iraq

Finito

This is a piece I wrote about The Devil’s Double for The Guardian last weekend. I’m flattered someone took the time to set up, not one, but two comment accounts to defend Latif Yahia and his Walter Mitty-esque memoirs. But most of all, I’m glad that this is the last time I’ll be mentioning his name, here or anywhere else.

I’M AN IDEAS MAN

Ideas are my currency. If I’m in a clothes shop and I find a pair of pants I like, I’ll walk up to the counter and suggest the names of some songs that might make good ringtones. For two weeks in the Canaries I’d probably stump up the basis for a workable post-war settlement in Iraq. If I’m owed change, I’ll ask the travel agent how he gets the pistachios out of the closed shells and be on my way. That’s how it works. Read the rest of this entry here.

Road to Oslo paved with good intentions, apparently

The decision, announced within the last hour, to award Barack Obama the Nobel Peace Prize is an utterly baffling one. In fact, I assumed it was a joke when I first heard about it. I like the guy. And I like what he’s trying to do. But he hasn’t accomplished any of it yet. So they’re honouring him for having good intentions. Hey, Nobel prize committee – I got good intentions! Where’s my award? Read the rest of this entry »

HUSSEIN IN THE MEMBRANE [UPDATED]

Recently, I received an interesting email concerning my interview with Dr Latif Yahia, a.k.a. “Saddam’s son”, the controversial, Irish-based Iraqi exile fêted by RTE, BBC, CNN and Fox News. It comes from his ex-wife. “Hi Eoin, just had a read of your blog – very funny!” she writes. “I read your article with ‘Dr’ Latif Yahia and I’d just like to say fair play to you for seeing right through him. Let me point out a couple of things…” Read the rest of this entry »

THIS IS FUNNY

The Colbert Report has just begun a week of shows from one of Saddam Hussein’s former palaces in Iraq. To celebrate, here’s a random pick from the archives: Colbert quizzing Wyoming congresswoman Cynthia Lummis about the Equality State’s burgeoning cougar population.

SMOKE & MIRRORS

When someone’s welcomed you into their home, and introduced you to their family, its awkward having to confess to them that you don’t really believe a word they’re saying. It’s a trickier proposition still, when the person in question is Dr. Latif Yahia. The 42-year-old is best known as the author of I Was The Devil’s Double – a sensational account of his life as a fidi (or body double) for Saddam Hussein’s psychotic son Uday. More recently, his quest for an Irish passport has brought him a new nemesis in Tanaiste and Minister for Justice Michael McDowell.
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