Preacherman
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From the Telegraph, London (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/mai...rt24.xml&sSheet=/news/2003/09/24/ixworld.html):
Saddam's torture CDs go on sale
By Patrick Bishop in Baghdad
(Filed: 24/09/2003)
The home movies of the family of Saddam Hussein, including grisly scenes of torture, are proving a best-seller on the streets of Baghdad.
Some of the images show the dictator in a paternal role, smiling fondly at his brood and dandling their offspring on his knee.
But the kitsch sequences are interspersed with dark recordings of torture sessions and executions. In one, Saddam's son Uday is seen lashing the soles of the feet of a soldier with a rubber pipe as his victim screams with pain and begs for mercy. Eventually he hands the whip to a senior officer to continue the punishment. There is little doubt of its authenticity.
The footage is believed to have been shot by cameramen who were on hand to record Saddam and his family during the 23 years of his rule. They started selling their wares to Arab television stations and are now striking deals with entrepreneurs who transfer the images on to CDs for sale by street hawkers and at markets.
The discs are on offer in the Thieves' Market in central Baghdad. "They are very popular at the moment," said a teenager manning one of the stalls. "People buy them because they want to know what really went on. It is one thing to hear about it and another to see it."
The CDs are an unexpected boon for the coalition, reminding Iraqis of the brutality of the old regime.
Saddam's torture CDs go on sale
By Patrick Bishop in Baghdad
(Filed: 24/09/2003)
The home movies of the family of Saddam Hussein, including grisly scenes of torture, are proving a best-seller on the streets of Baghdad.
Some of the images show the dictator in a paternal role, smiling fondly at his brood and dandling their offspring on his knee.
But the kitsch sequences are interspersed with dark recordings of torture sessions and executions. In one, Saddam's son Uday is seen lashing the soles of the feet of a soldier with a rubber pipe as his victim screams with pain and begs for mercy. Eventually he hands the whip to a senior officer to continue the punishment. There is little doubt of its authenticity.
The footage is believed to have been shot by cameramen who were on hand to record Saddam and his family during the 23 years of his rule. They started selling their wares to Arab television stations and are now striking deals with entrepreneurs who transfer the images on to CDs for sale by street hawkers and at markets.
The discs are on offer in the Thieves' Market in central Baghdad. "They are very popular at the moment," said a teenager manning one of the stalls. "People buy them because they want to know what really went on. It is one thing to hear about it and another to see it."
The CDs are an unexpected boon for the coalition, reminding Iraqis of the brutality of the old regime.
