resembling him until he remembered his old classmate, latif yahya.
The guards managed to kill one of the attackers by return fire. 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. 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. 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. 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. This link leads to an excerpt of an interview with a former army body double of uday hussein, one of saddam husseins sons. There is no sense of honour or heroism, for example, except on the part of the dead. In december 1996, unknown persons fired at his car with a pistol and machine gun on the campus. Uday himself became the target of the assassination. Aug 06, 2011 saddams demon seed uday husseins many vices and wanton sadism appalled even his father. 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. The devils double released on 5 june 2003 by arrow books ltd.
This is uday husseins world and with his depraved lust for debauchery and immorality, he helps himself to whatever turns him on. 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. 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. 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. In these books, yahia says he was forced to be a body double for uday. After that, he moved to the college of engineering. 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.
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