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Palestinian Refugee Recounts to Asharq Al-Awsat Desperate Attempts to Leave Lebanon

Children play at a Palestinian refugee camp in Beirut, Lebanon on 1 September 2018
Children play at a Palestinian refugee camp in Beirut, Lebanon on 1 September 2018
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Palestinian Refugee Recounts to Asharq Al-Awsat Desperate Attempts to Leave Lebanon

Children play at a Palestinian refugee camp in Beirut, Lebanon on 1 September 2018
Children play at a Palestinian refugee camp in Beirut, Lebanon on 1 September 2018

A Palestinian refugee recalled his arduous ordeals to leave Lebanon to a country that “respects human rights.”

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, the refugee, 22, displayed his tattoo-covered arm, which tells the story of his fruitless attempts to quit a country that has plunged him in despair.

The refugee, who went by the name of “Adam”, explained that difficult conditions in Lebanon forced him to turn to human traffickers.

“I have become an expert in these brokers. I know more than a hundred,” he said, playing the voice recording of one who asked for 1,200 dollars in return for a plane ticket and authorization from the Turkish embassy.

Adam’s first attempt to leave Lebanese started in late 2016.

At the time, a broker said he could secure him a visa to Sudan and later Libya for 2,500 dollars. The refugee only had 2,000 to his name and resorted to borrowing 1,500. He gave the broker a 200-dollar down payment, but no sooner had he done so that the trafficker disappeared.

His second attempt took him to Libya with the hope of eventually reaching Turkey and then Greece. In order to leave Lebanon, he had to head to the northern city of Tripoli to take a voyage on the “boats of death” that were headed to Europe. He paid 2,000 dollars for the risky trip, but intelligence forces arrested him and 45 other Palestinians, several Tripolites and ten youths from Bangladesh before they could leave.

They later discovered that one of the would-be travelers was in fact an informant. They were released a day after being interrogated by authorities. An influential figure in the Ain al-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp in southern Lebanon had intervened to ensure their release and the case was closed.

Adam revealed that he intensified his efforts to leave following the first two failed attempts. He recalled how he considered working with one broker, “known as the chief of traffickers with his own security entourage and who is given a warm welcome at the airport.”

“I never saw him in person, but only spoke to him by phone. He demands 11,000 dollars for his services,” he added. He revealed that he was an expert at trafficking youths under the age of 18 whereby he disguises them as a sports team or part of an orchestra to escape suspicions at the airport.

“I then worked with a Libyan broker and another Lebanese one,” continued Adam. One of them was part of former Libyan leader Moammar al-Gaddafi’s security entourage. He asked 6,000 dollars in return for taking him to Sweden.

“I paid him 4,500 dollars in advance and was set to pay the rest when I arrived in Sweden,” he told Asharq Al-Awsat. He stalled for three months and then suggested that he take me to Ethiopia and from there, Sweden.

He arrived in the African country through a counterfeit travel document. “At Addis Ababa airport, I was received by an officer who took the document and 2,000 dollars and then disappeared,” said Adam.

“I spent six nights at the airport. The broker managed to secure the return of my travel document, along with a threat and order to keep silent and travel to Ghana,” he said.

At Accra airport, he was received by another broker, this time from Sudan, and a Ghanaian officer, who asked for 1,000 dollars. Adam was taken to a tiny hotel room near the Swedish embassy. He spent 25 days there as the Lebanese and Sudanese brokers suggested that it was easier for him to travel to Ecuador through Madrid.

“I was barred from boarding the plane because I did not have a visa. I was forced to go back to the hotel. I was broke and in despair. Were it not for some friends who transferred a few dollars, I would have starved,” Adam said.

The final hope was departing to Istanbul and later take a connection flight to Spain to reach Ecuador.

He arrived safely in Istanbul, but was stopped from boarding the Spain flight because he did not have the travel document dedicated to Palestinian refugees.

“The plane left without me. I stayed at the airport. I could not enter Turkey and was barred from traveling anywhere else,” stated Adam. “At the airport, I discovered that I was not alone. I met Palestinians, Syrians, Afghanis and others. Some had been staying at the airport prayer room for seven months.”

After three days and enough pressure on a Lebanese broker, Adam was promised a flight to Sudan. From there, he would cross into Libya through its unforgiving desert. Indeed, he arrived in Khartoum with 15 dollars in his pocket. He was met by a Syrian, but abandoned by the broker.

“I remained in Khartoum for 40 days and exhausted my options to borrow money from my friends. I tried to find a job, but to no avail,” he added. He cited the low salaries of no more than 50 dollars per month. He met other people suffering from the same plight and “we ended up sharing our misery, bread and strength.”

Eventually, Adam managed to return to Lebanon where he sought to find the broker who had taken the 4,500 dollars from him, but there was no trace of him.

“I returned to Sidon and imprisoned myself in my room for months as I wallowed in my depression,” he said.

“I am still looking for a way to escape to a country that respects human rights.”

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Jamal Mustafa: Saddam and Other Iraqi Officials Headed to the Gallows with Heads Held High

Jamal Mustafa al-Sultan. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Jamal Mustafa al-Sultan. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Jamal Mustafa: Saddam and Other Iraqi Officials Headed to the Gallows with Heads Held High

Jamal Mustafa al-Sultan. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Jamal Mustafa al-Sultan. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saddam Hussein’s entourage never expected that they would one day find themselves in jail. It never occurred to them that the American military machine would use all of its might to oust Saddam’s regime and overthrow the ruling party and army. They never believed that forces allied to Iran would assume positions of power in the new regime.

Times changed and Saddam, who controlled the fate of the nation and its people, found himself in prison where he counted the days until his execution. The man was unyielding until his last breath and his will remained unbroken.

The men who made up the Revolutionary Command Council or government soon found themselves in prison. They were interrogated by the Americans and Iraqis and a death sentence was always going to be their fate.

In the second installment of his interview to Asharq Al-Awsat, Dr. Jamal Mustafa al-Sultan, late Iraqi President Saddam Hussein’s son-in-law and second secretary, recalled the execution of his colleagues and relatives. He also recalled how he married Hala, the youngest of Saddam’s daughters, and how the late president acted around his family, away from state affairs.

Other officials who were held along with Saddam included “Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan, my uncle and member of the Revolutionary Command Council Ali Hussein al-Majid, my other uncle Abed Hassan al-Majid, head of the Revolutionary Command Council Awad al-Bandar, Saddam’s half-brother Barzan Ibrahim al-Hassan, Secretary Abed Hammoud and aide to the intelligence chief Farouk Hijazi,” said Mustafa.

He showed Asharq Al-Awsat a video that recently came to light of Khodair al-Khozaei, the former vice president during the American occupation. “In it, he said that he saw no justification for the death sentence against Abed Hammoud. Most dangerous of all, he confessed that he visited Iran and consulted with a judicial official, who encouraged him to sign the death sentence, which he did,” added Mustafa.

“The truth is that we sensed from the beginning that our trial was a means of revenge acting at Iran’s orders. One day, Abed Hammoud was informed that he was going to be moved to hospital and later that day the guards informed us that he was executed,” he continued.

“Mr. President (Saddam) expected to be executed. The truth is that his very existence, whether in jail or otherwise, was a source of concern for them. I can firmly attest that the members of the leadership bravely faced their death sentence. None of them showed any weakness or faltered,” he revealed.

He recalled the day they informed Barzan and Awad that they were going to be executed. “I was working out with al-Bandar when we received the news. I am not exaggerating when I say that he maintained his optimism even in that moment. They were executed the next day. Days later, I learned that Abed Hassan al-Majid, Farouk Hijazi and Hadi Hassan, an intelligence officer, were executed,” Mustafa said.

“Let me tell you what used to happen. One day, they came up with false charges that before the US occupation, I gave Mr. Khamis al-Khanjar (a Sunni politician) a sum of 250,000 dollars. Of course, the charge is baseless. They told me that I would remain in jail for life if I did not confess to the charge. I refused and told them that I enjoyed normal relations with Khanjar,” he went on to say.

“They later came up with a different scenario. They told me that they would take me to the Iraqi embassy in Jordan if I confessed to the charge and that I would late be released in Amman with a hefty sum of money. I told them that I would reject whatever they have to offer because I would not abandon my values to betray Khanjar, who was a friend,” he stated.

“They later accused me of complicity in the draining of the Mesopotamian Marshes, which I had nothing to do with,” he added.

Saddam Hussein with his daughter Hala in this undated photo. (Getty Images)

First call after Saddam’s execution

Mustafa recalled the first telephone call he had with his wife Hala and her mother, Sajida Khairallah Talfah, right after Saddam’s execution. “Five days after Mr. President’s martyrdom, I contacted my family. I spoke with my wife, and she was in very good spirits. She had very high faith and patience. I asked her about her mother, and she reassured me that she was also doing very well despite the pain,” he said.

“I pray that Gold Almighty will give her health and a long life. We have always derived our strength from her. My mother-in-law lost her two sons, Uday and Qusay, and then her husband. She had played a major role in supporting her husband from the beginning of his struggle. She always used to support him and stood by him throughout his career,” he remarked.

First meetings with Saddam

Mustafa recalled the early days of his meeting with Saddam. “They started when I began working for his special guard. That was when I first met him. Like most Iraqis and Arabs, I believed that he would be a difficult person, but the truth is that I saw him as a paternal figure,” he added. “When you work with him, you begin to develop a different opinion than the public impression. He was a very paternal figure.”

During their first meeting, they learned that they came from the same tribe and were distant cousins.

“I stayed by Mr. President’s side for around 20 years. I started off as part of his personal guard and he then tasked me with people’s affairs, meaning seeing to their needs and addressing their problems. He was very concerned with the people’s affairs and refused any one of them to be wronged. The truth is that many laws were amended or changed at the time following complaints from the people,” he revealed.

“There were two telephones at Mr. President’s office, and both were connected to my office. Whoever had a problem could call the president through the citizens’ line. I used to answer their calls and listen to their problems and set an appointment with the president. Sometimes I used to ask the caller to come in person with their request so that their problem could be tackled. Sometimes Mr. President would interject on the call to ask about the issue and would request to talk to the citizen on the line,” Mustafa said.

“He would listen to the person’s grievance and tell him to head to the dedicated office to tackle the issue. (...) So we used to receive hundreds of citizens every week to solve their problems. Mr. President was very concerned about these issues,” he stressed. “I have never met another person like him. He would listen, care and then come up with a solution.”

President’s son-in-law

Asharq Al-Awsat asked Mustafa about when he asked Hala to marry him. “It was in 1994. As is the tradition in Iraq, I headed with my uncles to Saddam’s family to ask her hand in marriage,” he said. “One of my uncles made the request to Mr. President on my behalf and he agreed and welcomed it.”

“A judge was summoned immediately for the ceremony, and we were married. We had lunch at the president’s house that same day. I first met Hala on September 12, and we were married on September 26. It was a short engagement in line with tradition.”

“Mr. President used to separate state affairs from his relationship with his family. His work was completely separate from family, which had nothing to do with political or state affairs. It never intervened in those issues. Mr. President was a man of state when he was doing his job, and a father when he came home. He treated his family as if he were its father – the perfect father. Every family wishes to have a father that can measure up to him because he looked after all of his children and all of his relatives,” Mustafa said.

“When he sat down to the dinner table, he himself used to serve his own food and ask his children about their day. He would serve them food and generally cared very much for them. The state is one thing and family is another. At the same time, he acted as a father to all Iraqis. He treated them fairly. This is Saddam Hussein,” stressed Mustafa. “He was always keen that Iraqis be treated justly and that none of them be wronged. He was also very firm with his children if they made any mistake.”

Saddam’s hobbies

Saddam was a “very traditional Arab man. He loved traditional Arab and Iraqi dishes. He himself used to cook his own version of the traditional Iraqi dish al-Habeet. (...) He also loved seafood and would cook the Masgouf fish dish himself,” Mustafa told Asharq Al-Awsat.

His hobbies included horseback riding, hunting, swimming and sharpshooting. “Occasionally, before heading to the front to fight against Iran, he would visit the al-Amarah region, where gazelle and geese are abundant, to hunt. As circumstances became more challenging, he limited himself to fishing, which he did regularly,” he added.

He was a skilled shooter from his youth. “Generally, growing up in a tribe, children are taught at a young age how to become a good shooter. This is part of our upbringing. He was also an avid reader. He was always reading something,” Mustafa said of Saddam.