House of Saddam
Encyclopedia
House of Saddam is a 2008 drama that charts the rise and fall of Saddam Hussein
. A co-production between BBC Television
and HBO Films
, the series was first broadcast on BBC Two (in the United Kingdom) in four parts between 30 July and 20 August 2008. The mini-series has been very well received across the Arab world.
newspaper described the drama as "The Sopranos
with Scud missiles", adding that it was good entertainment but that it seemed to gloss over early US and British support for Saddam's regime. Nancy Banks Smith of The Guardian
also compared it to The Sopranos ("without the jokes"), but judged it to be "an extraordinarily ambitious attempt and it succeeds very well". Tim Teeman in The Times
described it as "convincing and chilling... It was soap (the feeling of Dallas was heightened by the late-1970s/early-1980s tacky glam: check out Saddam's glass lift), it was reality, it was cheeky and it was terrifying." Serena Davis of The Daily Telegraph
objected to some "clunking" expository dialogue explaining political events, but was impressed that "Naor's towering version of the dictator envisioned him as both adept family schemer and political giant."
through Foxtel
, Optus TV and Austar
.
's ultimatum
to leave Iraq within forty-eight hours. As the bombing of Baghdad
commences, Saddam and his family flee the presidential palace.
1979: Shortly after the Iranian Revolution
, Iraqi vice president Saddam Hussein fears the increasing influence of the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, as well as Iran's proposed union with Syria. Saddam instigates the overthrow of President
Ahmad Hassan al-Bakr. After being appointed president, Saddam orders his half-brother, Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti
, to initiate a bloody purge of the Ba'ath Party leadership in order to wipe out "traitors". Saddam himself executes his closest friend and ally, Adnan Hamdani, as a show of strength. The Islamic Dawa Party
rocks Baghdad with a series of terrorist attacks while Saddam is on a hunting trip in Tikrit
with his wife Sajida Talfah
and son Uday
.
Saddam attempts to maintain good relations with the United States as he declares war on Iran. Meanwhile, he begins an affair with married school teacher Samira Shahbandar
. Saddam orders the execution of two Iraqi generals after a military defeat at Khorramshahr
, and turns against Barzan following the death of their mother; this puts the arranged marriage of Raghad
, Saddam's daughter, and Mohammed, Barzan's son, in jeopardy. After Saddam survives an assassination attempt in the Dawa stronghold of Dujail
, Barzan fears for his own life and razes the city in retribution
. Saddam exiles Barzan to Switzerland
and marries Raghad to Hussein Kamel al-Majid, forming an alliance with the al-Majid clan. Hussein Kamel takes over Barzan's post and becomes the new leader of the Special Republican Guard.
fires a gun in a Baghdad nightclub. Meanwhile, Saddam himself declares victory over Iran, even though Iraq has suffered heavy losses and is facing bankruptcy
; the Iraqi economy is also being hampered by Kuwait, which is over-producing oil and driving down its price. Sajida learns that Saddam has married Samira as a second wife, and blames his trusted valet, Kamel Hana Gegeo, for assisting their affair. Uday almost kills the valet for the sake of his mother's honour, sparing him only so that he can control him when he succeeds his father.
Meanwhile, Hussein Kamel, spotting an opportunity to rise within Saddam's inner circle, begins to sow mistrust between Saddam and his popular brother-in-law, General Adnan. Saddam's foreign minister, Tariq Aziz
, travels to an OPEC
meeting in Geneva
and reveals that Kuwait has been slant drilling into Iraqi oil fields, demanding that the Kuwaitis cease.
Not long after drunkenly sharing his concerns with brother Qusay
that any children Saddam has with new wife Samira could jeopardise his status as rightful heir, Uday confronts Kamel Hana again at a late night party and beats him to death to the horror of witnesses. Saddam has him arrested and almost kills his first-born son in his cell. Adnan calls into question the ability of Uday to lead Iraq when his time comes, but is not supported by Hussein Kamel, who continues to gain Saddam's trust. Not long after, Adnan is killed in a suspicious helicopter explosion. Sajida confronts Saddam about the death of her brother but he dismisses her with claims that it was merely an accident.
1990-1991: Saddam meets with the U.S. Ambassador to Iraq April Glaspie
and takes her statement of "No Opinion" as giving him to go ahead for the invasion of Kuwait
but then U.S. President
George H.W. Bush immediately decries the action and organizes a coalition of 34 nations to drive out Iraqi forces from Kuwait. Saddam refuses to back down and is forced to move between safe-houses as the Persian Gulf War
commences with the bombing of Baghdad by the US-led coalition air forces. The Iraqi army is quickly forced into retreat as the coalition unleashes its ground offensive to free Kuwait but the Americans declare a ceasefire and withdraw from the Iraqi border leaving Saddam defiant.
.
Despite this, Saddam shows more concern in tracing his roots. He ignores Qusay, who tries to warn him about Uday's erratic behaviour. Instead, he presents their family tree and the "proof" that they are direct descendants of the prophet Muhammad
. Qusay is clearly worried about his father's state of mind but quietly leaves him to his devices.
The rivalry between General Hussein Kamel and Uday swiftly goes out of control, as the erratic son of the president humiliates Hussein Kamel by pelting him with food at a dinner with Saddam's closest allies. The frustrated General states his disillusionment with Saddam's regime that allows the spoiled Uday to run wild, unable to be reined in by anyone. His patience ends when Uday hijacks a shipment of medical supplies that he was intending to sell with his brother Saddam Kamel
. Hussein Kamel tells his brother about his plan to oust Saddam by co-operating with UN inspector Ekeus as well as the CIA, whom Hussein Kamel hopes will topple Saddam and allow him to become the new president of Iraq.
During a holiday celebrating Iraq's "victory" over Iran, Hussein and Saddam Kamel make the trip over the border to Jordan
taking their wives - Saddam Hussein's daughters, Raghad
and Rana
- who warn their husbands of what their father would do if he ever caught them. At the holiday party, Uday indulges his appetite by raping a waitress. Qusay realises that something is wrong when his sisters fail to appear and warns his father. In Jordan, King Hussein
grants the self-exiled group asylum just as Saddam declares them traitors in Iraq. Hussein Kamel plans to oust Saddam with Western co-operation and to ingratiate himself with the West by revealing state secrets. His plans are undermined when Saddam decides to reveal all the information himself. The Kamel brothers are increasingly isolated in Jordan and begin to lose the support of the King and their CIA contacts. Saddam asks Sajida to talk their daughters into coming back to Iraq, promising her that they would be safe upon their return. Sajida calls her daughters in Jordan. Later, Saddam phones Hussein Kamel and offers him and his brother a pardon if they return with their wives to Iraq. Believing he will be forgiven, and disturbed by his increasing loss of social status, Hussein Kamel and the others to return, despite warnings from their wives that if they returned, they would not be forgiven.
Hussein and Saddam Kamel are met by Uday and Qusay, who humiliate them by forcing them to divorce their wives and stripping them of their Iraqi military uniforms and ranks. However they allow them to return to their family home, while Raghad and Rana go to their mother's house. Saddam Hussein then tells General Ali Hassan al-Majid
that the honor of the al-Majid clan will be tainted as long as the pair are unpunished. Ali surrounds the brothers' house with troops and offers the brothers weapons so that they can die fighting. In a pitched battle Hussein and Saddam Kamel are killed.
watch television reports of the US-led coalition forces invasion of Iraq
. Qusay seizes Saddam's bullion and dollars and euros in cash from the Central Bank of Iraq as his father has ordered him to do so. Meanwhile, Saddam orders his troops, particularly those from the elite Republican Guard to fiercely resist the US-led coalition forces. Soon, Saddam met Uday and Qusay in a restaurant in northern Baghdad and advised Qusay himself to take care of his elder brother, who have commanded his paramilitary Fedayeen forces in aiding the resistance. The two left the restaurant as the whole city was being bombed from the air. Saddam, soon also left the restaurant with his driver. On April 9, US forces took over Baghdad. Saddam was now no longer in power. As US troops begin a widescale hunt for the former Iraqi president, his family and henchmen, Saddam flees to rural Tikrit
where he is forced to go underground with his loyal confidants. He phones Samira from a call box and tells her to leave for Lebanon, for that he will not join her. With a few loyal bodyguards Saddam hides out in a rustic building. He makes friends with Ahmed, a lively local boy who initially does not know who he is. He insists that the Iraqi people should continue to resist, and broadcasts his messages from his hideout. His first wife Sajida and family anxiously watch events unfold on television.
Uday and Qusay, a bodyguard, and Qusay's son Mustapha take refuge at a house in Mosul
. Uday wishes to flee across the border, but Qusay treats this suggestion with contempt. Saddam is informed that there is a reward for his family's betrayal, but Saddam insists that Iraqi honor is above bribery. The owner of the house in which Uday and Qusay are hiding resents their presence and betrays them to the Americans, who surround the building. Qusay gives his son a gun and they fight the elements of the US Army's 101st Airborne Division
until a rocket attack kills them. Sajida is seen watching in despair the TV report of her sons' deaths.
Saddam is informed of the deaths and makes a secret visit to Uday, Qusay's and Mustapha's graves, laying Iraqi flags on them. He continues to attempt to rally the Iraqi people against the occupying US-led forces, saying that his sons and grandson are heroes of jihad
. His bodyguards build a tunnel in which to hide him. One guard is finally captured when he visits his girlfriend. When he fails to return Saddam decides to move on, but young Ahmed warns him that US patrols are everywhere. He offers to hide Saddam, but the ex- Iraqi president refuses to involve him. In Operation Red Dawn
, Saddam is captured and taken into custody.
2006: Saddam is subsequently placed on trial
for crimes against humanity and in 2006 is sentenced to death by hanging
for the killing of 148 Iraqi Shiite Muslims from Dujail
, an act committed in retaliation for the assassination attempt against him on 8 July 1982.
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
. A co-production between BBC Television
BBC Television
BBC Television is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation. The corporation, which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927, has produced television programmes from its own studios since 1932, although the start of its regular service of television...
and HBO Films
HBO Films
HBO Films is a division of the cable television network HBO that produces feature films and miniseries. While much of HBO Films' output is created directly for the television market, such as the film Witness Protection and the mini-series Band of Brothers, Pacific, Generation Kill and Angels in...
, the series was first broadcast on BBC Two (in the United Kingdom) in four parts between 30 July and 20 August 2008. The mini-series has been very well received across the Arab world.
Reviews
The first episode was very widely reviewed in the UK. The IndependentThe Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
newspaper described the drama as "The Sopranos
The Sopranos
The Sopranos is an American television drama series created by David Chase that revolves around the New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster Tony Soprano and the difficulties he faces as he tries to balance the often conflicting requirements of his home life and the criminal organization he heads...
with Scud missiles", adding that it was good entertainment but that it seemed to gloss over early US and British support for Saddam's regime. Nancy Banks Smith of The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
also compared it to The Sopranos ("without the jokes"), but judged it to be "an extraordinarily ambitious attempt and it succeeds very well". Tim Teeman in The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
described it as "convincing and chilling... It was soap (the feeling of Dallas was heightened by the late-1970s/early-1980s tacky glam: check out Saddam's glass lift), it was reality, it was cheeky and it was terrifying." Serena Davis of The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
objected to some "clunking" expository dialogue explaining political events, but was impressed that "Naor's towering version of the dictator envisioned him as both adept family schemer and political giant."
United Kingdom
- Part I (BBC Two 2008-07-30): 2.7 million viewers (13% audience share).
- Part II (BBC Two 2008-08-06): 2.3 million viewers (11% audience share).
- Part III (BBC Two 2008-08-13): 1.8 million viewers (8% audience share).
- Part IV (BBC Two 2008-08-20): 1.5 million viewers (6% audience share).
United States
HBO miniseries House of Saddam attracted approximately 1.1 Million viewers on its debut.Australia
House of Saddam screened in 2009 on ShowcaseShowcase (Australian TV channel)
Showcase is an Australian premium cable and satellite television channel. It is owned and operated by the Premium Movie Partnership and is a sister network to the Showtime networks. Showcase is managed by Showtime's Chief Executive Officer Peter Rose...
through Foxtel
Foxtel
Foxtel is an Australian pay television company, operating cable, direct broadcast satellite television and IPTV services. It was formed in 1995 through a joint venture established between Telstra and News Corporation....
, Optus TV and Austar
Austar
Austar is an Australian telecommunications company. Its main business activity is Subscription Television but it is also involved with internet access and mobile phones...
.
Part I
A pre-title sequence is set in March 2003, showing Saddam watching the broadcast of President George W. BushGeorge W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
's ultimatum
Ultimatum
An ultimatum is a demand whose fulfillment is requested in a specified period of time and which is backed up by a threat to be followed through in case of noncompliance. An ultimatum is generally the final demand in a series of requests...
to leave Iraq within forty-eight hours. As the bombing of Baghdad
Baghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
commences, Saddam and his family flee the presidential palace.
1979: Shortly after the Iranian Revolution
Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution refers to events involving the overthrow of Iran's monarchy under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and its replacement with an Islamic republic under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the...
, Iraqi vice president Saddam Hussein fears the increasing influence of the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, as well as Iran's proposed union with Syria. Saddam instigates the overthrow of President
President of Iraq
The President of Iraq is the head of state of Iraq and "safeguards the commitment to the Constitution and the preservation of Iraq's independence, sovereignty, unity, the security of its territories in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution." The President is elected by the Council of...
Ahmad Hassan al-Bakr. After being appointed president, Saddam orders his half-brother, Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti
Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti
Barzan Ibrahim al-Hasan al-Tikriti was one of three half-brothers of Saddam Hussein, and a leader of the Mukhabarat, the Iraqi intelligence service...
, to initiate a bloody purge of the Ba'ath Party leadership in order to wipe out "traitors". Saddam himself executes his closest friend and ally, Adnan Hamdani, as a show of strength. The Islamic Dawa Party
Islamic Dawa Party
The Islamic Dawa Party or Islamic Call Party is a political party in Iraq. Dawa and the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council are two of the main parties in the religious-Shiite United Iraqi Alliance, which won a plurality of seats in both the provisional January 2005 Iraqi election and the longer-term...
rocks Baghdad with a series of terrorist attacks while Saddam is on a hunting trip in Tikrit
Tikrit
Tikrit is a town in Iraq, located 140 km northwest of Baghdad on the Tigris river . The town, with an estimated population in 2002 of about 260,000 is the administrative center of the Salah ad Din Governorate.-Ancient times:...
with his wife Sajida Talfah
Sajida Talfah
Sajida Khairallah Talfah , is the widow and wife of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, and mother of two sons and three daughters .She was born in 1937. She is the oldest daughter of Khairallah Talfah...
and son Uday
Uday Hussein
Uday Saddam Hussein al-Tikriti , was the eldest son of Saddam Hussein from his first wife, Sajida Talfah. He was the brother of Qusay Hussein. Uday was for several years seen as the heir apparent of his father; however, Uday lost his place in the line of succession due to his erratic behavior and...
.
Saddam attempts to maintain good relations with the United States as he declares war on Iran. Meanwhile, he begins an affair with married school teacher Samira Shahbandar
Samira Shahbandar
Samira Shahbandar was allegedly Saddam Hussein's second wife. She is allegedly the mother of his alleged third son, Ali, though his existence was never confirmed and members of Saddam's family claim that Ali is actually his grandson.-Biography:...
. Saddam orders the execution of two Iraqi generals after a military defeat at Khorramshahr
Khorramshahr
Khorramshahr is a city in and the capital of Khorramshahr County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 123,866, in 26,385 families.Khorramshahr is a port city located approximately north of Abadan...
, and turns against Barzan following the death of their mother; this puts the arranged marriage of Raghad
Raghad Hussein
Raghad Saddam Hussein is the eldest daughter of former President of Iraq, Saddam Hussein and Sajida Talfah.-Biography:...
, Saddam's daughter, and Mohammed, Barzan's son, in jeopardy. After Saddam survives an assassination attempt in the Dawa stronghold of Dujail
Dujail
Dujail is a small Shia town in the Salah ad Din Governorate. It is situated about north of Iraq's capital, Baghdad, and has approximately 10,000 inhabitants. It is the site of the 1982 Dujail Massacre....
, Barzan fears for his own life and razes the city in retribution
Dujail Massacre
The Dujail Massacre refers to the events following an assassination attempt against then Iraqi president, Saddam Hussein, on July 8, 1982, in the town of Dujail...
. Saddam exiles Barzan to Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
and marries Raghad to Hussein Kamel al-Majid, forming an alliance with the al-Majid clan. Hussein Kamel takes over Barzan's post and becomes the new leader of the Special Republican Guard.
Part II
1988: As the war with Iran ends, Saddam's unstable son UdayUday Hussein
Uday Saddam Hussein al-Tikriti , was the eldest son of Saddam Hussein from his first wife, Sajida Talfah. He was the brother of Qusay Hussein. Uday was for several years seen as the heir apparent of his father; however, Uday lost his place in the line of succession due to his erratic behavior and...
fires a gun in a Baghdad nightclub. Meanwhile, Saddam himself declares victory over Iran, even though Iraq has suffered heavy losses and is facing bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
; the Iraqi economy is also being hampered by Kuwait, which is over-producing oil and driving down its price. Sajida learns that Saddam has married Samira as a second wife, and blames his trusted valet, Kamel Hana Gegeo, for assisting their affair. Uday almost kills the valet for the sake of his mother's honour, sparing him only so that he can control him when he succeeds his father.
Meanwhile, Hussein Kamel, spotting an opportunity to rise within Saddam's inner circle, begins to sow mistrust between Saddam and his popular brother-in-law, General Adnan. Saddam's foreign minister, Tariq Aziz
Tariq Aziz
Tariq Aziz and Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq and a close advisor of former President Saddam Hussein. Their association began in the 1950s when both were activists for the then-banned Ba'ath Arab Socialist Party...
, travels to an OPEC
OPEC
OPEC is an intergovernmental organization of twelve developing countries made up of Algeria, Angola, Ecuador, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela. OPEC has maintained its headquarters in Vienna since 1965, and hosts regular meetings...
meeting in Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
and reveals that Kuwait has been slant drilling into Iraqi oil fields, demanding that the Kuwaitis cease.
Not long after drunkenly sharing his concerns with brother Qusay
Qusay Hussein
Qusay Saddam Hussein al-Tikriti was the second son of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. He was appointed as his father's heir apparent in 2000.- Family :...
that any children Saddam has with new wife Samira could jeopardise his status as rightful heir, Uday confronts Kamel Hana again at a late night party and beats him to death to the horror of witnesses. Saddam has him arrested and almost kills his first-born son in his cell. Adnan calls into question the ability of Uday to lead Iraq when his time comes, but is not supported by Hussein Kamel, who continues to gain Saddam's trust. Not long after, Adnan is killed in a suspicious helicopter explosion. Sajida confronts Saddam about the death of her brother but he dismisses her with claims that it was merely an accident.
1990-1991: Saddam meets with the U.S. Ambassador to Iraq April Glaspie
April Glaspie
April Catherine Glaspie is a former American diplomat, best known for her role in the events leading up to the Persian Gulf War of 1991.-Early life and career:...
and takes her statement of "No Opinion" as giving him to go ahead for the invasion of Kuwait
Invasion of Kuwait
The Invasion of Kuwait, also known as the Iraq-Kuwait War, was a major conflict between the Republic of Iraq and the State of Kuwait, which resulted in the seven-month long Iraqi occupation of Kuwait, which subsequently led to direct military intervention by United States-led forces in the Gulf...
but then U.S. President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
George H.W. Bush immediately decries the action and organizes a coalition of 34 nations to drive out Iraqi forces from Kuwait. Saddam refuses to back down and is forced to move between safe-houses as the Persian Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
commences with the bombing of Baghdad by the US-led coalition air forces. The Iraqi army is quickly forced into retreat as the coalition unleashes its ground offensive to free Kuwait but the Americans declare a ceasefire and withdraw from the Iraqi border leaving Saddam defiant.
Part III
1995: Iraq has survived the Persian Gulf War but is crippled economically, with the UN refusing to lift sanctions unless the government co-operate with their weapons inspectors to dismantle the country's weapons of mass destruction. Saddam states he has nothing to hide resulting in a stand-off between him and chief UN weapons inspector, Rolf EkeusRolf Ekéus
Carl Rolf Ekéus is a Swedish diplomat. From 1978 to 1983, he was a representative to the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, and he has worked on various other disarmament committees and commissions....
.
Despite this, Saddam shows more concern in tracing his roots. He ignores Qusay, who tries to warn him about Uday's erratic behaviour. Instead, he presents their family tree and the "proof" that they are direct descendants of the prophet Muhammad
Muhammad
Muhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...
. Qusay is clearly worried about his father's state of mind but quietly leaves him to his devices.
The rivalry between General Hussein Kamel and Uday swiftly goes out of control, as the erratic son of the president humiliates Hussein Kamel by pelting him with food at a dinner with Saddam's closest allies. The frustrated General states his disillusionment with Saddam's regime that allows the spoiled Uday to run wild, unable to be reined in by anyone. His patience ends when Uday hijacks a shipment of medical supplies that he was intending to sell with his brother Saddam Kamel
Saddam Kamel
Saddam Kamel Hassan al-Majid was the second cousin and son-in-law of deposed Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.-Biography:He was married to Rana Hussein and was the brother of Hussein Kamel al-Majid .For a time he was head of the Republican Guard...
. Hussein Kamel tells his brother about his plan to oust Saddam by co-operating with UN inspector Ekeus as well as the CIA, whom Hussein Kamel hopes will topple Saddam and allow him to become the new president of Iraq.
During a holiday celebrating Iraq's "victory" over Iran, Hussein and Saddam Kamel make the trip over the border to Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
taking their wives - Saddam Hussein's daughters, Raghad
Raghad Hussein
Raghad Saddam Hussein is the eldest daughter of former President of Iraq, Saddam Hussein and Sajida Talfah.-Biography:...
and Rana
Rana Hussein
Rana Saddam Hussein is the second-eldest daughter of the former President of Iraq,Saddam Hussein and his first wife, Sajida Talfah. Her older sister is Raghad and younger sister is Hala Hussein....
- who warn their husbands of what their father would do if he ever caught them. At the holiday party, Uday indulges his appetite by raping a waitress. Qusay realises that something is wrong when his sisters fail to appear and warns his father. In Jordan, King Hussein
Hussein of Jordan
Hussein bin Talal was the third King of Jordan from the abdication of his father, King Talal, in 1952, until his death. Hussein's rule extended through the Cold War and four decades of Arab-Israeli conflict...
grants the self-exiled group asylum just as Saddam declares them traitors in Iraq. Hussein Kamel plans to oust Saddam with Western co-operation and to ingratiate himself with the West by revealing state secrets. His plans are undermined when Saddam decides to reveal all the information himself. The Kamel brothers are increasingly isolated in Jordan and begin to lose the support of the King and their CIA contacts. Saddam asks Sajida to talk their daughters into coming back to Iraq, promising her that they would be safe upon their return. Sajida calls her daughters in Jordan. Later, Saddam phones Hussein Kamel and offers him and his brother a pardon if they return with their wives to Iraq. Believing he will be forgiven, and disturbed by his increasing loss of social status, Hussein Kamel and the others to return, despite warnings from their wives that if they returned, they would not be forgiven.
Hussein and Saddam Kamel are met by Uday and Qusay, who humiliate them by forcing them to divorce their wives and stripping them of their Iraqi military uniforms and ranks. However they allow them to return to their family home, while Raghad and Rana go to their mother's house. Saddam Hussein then tells General Ali Hassan al-Majid
Ali Hassan al-Majid
Ali Hassan Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti , , was a Ba'athist Iraqi Defense Minister, Interior Minister, military commander and chief of the Iraqi Intelligence Service...
that the honor of the al-Majid clan will be tainted as long as the pair are unpunished. Ali surrounds the brothers' house with troops and offers the brothers weapons so that they can die fighting. In a pitched battle Hussein and Saddam Kamel are killed.
Part IV
2003: Saddam along with sons Uday and Qusay and Tariq AzizTariq Aziz
Tariq Aziz and Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq and a close advisor of former President Saddam Hussein. Their association began in the 1950s when both were activists for the then-banned Ba'ath Arab Socialist Party...
watch television reports of the US-led coalition forces invasion of Iraq
2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
. Qusay seizes Saddam's bullion and dollars and euros in cash from the Central Bank of Iraq as his father has ordered him to do so. Meanwhile, Saddam orders his troops, particularly those from the elite Republican Guard to fiercely resist the US-led coalition forces. Soon, Saddam met Uday and Qusay in a restaurant in northern Baghdad and advised Qusay himself to take care of his elder brother, who have commanded his paramilitary Fedayeen forces in aiding the resistance. The two left the restaurant as the whole city was being bombed from the air. Saddam, soon also left the restaurant with his driver. On April 9, US forces took over Baghdad. Saddam was now no longer in power. As US troops begin a widescale hunt for the former Iraqi president, his family and henchmen, Saddam flees to rural Tikrit
Tikrit
Tikrit is a town in Iraq, located 140 km northwest of Baghdad on the Tigris river . The town, with an estimated population in 2002 of about 260,000 is the administrative center of the Salah ad Din Governorate.-Ancient times:...
where he is forced to go underground with his loyal confidants. He phones Samira from a call box and tells her to leave for Lebanon, for that he will not join her. With a few loyal bodyguards Saddam hides out in a rustic building. He makes friends with Ahmed, a lively local boy who initially does not know who he is. He insists that the Iraqi people should continue to resist, and broadcasts his messages from his hideout. His first wife Sajida and family anxiously watch events unfold on television.
Uday and Qusay, a bodyguard, and Qusay's son Mustapha take refuge at a house in Mosul
Mosul
Mosul , is a city in northern Iraq and the capital of the Ninawa Governorate, some northwest of Baghdad. The original city stands on the west bank of the Tigris River, opposite the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh on the east bank, but the metropolitan area has now grown to encompass substantial...
. Uday wishes to flee across the border, but Qusay treats this suggestion with contempt. Saddam is informed that there is a reward for his family's betrayal, but Saddam insists that Iraqi honor is above bribery. The owner of the house in which Uday and Qusay are hiding resents their presence and betrays them to the Americans, who surround the building. Qusay gives his son a gun and they fight the elements of the US Army's 101st Airborne Division
101st Airborne Division
The 101st Airborne Division—the "Screaming Eagles"—is a U.S. Army modular light infantry division trained for air assault operations. During World War II, it was renowned for its role in Operation Overlord, the D-Day landings on 6 June 1944, in Normandy, France, Operation Market Garden, the...
until a rocket attack kills them. Sajida is seen watching in despair the TV report of her sons' deaths.
Saddam is informed of the deaths and makes a secret visit to Uday, Qusay's and Mustapha's graves, laying Iraqi flags on them. He continues to attempt to rally the Iraqi people against the occupying US-led forces, saying that his sons and grandson are heroes of jihad
Jihad
Jihad , an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word jihād translates as a noun meaning "struggle". Jihad appears 41 times in the Quran and frequently in the idiomatic expression "striving in the way of God ". A person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid; the plural is...
. His bodyguards build a tunnel in which to hide him. One guard is finally captured when he visits his girlfriend. When he fails to return Saddam decides to move on, but young Ahmed warns him that US patrols are everywhere. He offers to hide Saddam, but the ex- Iraqi president refuses to involve him. In Operation Red Dawn
Operation Red Dawn
Operation Red Dawn was the U.S. military operation conducted on 13 December 2003 in the town of ad-Dawr, Iraq, near Tikrit, that captured Iraq President Saddam Hussein, ending rumours of his death. The operation was named after the 1984 film Red Dawn. The mission was assigned to the 1st Brigade...
, Saddam is captured and taken into custody.
2006: Saddam is subsequently placed on trial
Trial of Saddam Hussein
thumb|300 px| Saddam Hussein sits before an Iraqi judge at a courthouse in Baghdad, 1 July 2004.The Trial of Saddam Hussein was the trial of the deposed President of Iraq Saddam Hussein by the Iraqi Interim Government for crimes against humanity during his time in office.The Coalition Provisional...
for crimes against humanity and in 2006 is sentenced to death by hanging
Execution of Saddam Hussein
The execution of Saddam Hussein took place on December 30, 2006 . Saddam was sentenced to death by hanging, after being found guilty and convicted of crimes against humanity by the Iraqi Special Tribunal for the murder of 148 Iraqi Shi'ite in the town of Dujail in 1982, in retaliation for an...
for the killing of 148 Iraqi Shiite Muslims from Dujail
Dujail
Dujail is a small Shia town in the Salah ad Din Governorate. It is situated about north of Iraq's capital, Baghdad, and has approximately 10,000 inhabitants. It is the site of the 1982 Dujail Massacre....
, an act committed in retaliation for the assassination attempt against him on 8 July 1982.
Cast
- Yigal NaorYigal NaorYigal Naor is an Israeli actor.Naor was born in Giv'atayim of Iraqi Jewish descent. He has appeared in the American movies Munich, Green Zone and Rendition...
as Saddam HusseinSaddam HusseinSaddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
, President of Iraq (1979–2003) - Shohreh AghdashlooShohreh AghdashlooShohreh Aghdashloo is an Iranian American actress.After establishing a theatre and film career in Iran, Aghdashloo moved to England during the Iranian Revolution in 1979, and subsequently became a citizen of the United States...
as Sajida Khairallah TalfahSajida TalfahSajida Khairallah Talfah , is the widow and wife of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, and mother of two sons and three daughters .She was born in 1937. She is the oldest daughter of Khairallah Talfah...
, Saddam's first wife - Philip ArdittiPhilip ArdittiPhilip Arditti is a Geneva-born Italian-British Sephardic Jewish television actor most famous for his role as Uday Hussein in the four episode House of Saddam television docudrama. He also appeared in the British comedy drama film Happy-Go-Lucky...
as Uday HusseinUday HusseinUday Saddam Hussein al-Tikriti , was the eldest son of Saddam Hussein from his first wife, Sajida Talfah. He was the brother of Qusay Hussein. Uday was for several years seen as the heir apparent of his father; however, Uday lost his place in the line of succession due to his erratic behavior and...
, Saddam's first son - Mounir Margoum as Qusay HusseinQusay HusseinQusay Saddam Hussein al-Tikriti was the second son of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. He was appointed as his father's heir apparent in 2000.- Family :...
, Saddam's second son - Agni Scott as Raghad HusseinRaghad HusseinRaghad Saddam Hussein is the eldest daughter of former President of Iraq, Saddam Hussein and Sajida Talfah.-Biography:...
, Saddam's eldest daughter - Shivani GhaiShivani GhaiShivani Ghai is a British actress of Indian origin. Born and brought up in Newcastle, at 18 Shivani moved away to pursue an acting career.-Career:Finding herself in London she started out in theatre working for companies such as Man Mela, Rifco and Kali....
as Rana HusseinRana HusseinRana Saddam Hussein is the second-eldest daughter of the former President of Iraq,Saddam Hussein and his first wife, Sajida Talfah. Her older sister is Raghad and younger sister is Hala Hussein....
, Saddam's second daughter - Amber Rose RevahAmber Rose RevahAmber Rose Revah is best known for her roles in From Paris With Love and Aazaan.-Career:She played Hala Hussein, Saddam Hussein's daughter in BBC/HBO BAFTA nominated series House of Saddam. Later she switched to main film roles and starred along side John Travolta in From Paris With Love...
as Hala HusseinHala HusseinHala Saddam Hussein is the third daughter of the former President of Iraq, Saddam Hussein and his first wife Sajida Talfah. Hala was said to be Saddam's favorite daughter...
, Saddam's youngest daughter - Christine Stephen-DalyChristine Stephen-DalyChristine Stephen-Daly is an Australian television actress.Christine grew up in Melbourne with her father Paul, an entrepreneur who was the originator of the world's first travelling tram restaurant in Melbourne in 1993; mother Rhonnda, a housewife; and three sisters Louise, Laura, and...
as Samira ShahbandarSamira ShahbandarSamira Shahbandar was allegedly Saddam Hussein's second wife. She is allegedly the mother of his alleged third son, Ali, though his existence was never confirmed and members of Saddam's family claim that Ali is actually his grandson.-Biography:...
, Saddam's second wife - Amr WakedAmr WakedAmr Waked is an Egyptian film, television, and stage actor, known for his roles portraying Middle Eastern and Mediterranean characters. He is best known to international audiences and in Hollywood as the terrorist leader in the 2005 film Syriana...
as Lieutanant General Hussein Kamel al-Majid, Raghad's husband, Ali Hassan's nephew, later head of the elite Republican Guard and Commander of the Iraqi Army - Said TaghmaouiSaïd TaghmaouiSaïd Taghmaoui is a French actor and screenwriter. One of his defining screen roles was that of Saïd in the award winning 1995 French film La Haine directed by Mathieu Kassovitz...
as Barzan Ibrahim, Saddam's half brother, head of the elite Iraqi Republican Guard - Uri GavrielUri GavrielUri Gavriel is an Israeli actor. He works in Israeli cinema. He has won Award of the Israeli Film Academy and Karlovy Vary International Film Festival in 2005 as Best Actor in film "What a Wonderful Place".-Film and television credits:-External links:...
as General Ali Hassan "Chemical Ali" al-MajidAli Hassan al-MajidAli Hassan Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti , , was a Ba'athist Iraqi Defense Minister, Interior Minister, military commander and chief of the Iraqi Intelligence Service...
, head of Mukhabarat, the Iraqi intelligence Agency and Saddam's cousin - Said Amadis as General Adnan KhairallahAdnan KhairallahGeneral Adnan Khairallah , was Saddam Hussein's brother-in-law and cousin. He held several titles and was a member of the Iraqi Revolutionary Command Council. It was initially believed that he died in a helicopter crash near Mosul in the late eighties during a sandstorm...
, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Iraqi Armed Forces, Sajida's brother - Makram KhouryMakram KhouryMakram J. Khoury is an Israeli Arab, born 30 May 1945 in Jerusalem. He was the youngest artist and the first Arab to win the Israel Prize, the highest civic honor in Israel. He is one of the most accomplished and well-known Israeli Arab actors.Today, Makram is active in films, on the stage, and on...
as Tariq AzizTariq AzizTariq Aziz and Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq and a close advisor of former President Saddam Hussein. Their association began in the 1950s when both were activists for the then-banned Ba'ath Arab Socialist Party...
, Deputy Prime Minister, foreign minister of Iraq and Saddam's best friend - Daniel Lundh as Colonel Saddam Kamel al-MajidSaddam KamelSaddam Kamel Hassan al-Majid was the second cousin and son-in-law of deposed Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.-Biography:He was married to Rana Hussein and was the brother of Hussein Kamel al-Majid .For a time he was head of the Republican Guard...
, Rana's husband, Hussein Kamel's brother, Ali Hassan's nephew - Akbar KurthaAkbar KurthaAkbar Kurtha is an actor born in India and living in England.Since 1993 Kurtha has played several roles in his native England and in the United States. He first appeared in the 1993 film Bhaji on the Beach in the role of Majit, and then played the lead role of “Farid” in the film My Son the...
as Kamel Hana Gegeo, Saddam's personal aide and food-taster - Jihed Mejrissi as Mohammad Barzan al-Tikriti , Saddam's nephew to half-brother Barzan
- Jacqueline KingJacqueline King-Career:King trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. After training she worked as an actor in Africa, Canada, America, Sri Lanka and UAE.On returning to the UK, she appeared in several Alan Ayckbourn productions, including the original runs of Comic Potential and the Damsels in Distress...
as April GlaspieApril GlaspieApril Catherine Glaspie is a former American diplomat, best known for her role in the events leading up to the Persian Gulf War of 1991.-Early life and career:...
, U.S. ambassador to Iraq from 1988 to 1990
External links
- Watch full episodes of House Of Saddam online flash player
- Official Press Release at BBC Press Office
- Saddam drama series for BBC Two at BBC NewsBBC NewsBBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
- Official HBO site
- http://www.showtime.com.au/showcase Showcase Australia website.