Malta the diamond in the Mediterranean.

Malta.

I have travelled a lot in my 40+ years on this planet, some, especially my Mother, would say too much but whether it was for business, pleasure or out of a desire to "FLEE" I think that I have managed to see just about every country there is. Thankfully in recent years the desire to Flee has subsided, and more and more my travel is more business than pleasure, so when I go somewhere on business and find myself having a wonderful time it's a bit of a shock.
A few weeks ago I went to Malta to do interviews and promote the movie The Devil's Double, I had been to Malta every other week during the filming but had been either on set or in the Hotel, filming days were long and when you are in that kind of situation the film crew and talent become like family, you don't really look too much outside. This time Malta for me was like finding a Diamond in the middle of the sea, I was no longer in the bubble of the film crew, I was in the hands of the Maltese themselves and they were wonderful. From the moment I "checked in" on my Air Malta flight I was treated with the utmost respect and care, not in a forced or fake way but in a truly heartfelt way, and that treatment continued for my whole week in Malta. Now, it may be easy to say, well you are famous etc, but believe me that can be just as much of a hindrance as a help, I am sure that Malta has seen it's fair share of Celebrities (Gladiator among other movies was shot there), it hosts many movies and many of the Maltese people work in the film industry, make up, hair, camera etc, not to mention that all the extras, the schoolgirls and Uday's mother Sajida in the movie are all Maltese actors.  What really struck me was the honest care for my well-being, everyone wanted to make sure that I was okay, I had everything I needed etc but not in a pandering way, in a concerned familial way. I was invited to peoples homes, friends that I had made while in Malta and through Facebook came to see me, and all the time I understood that really I wasn't getting any special treatment, this is how the Maltese are, they care, they care about you no matter what you have in your pocket, who you are, where you come from. I was truly touched by their openness and generosity of spirit. They are the kind of people that if they only had a loaf of bread and saw you hungry on the street would give you half and smile.

Press Conference Malta 2011.

I can't really say enough about them, they gave me a renewed sense of ease in this world, I had become cynical and was truly beginning to believe that the good hearts of this world had been taken over by greed, but thanks to the Maltese people I still hold hope.
I suppose I feel a kinship with the Maltese because of their language which is like a hybrid of Arabic, Italian and I'm not sure what else thrown in, but I can understand at least half of what they say, their alphabet on the other hand is something else. Being in the middle of the Mediterranean as they are they had to have been influenced  by the trade that passed, also they were conquered more than once which accounts for the fact they the are also fluent in English, but up until recent years were made to learn Arabic at school. The Maltese Prime minister was the first in Europe if not the world to support the opposition in Libya and condemn Ghadaffi's regime, even before NATO or the UN, even though Malta sits only a few hundred miles off the coast of Libya and in easy range of missiles if Ghadaffi should decided to send them a few.

XARABANK Maltese TV.

 The country is truly beautiful, in the past the Maltese used to live in the center of the country to protect themselves so cities like M'dina were built, it is a walled city with narrow walled streets, there are only doors, those doors lead to courtyards and then houses. Valetta is also very beautiful, actually all of Malta is, if you get a chance really you should visit. A surprise for me was a small little cove on the coast away from the main towns and cities, it was where the film Popeye was shot, it is the little town that they built as a set, it still stands and is a small tourist attraction, very colourful and unexpected.
I would like to thank everyone at Xarabank, Air Malta and the Radisson Blu Hotel for taking such good care of me, I had a wonderful time, made good friends, spent some time with good friends I already had and felt for once in a long time that I belonged.
Thank you Malta.

A very special thanks to the following:
Xarabank Production Team:

Presenter: Peppi Azzopardi
Production Manager: Norman Vella
Producers: Fabian Demicoli, Rebekah Grima, Catherine Aquilina, Claire Preca Taroum, Joe Julian Farrugia, Deborah Azzopardi, Melanie Casha Sammut and PJ Mintoff Vassallo
Video Editors: Olwyn Jo Saliba, Aaron Attard and Mandy Micallef Grimaud
Production Secretary: Katia Desira
+ Director Mark Vassallo and all the camera people and crew of Where's Everybody

TVM News:

Journalist: Keith Demicoli
Head of News: Dr. Natalino Fenech
CEO: Anton Attard
Chairman: Joe Mizzi

Air Malta

Radisson Blu Resort, St. Julian's

KRS Film Distributers
Maltese Police Force

Here is my interview on "Xarabank"

Amnesty International seeks George W. Bush's arrest.

Same shit different ass, they both have Damaged the World.

The human rights group Amnesty International called on Canadian authorities Wednesday to arrest former President George W. Bush when he attends an economic summit in the province of British Columbia next week.
The group accused Bush of “responsibility for crimes under international law including torture.”Amnesty International asked that Canada either prosecute or extradite Bush for violations that they allege took place during the CIA’s secret detention program between 2002 and 2009. The organization wrote a 1,000 page memorandum addressed to Canadian authorities to make the case for human rights violations by the 43rd president.“Canada is required by its international obligations to arrest and prosecute former President Bush given his responsibility for crimes under international law including torture,” Susan Lee, Americas Director at Amnesty International, said in a statement. The Canadian government responded to the request with critical words for Amnesty International. “I cannot comment on individual cases… that said, Amnesty International cherry picks cases to publicize based on ideology. This kind of stunt helps explain why so many respected human rights advocates have abandoned Amnesty International,” Canadian Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Jason Kenney told POLITICO, noting that Amnesty International had never sought a court order to bar Cuban dictator Fidel Castro or Tongolese dicator Gnassingbé Eyadema from Canada. “Perhaps this helps to explain why Salman Rushie has said that ‘it looks very much as if Amnesty’s leadership is suffering from a kind of moral bankruptcy,’ and why Christopher Hitchens has written about the organization’s ‘degeneration and politicization,’” Kenney added. Bush cancelled a visit to Switzerland in February after facing similar public calls for his arrest by the other human rights groups. Amnesty International said that Canada was obligated to arrest Bush under its commitments to the UN Convention Against Torture. The human rights organization objected to the Bush administration’s “enhanced interrogation techniques” and violations they characterized as “cruel, inhuman and degrating treatment and enforced disappearances.” “A failure by Canada to take action during his visit would violate the UN Convention against Torture and demonstrate contempt for fundamental human rights,” said Lee.

Credit where it’s due.

By:Latif Yahia

Take a deep breath, okay hold it just for just one second, now, let it go.
Just when you thought that all was dark and dismal in the world of Ireland a bright spark has emerged.
That spark being Mr. Alan Shatter, Minister for Justice, now as you all know, I have never been a fan of the former Ministers for Justice with the exception of the late Mr. Brian Lenihan R.I.P (to his family I send my heartfelt condolences, he will be greatly missed as one of the few real Irish politicians).
Anyone who has ever read anything that I have written about the former Ministers for Justice ESPECIALLY Michael McDowell, will know that I haven’t had a lot of time for any of them and the time that I did was weary-some at best.

Ministers for Justice Mr.Alan Shatter.

But then, I read the latest news from the Dept. of Justice and the new reforms that Minister Shatter put in place yesterday 16/06/2011 and the Sun came out, little lambs started to dance a merry jig on a typically Irish green field, and all was right with the world.
Now don’t get ahead of yourself, or me, for that matter, this does not mean that my four year wait for an answer to my third application for Irish citizenship will finally come to an end, but it does mean that all those who came after me will finally be treated equally to every other non-European who wishes to be a European National, and waiting times will be drastically reduced. As you all know I travel too much and when I talk about the Immigration/Naturalization system in Ireland and of course compare it with other European systems, I get stares of disbelief, and shocked “No? You can’t appeal the Minister’s decision?” “You’re waiting how long for an answer!” I do hope that within his reforms Minister Shatter finds time to repeal that particular time wasting piece of legislation. I believe that Minister Shatter understands that if Ireland is to survive the ongoing financial crisis that it needs people, Irish people are leaving in droves, as are the immigrant workers who helped the boom. If Ireland is to rebuild itself it needs people to stay, bring investment, work, live and spend their hard earned cash. That can only happen if there is a reason to stay, if Naturalization is comparable with getting six numbers on the lottery, well some may say they’ll take their investment and gamble their money somewhere that Naturalization isn’t a gamble. Quit pro quo.

Click here to read quotes from (Mr.Alan Shatter, Minister for Justice)

I also wish to express my admiration for Minister Shatter’s awareness of the fact that although his Dept. constantly referred to the fact that Naturalization was a highly prized gift that was only bestowed upon the best of the best that landed on Irish shores, the actual physical endowment of Citizenship was a rather unceremonious court appearance, where the Judge (already overloaded with REAL work) had someone repeat something, the cash was paid to the court clerk and voila! Irish Citizen! I have seen this in action but as you all know have not had the personal experience.
So Kudos to you Minister Shatter, keep up the good work.

For those readers who are unfamiliar with the workings of the Dept. of Justice under previous Ministers with the exception of Mr. Brian Lenihan R.I.P who did such a good job of catching criminals and seizing drugs/alcohol/cigarettes that he was given a new portfolio (kicked) after six months.
The real Dictator of the Dept. of Justice though was by far Michael McDowell, under his Ministry:

Hitler of Ireland Michael McDowell.

1.The right to appeal the Minister’s decision was revoked.
2.The only real way of “proving” that you were residing in Ireland was to be claiming social welfare.
3.The right of a Spouse of an Irish National to be naturalized after three years and one day was rescinded. (Contrary to European Law)
4.The right of the individual to take the Minister to court to expedite a decision was repealed.

The system in Ireland was set up in a way that made it very difficult not only to apply for naturalization/citizenship, but also to define what indeed was expected of the applicant.
In other European countries for example when you have fulfilled a certain length of residency you are contacted or you contact yourself, the relevant Dept. to apply for naturalization.
You are then provided with a list of statutory requirements and when they are completed you take yourself and your application along to the Dept. and speak to a person who then becomes your case worker, any questions you may have are directed to your case worker and your application will be processed and answered within a short time frame 6mth – 12mths.
That was not the case in Ireland, when you fulfilled the length of residency you downloaded the form from the inter-net or got your lawyer to. You filed in the form and sent it along with other documents listed on the form to the Dept. of Justice, you then received a letter from them stating that they had received it and were starting to process it but had not completely checked it. There was no point of contact, you were never given a name and the contact number was a hotline that was only open from 9am-12pm Tuesdays and Thursdays, getting through was like finding a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow and in general all questions that you asked regarding the status of you application were answered “it’s being processed” sometimes you may get a hope giving “it’s being sent for decision” or other words like “Soon, Shortly” or “In the near future” would be used to string you along, when in reality your file was sitting on someone’s desk covered in other files and dust because it was too complicated or they didn’t like the look of you in your photo or as in my case “Ugh, it’s him again!” Bottom of the pile filed under “not in this lifetime mate” I was told in 2008 that a decision would be made on my application in two weeks time! Still waiting.
When you went to the INIS website and looked up “Citizenship” you were promised that the average time for processing applications was 23 months with some more “straightforward cases” taking less time whereas more “complicated cases” could take longer than the average, but just because it was taking longer than the average was not an indication that your case was “complicated” it was just taking longer. Plus no-one could seem to answer the question “ what makes a case complicated?”

On my first application I waited 5years for an answer and only got that by taking Minister McDowell to court to expedite his decision, I got an answer “NO”, by that time McDowell had made his changes so my only recourse was to re-apply. My next application took 2years for a decision, again I was refused because I had called McDowell “McFool” on National radio’s Gerry Ryan Show R.I.P and yet again my only recourse was to re-apply, this application is “still being processed” that application was lodged in 2007, it is now half way through 2011 by anyone’s Math that’s 4 years. So in total I have spent 5 + 2 + 4 =11 years of my life trying to be Irish.

So who does get Irish Citizenship then? Well up until quite recently it was people who couldn’t speak English, who claim social Welfare, who screw the system. The only educated people were Doctors and mostly they were only given citizenship because the Dept. was forced to due to that lack of Doctors in the Health system (that’s another days work).
I do understand that there are people who truly need to be cared for by the State but when you are foreign yourself and you hear the stories of other foreigners it can really make your blood boil at the lengths that are taken to glean every last cent that there is to be had from the State and the reasons why.

In particular I have a problem with some Iraqis that have arrived in Ireland, some recent Irish Citizens have posted their pictures on Facebook holding their spanking new Irish Passports with subtitles that say “Job: Screwing Irish Women and Fraud” in Arabic of course because he can’t speak English, where’s the gratitude I say and hang on, according to the INIS website aren’t you supposed to be of “good character” to achieve Citizenship?

Another Iraq I know of was a nobody before the invasion of Iraq in 2003, when suddenly after joining the Mehidi Militia he rose through the ranks of the Iraqi police to become a General, he lives in Ireland and every two months goes back to Iraq to take care of business and brings the money back with him. His business? Well he has admitted to killing seven Iraqi civilians himself and I have it on a recording. I provided his details to the relevant authorities in Ireland along with his photograph inside Ireland and in his official capacity in Iraq, plus his address and what did they do? They granted him refugee status.

I could go on, and on, and on.

Unfortunately it is the Irish who are and will suffer, maybe not this generation but certainly the next.

“This is a gangster movie, really,” says director Lee Tamahori

Currently shooting in Malta, The Devil’s Double tells the story of Saddam Hussein’s son Uday and his body-double Latif Yahia.

By: Leon Forde.
“This is a gangster movie, really,” says director Lee Tamahori, who wraps the film on April 10. “The story we’re telling is one of criminals operating with unbelievable amounts of money and grandeur and opulence and doing whatever the hell they like and getting away with it. And it’s also the story of an innocent, being thrust into it and forced – upon pain of death or the death of his entire family – to do something that he’d rather not do.”
Written by Michael Thomas (Backbeat) the action drama pulls no punches in its depiction of the brutality and debauchery that surrounded Uday, Saddam’s eldest son who was killed by US troops in 2003. “Even organised criminals have police that will chase them down. That wasn’t the case – this man could absolutely do whatever he wanted,” says Paul Breuls, producer of the film with Michael John Fedun, Catherine Vandeleene and Emjay Rechsteiner. Harris Tulchin is executive producer.
Power and corruption is central to the film, says Breuls. “All the rest – Saddam, his party and the war – it’s just a backdrop.”
Set in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the film stars Dominic Cooper as both Uday and his body-double. “He’s an unbelievably gifted actor,” Tamahori says of Cooper. “He’s just transformed himself into the son of Saddam Hussein – he looks hallucinatingly accurate.” The dual roles are a challenge, says Tamahori, but Cooper is “physically and mentally up for it, and he’s young and energetic.”
Ludivine Sagnier is playing Uday’s concubine in the film, based on the books by Yahia.
The $15m film is produced by Breuls’ Antwerp-based outfit Corsan. The company financed 50% of The Devil’s Double through its tax fund – set up under Belgium’s tax shelter system for corporate investors from the territory – with the remainder from Corsan and its equity partners. The Devil’s Double is the fifth film produced by Corsan under this model, with Roland Joffe’sSingularity set to shoot in India this summer. The company’s sales arm, Corsan World Sales, debuted The Devil’s Double at Berlin.
The production scouted locations in Jordan, Tunisia and Morocco before opting for Malta, which offers an incentive of up to 22% of eligible expenditure to be obtained as a cash rebate. “The Malta [incentive] is tried and trusted and solid, and it’s the EU and it’s Euro-driven and it’s very established,” Breuls explains. “And then you marry it to the fact Malta has a good infrastructure, that it has experienced crews.”

The Devil’s Double is largely using locations on the island, with a couple of weeks on stages built by the production in a rented warehouse. There will also be CG work to create the Baghdad palaces. Tamahori is shooting on the RED HD camera. “I’m very much a convert to new digital formats,” the director says. “I’ve shot commercials on the RED. I haven’t shot a feature on it but I like it a lot.”

I knew Saddam
AlJazeera English
Repeat Today

A profile of the life of Saddam Hussein, as told by the people who knew him.
Part 1

Part 2

"I was Saddam's Son" was my first book, I wrote it in 1992. It was stolen by Arcade publishing, in America. The publishers changed a lot of the content to suit the agenda of the American Government and the CIA. Unfortunately, my book was used to support the propaganda of the Administration for the invasion of Iraq in 2003.
Best regards,
Dr.Latif Yahia.

Truth Hurts!!
Latif Yahia in Trinity College Dublin-Irland

I will never stop fighting for what I believe and for the people that are going through Hell in their lives for disagreeing with what America is doing.
My book is banned because I wrote the truth about the CIA and what they did to me in the West after my flight from Iraq, the ten and a half months I spent in a covert CIA prison in Austria, and the torture I was subjected to, and this all well before anyone even heard the word "rendition". It also explains why after 18 years outside Iraq, I am still stateless, I have no country and no citizenship.
Because they tried to make me their dog like the puppets that they installed in Iraq and I refused this is why they make my life hell anywhere that I go.
The Iraqi people have lost a lot, the war in Iraq has changed them irrevocably, Iraq will never be the same again.
I decided to put my book for everyone to read for free on my blog because firstly it was nigh impossible to get in America and secondly all my proceeds from this book are going to charity, but the biggest reason I put it online is so that everyone around the world has access to it, I hope that it will open the eyes of people to the American administration and what they do in the name of the American people.
I would like to dispell the myth of America the benevolent, yes America helps other countries, to attain membership to the EU, with big business etc, but none of these things are free. America always has a price, opening the airports of a supposedly neutral country to its army for example Shannon airport in Ireland, installing missile bases, low price even free oil for 100 years being just some of its charges. America is not about humanity it is about business!
I have led an extraordinary life, I know this only too well, but my story has been manipulated also, during the run up to the invasion I was a fixture on most TV stations, I was held up as living proof of how tyrannical Saddam Hussein was, I was never allowed to speak about my life "after" Iraq. It didn't suit their agenda, when I became tired of the same ol' questions, they tried a new tack, to ask me about my life since then, my peace mission, my fight for a nationality but in the end it would always revert back to Uday, Saddam and that would be the only part that they would show, my real life, the one that I have spent nearly 18 years living is not of interest.....
I hope you enjoy reading my book,
Best regards,

Dr.Latif Yahia.
Ph.D International Law
Globel Human Rightsand Activis

Interesting article I read today

An Open Letter to Palestine :: Drop the Gun, Lift the Olive Tree, Speak to the World's Heart ::
by Mohamed Khodr
(Saturday, February 23, 2008)
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"The Arab world has failed for 60 years to liberate one inch of Palestine. It’s time for a new, different, and media based strategy."
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Peace and Freedom Be with You, God’s beloved Palestine!

No one earth can possibly imagine what our beloved Palestinians, especially those in Gaza, are enduring or feeling every day and every night of their lives under the brutal illegal and evil occupation by Israel, an Apartheid Zionist state forcibly imposed on an indigenous population by colonial powers who today proclaim themselves the guardians of democracy, freedom, human rights and the military exporters of liberty to an Arab world they mapped and installed autocratic puppeteers.

I am among the millions around the world who are pained daily by the suffering of men, women, and children in Palestine. I am more angry and in greater despair at the internal discord that is often violent amongst the already suffering Palestinians.

It is hard to imagine a competitive disaster to the occupation, but the Fatah and Hamas infighting comes close. It is hard for the world that empathizes with Palestinians, often in silence and often outside the Arab and Muslim world, to see precious Palestinian blood shed by Palestinians themselves.

Isn't the daily death and destruction committed by Israel sufficient for your minds and hearts? Must you add your guns to an occupier’s tank and missile already aimed at a child’s heart? Are you heartless and mindless too?

This is pure madness, beyond human comprehension. Israel is laughing at you all the way to the morgue, a morgue you compete with your occupier to fill.

Palestinians have never been blessed with an intelligent, savvy, military or media sophisticated leadership. I lived in Beirut during the tragic flaunting of Palestinian power that turned the Lebanese, even those who supported your cause, against the innocent Palestinian refugees far removed from the wealth and corruption of their alleged leaders and defenders.

My beloved Palestinians, you know more than anyone else on this planet that you have no one to depend on for your freedom but yourselves. The Arabs sold you , their souls, and their people for a dollar and a chair of power.

Israel and its powerful lobbies have succeeded in monopolizing the history and narrative of your existence.Neither you, nor the Arabs, nor the Muslims in the entire world have had the mindset to understand the western psyche, a psyche whose lifestyle, attitudes, and opinions are shaped by the multi-national entertainment and media industry. What comes out of the television box emanates from the western mouth the next day.

While in the west image is everything, in the Arab world pathetic hollow and grandiose lies and lip service to Islam, Muslims, and oppressed Arab and Muslim populations are the norm.

The entire Arab and Muslim world is lost given its divided subservient and dictatorial leadership. While American politicians out Jew and out-Israel each other, Arab leaders out Bush each other. To American and Arab leaders Palestine is remembered during times of political expediency such as a prospective bombing or invasion of an Arab country, or during conferences, summits, meetings, and celebratory occasions. They sell Palestine words while they sell Israel oil, protect America's interests, and buy their weapons, the same weapons that massacre our beloved Palestinians on a daily basis.

Paradoxically, while Israel has defied every U.N. Resolution and International Law, the Arabs in their impotence still adhere to such international measures as their political strategy.

How shameful that the Arabs plead and beg the very superpower that supports and arms Israel to do its killing of Arab “brethren?

Stop the bellicose speeches. Stop the charade of photo op meetings, handshakes, and smiles across Europe and the White House. Stop betraying your faith and your people for a joke of government power. None of your leaders can leave his office or home without permission from Israel or fear of being killed. How dare you imprison and torture your own people? Palestine, you have way too many political parties and militias, and for what? Rather than dedicating yourselves as one people to free Palestine from bondage you’ve all become bonded and hostages to outside influences playing you against each other for their own agenda, certainly not to your benefit.

For God’s sake, stop the internal strife. Stop the useless rockets. Just stop all these failed strategies.

First unite. Then lay down your arms and launch daily peaceful protests throughout Palestine, but without guns and the idiocy of shooting them in the air for any excuse imaginable, remove all masks, and refrain from hot blooded speeches and loud speakers. Simply carry banners of peace and flags of the U.N. Security Council nations. Invite all religious and civic leaders in Israel and in your territories to march with you.

Stop the hysterical media pronouncements that the entire Arab world is sick of. We've had enough of long meaningless speeches whose only intent is to bow and praise the useless leaders. It is incredulous that our media in the G.C.C. nations proclaim that their kings, emirs, and sultan are worthy of human sacrifice. May Allah (swt) forgive their stupidity and arrogance. Do such leaders deserve to be called Muslim leaders or is it the fault of the brainwashed demoralized masses who accept their life long hold on power?

Palestine will be liberated through intelligent strategies, peaceful protests, and a brilliant media and public relations campaign and not through the childish futile Qassam rockets or counterproductive suicide bombers.

The Arab world has failed for 60 years to liberate one inch of Palestine. It’s time for a new, different, and media based strategy. The west lives, dies, fights, buys, and elects according to media hype, the Delphi oracle of the western hemisphere.

Thus start an image campaign. Begin with a professional makeover of all governmental websites that are poorly designed and developed, usually written in poor Arabic fonts, rarely translated into proficient English, and often under eternal construction. Imagine the world's most worthy humane cause is disconnected from a world eager to know more about official Palestine.

Rarely, if any, are eloquent personalities and speakers traveling across America to present the historical and humane Palestinian perspective.

From my own observance I would highly recommend that such laudable individuals as Drs. Hanan Ashrawi, Nabil Sha'ath, and Moustapha Barghouti.

Where are the Palestinian Christian leaders? They carry the greatest weight in this country given that many American churches are struggling alone to present your story, to divest from Israel, boycott Israeli products as well as Caterpillar whose bulldozers are demolishing your homes and building extravagant Arab cities and projects.

Where are your artists, dance troupes, musicians, products such as dresses, embroidery, jewelry, and artifacts that the west so admires and needs to see?

Fifty seven Arab and Muslim Ambassadors are totally non-existent, much like ghosts, in the American media. They live for parties, receptions, photos ops and as you'll understand--Non-Islamic behavior.

You need to come here in force and populate the television and print media. Rarely does one see an op-ed or letter to the editor from a Palestinian, Arab, or Muslim leader in western newspapers or magazines.

Perhaps I’m being idealistic, far fetched, and unrealistic to hope for a new strategy for Palestine’s independence, a nation stolen under the very eyes and feet of Arabs. But what is the alternative other than the status quo?

Does anyone actually believe that this year's Bush driven to make up for Iraq peace process will amount to anything? No one should be this delusional.

Nothing is ever given by superpowers only taken. The question is the path and strategy to reclaim one’s freedom, rights, and stolen land.

In today's world, especially after 9-11 violence is dead on arrival and only peaceful protests and a media savvy campaign gets results.

I pray to God that Fatah and Hamas will see the folly of their ways and together work toward the light of independence. You both struggle for a sense of false power in a land not under your control. Yet none of you are able to feed a single hungry Palestinian child living in total darkness in Gaza who’ll awaken tomorrow to play in contaminated water and sewage.

The world supports and loves you but you must earn this love and support and not lose it through your arrogance and failed strategies. It must be said that in modern history perhaps the most misguided resistance movement has been the Palestinian movement.

To Fatah and Hamas, may God help your hungry, sick, and unemployed people if you as alleged leaders are unable to unite for the freedom and welfare of your people.

The fastest way to your independence is by talking and touching directly the hearts of the western masses and not through photo-op meetings with politicians. Western politicians are beholden to their domestic constituencies and not to any foreign cause. You must come here and impact the citizens who vote for these politicians. You’ll be pleasantly surprised at the reservoir of good will many Americans have toward Palestinians. They just need to see and hear your narrative told in a most compelling manner.

For once our beloved Palestine take the initiative from Israel, hold the upper hand and place your destine in the hands of God.

Begin by announcing to the world that you abandon all military resistance and seek a peaceful two state solution as called for in U.N. Resolution 242: 2 states-- 4--2 peoples.

Proclaim that Israel has one year until Bush's term ends to reach a final settlement based on United Nations Resolutions and the Arab League Peace Plan presented for the third time and rejected by Israel. Place the onus directly upon Israel in the court of world opinion.

If Israel fails to accept the plan after one year than for God's sake UNILATERALLY DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE. Whatever happens can’t be worst than what’s happened to you for sixty years. What else can Israel do, invade and occupy your lands?

Many in the world will fill the streets in your support beginning with the oppressed and suppressed one and a half billion Arab and Muslim masses.

Declare your independence on January 20, 2009, the day a new American President is inaugurated. A new President will have no choice but to flaunt his power to gain worldwide credibility and will halt any Israeli onslaught. There will be victims for sure but Palestine has given up thousands of its children for decades and has never achieved independence. In due time many nations from South America, to Africa and Asia, will recognize Palestine after such a dramatic and potentially risky endeavor.

The world is sick of superpower hegemony and fear of American retaliation against those who speak or act ill toward Israel. Your declaration of liberation will reverberate and liberate the world once and for all from Israel’s political hegemony and intimidation.

Do it and only fear God, not America and not Israel. The Arab leaders will react to your declaration after first checking with the new President, most likely Barack Obama.

God be with you our beloved Palestine.

Uday Hussein's double visits Israel

Latif Yahia who served as a double for Saddam Hussein's son Uday visits Israel to take part in journey to promote peace. Yahia recounts horrors of dictator's rule, says under U.S. occupation Iraq ceased to exist

Roee Mendel

Published:

03.05.06, 21:43

The man who faced the crowd of journalists wore a black suit, sunglasses and a moustache adorned his face. It was difficult to not be impressed with the tragic resemblance between Latif Yahia and Uday Hussein, the son of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein - a resemblance that dictated Yahia’s course of life. Yahia, 42, a lawyer by profession, arrived in Israel to take part in a special journey from Jerusalem to Libya organized by the Berlin-based Breaking the Ice organization, along with a group of other members from rivaling countries.

Yahia. Carries the scars

Uday Hussein. Raped and tortured his victims Photo: Al Jazeera

The group will departure from Jerusalem, and arrive in Tripoli, Libya, 5,500 kilometers away, passing through Ramallah, Jericho, Beit Shean, Amman, and the Suez Canal.
Both participants and organizers hope that the journey will help create trust and maybe help foster an atmosphere of dialogue between western and Muslim countries.

Rape, murder and torture

Yahia, who represents Iraq in the journey, says he had served in the Iraqi army during the Iran-Iraq war until he was summoned to the Presidential Palace in Baghdad one day where he was told he is to begin serving as Uday Hussein’s look-alike.
According to Yahia, Saddam Hussein himself informed him of his new role, which he said will earn him a father-son relationship with the Iraqi dictator.
Years of torture in jail, and news of his father having been poisoned by the Mukhabarat (intelligence services) were the price Yahia paid for refusing to desert his family for a fake life as Saddam Hussein’s son.
But the refusal came only after having witnessed the evil nature of Saddam’s sons whose acts of serial rape, murder and torture are no secret.
As Uday’s double, Yahia was ordered to accompany Saddam’s son for long days and nights during which he witnessed the daily crimes of a family that lacked dignity and respect for human life. Yahia recounted that when a woman caught Uday's eye, he would stop his car, shoot her companion and take her to his palace. There he would rape her, shoot her and throw her from the window.
Yahia piled his evidence of the Saddam era atrocities in two books published in the nineties. I wanted to tell all what I had seen and it was important for me that everyone knows what had happened there, Yahia explained. I never thought about making money out of this. I donated all the money to charity, he added.

The many torture scars that cover Yahia’s back are only a backdrop to the emotional symptoms of insomnia and nightmarish nights which haunt the former Iraqi soldier until this day.

"We agree on some issues, and on some we don’t. I joined this delegation to say 'enough', enough to violence and war. We're only human," he said.

Pictures of the bodies of his former boss’ sons killed in a U.S. air strike did little to comfort Yahia. I wanted both of them to stand trial, he stated. I wanted to face Uday in court, point at him, tell to the whole world of his acts, and see him sentenced for his cruelty, he said. The trial of Saddam Hussein is but a “game” that serves the propagandist agenda of the United States, Yahia said.

Once there was one Saddam, now there are millions

Fifteen years ago, Yahia was smuggled from southern to northern Iraq and then on to Turkey and Austria. American assistance in the mission saved his life as Saddam had given orders to do away with him.
But Saddam’s long hand attempted to assassinate Yahia in Austria: his wife, who turned out to be on the pay roll of the Mukhabarat, disclosed her husband’s whereabouts.

Pictures of U.S. tanks rolling down the streets of Baghdad triggered mixed emotions in Yahia. The daily violence in the war-torn country, three years after the U.S. invasion, is saddening indeed and certainly worse than the Saddam era. Today Iraq doesn’t exist. Bush’s U.S. destroyed it, he said.

Latif did not hesitate to blame the American President for the dire situation in his country. Before Bush declared war on Iraq there was one Saddam Hussein and one Bin Laden, Yahia said. Look at what’s happening today: there are a million Saddam Husseins and a million Bin Ladens, he concluded.

'I'm not anti-America, I'm anti-Bush'

"Look at what's going on in Iraq, it's a civil war. Unlike Saddam's era, there were no religions and factions. I am Sunni and my sister is married to a Shiite. It's like a death sentence. My family stays with me in Dublin, but my 30 years old brother is still there. He has been shot four times by the militias but still choose to stay there".

Despite the hard words, Yahia stressed: "I must make it clear – I am not anti-America, I am anti-Bush, and noted he has two American friends in the delegation who know how he feels.

For many years Yahia was exposed to incitement against Israel by the Iraqi media. During Saddam's era, Israel was depicted as a cruel, abusive occupier of Palestinians, he says.

"I imagined the Jews as two-headed beasts rather than humans," Yahia admits.

Still, he says he will never forget the first time he met an Israeli in Vienna.

"We befriended each other, did business together and visited each other's family," Yahia said. "He even invited me to come to Israel, but I was afraid. A lot happened since then. Today I have many friends from Israel."

The Iraqi double said that when he arrived in Israel he expected to undergo strict searches and possibly denied entry, but was allowed through without an incident while Americans around him were thoroughly screened. Yahia says he was stunned by the respectful behavior.

"Israel is amazing and I'm excited to visit here," he concluded.

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Ireland 29- Jan -2007

Latif Yahia former double of Uday Saddam Hussein and author of three books "I was Saddam's Son", "the Devil's Double" and his most recent work "The Black Hole" released on 20/11/2006 has been the recipient of unwanted attention from the American (CIA) and Irish intelligence agencies, (interrogation, threats and house raids) Mr Yahia has also had his Yahoo! Account deactivated in the past week by Yahoo! (e-mail, website, groups, videos, anything that showed America in a true light) without any notification or comment. It would seem that although his parallel life with Uday Saddam Hussein ceased 15 years ago, that he would still be treated in the same manner as the "Devil" himself. (Yahoo! Saw fit to close Uday Saddam Hussein's account in 2001).
Mr Yahia has always been aware that the publication of his latest work would cause a ripple through the Intelligence services of the USA as it highlighted their covert actions in Europe under the façade of Democracy, but felt somewhat confident that Ireland although it had a strong bond with America would honour it's European partnership.
It seems that this was not to be the case as the current Minister for Justice Mr. Michael McDowell denied Mr. Yahia's application for citizenship again on 17/01/2007.( after release of "the Black Hole" and subsequent media attention) (Please find a copy of letter of refusal attached) It stated in this letter that the denial was at "the sole discretion of the Minister", since his induction as Minister for Justice, Mr. McDowell has changed many laws in particular the laws of immigration/naturalisation, he has repealed the right of appeal against a negative decision. He has ceased the post-nuptial declaration of citizenship (effective 30/11/05) and has not signed into Law the Antiracism legislation which is in effect throughout Europe. Mr Yahia has lived in Ireland with his Irish wife and children, they have taken into their home Mr Yahia's mother, his niece Chimin 11 and his nephew Latif 9, the children's mother was killed at the beginning of the "War on Iraq 2003" during "Shock and Awe" when their home was hit by an American bomb, the children escaped with some injuries, Latif needed surgery on his eyes after they were peppered with splinters of glass during the explosion. Although Mr Yahia did not wish for his mother, niece and nephew to go through the asylum process in Ireland, there was unfortunately no other way that he could secure their future here and as yet it is not secure. It has been over a year since the application for asylum was made for Bahar Yahia( 67) and the two children and the initial refusal from the Refugee commission, since then Mr Yahia and his mother have undergone DNA tests in a bid to assure the Refugee Tribunal of their Maternal relationship but it is in vain.
Although Mr. Yahia's life story is recognised Internationally as being true and has been corroborated by International dignitaries and the CIA themselves, it seems that the Irish government do not wish to believe that Mr, Yahia's mother would be under threat if she were to return live in Iraq.
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