00:00:00.000Within the next 15 seconds, you're probably going to say this is one of the most unique interviews we've ever had on Valuetainment, and here's why.
00:00:06.560My guest today is Latif Yahya, who is known, he's living his own life right now, doing his thing, but prior to this, he lived a very interesting life.
00:00:15.760One day, he gets a knock on the door by his classmate, who happens to be Saddam Hussein's son, Uday, and he says, I want you to be my double.
00:00:26.360And he says, what do you mean double? He says, I want you to be my double.
00:00:28.940He turns them down at first, and then he's going to tell you what happens next.
00:00:32.240There was a book written about us saying, I was Saddam's son, a movie that I watched the moment it came out in 2011 called The Devil's Double.
00:00:40.080With that being said, my guest today, Latif Yahya.
00:00:43.100Latif, thank you so much for being a guest on Valuetainment.
00:03:11.540And so, in 1979 is when he became a president.
00:03:15.260So, when you said you were in high school with Oday, what year was that?
00:03:18.420Uh, up till, I finished my university in 1987, four years before that, or four and a half years, yeah.
00:03:30.580So, he was, he was already president, he was already a powerful man, he was already, you know, had a reputation, and, uh, for some that don't know, I mean, this is, before we go into that angle, one of the things I want to know from you is, even prior to him being a president, I'm from Iran, so I have had to study a lot of Saddam Hussein, because, you know,
00:03:48.420I was born in 78, so if I'm born 78, four months before the Shah went in exile, October of 78, you know my lifeline.
00:03:57.700I stayed there till, uh, 1989, so I was there for the whole war between Iran and Iraq, it wasn't the prettiest thing.
00:04:03.220But, who was Saddam Hussein before he became president and vice president, way before that?
00:04:10.380Saddam Hussein, he was, uh, head of, we say, intelligence service.
00:04:17.420At that time, they call it Hanin, what this was, protecting Ba'at party, and because of his background, and he is very clever person, you know, because we can't deny that, but, uh, he be, he been elected by Ba'at party to start, what's called intelligence service,
00:04:39.140and he named it Hanin, Hanin means, something is very hard to explain, but anyway, he become the head of intelligence service of Ba'at party before all this happened.
00:04:52.660And they was assassinate, all these people would not belong to them, or against them, or do stuff against Ba'at party, till he become a vice president.
00:05:05.320So, he was known as someone that, some called him a hit man, some called him a vicious man, some called him a fearless man, but he was, he was feared amongst people way before he got into politics, would you agree with that?
00:05:21.320I agree with that, because this is his story, and he, he, he himself, he was saying that, I start this, and I start that, and, uh, he was saying always, this chair,
00:05:34.280that didn't come easy to me, it was something, uh, we did with our colleagues, with our brothers, to get to this power.
00:05:45.140Okay, so now let's fast forward, you're in high school, you were there, you make, draw this painting, he sees it, he likes it, were you guys best friends, or were you just classmates when he first saw this?
00:05:54.780Classmate, classmate, I can't say it, because I didn't like it, from day one, he arrived to my class, in Pacific, you know, first of all, uh, he was coming with his Porsche, he was a teenager, and he have a Porsche, yellow Porsche, very stupid color, yellow, it's not even normal color,
00:06:17.380and, uh, with painting, I was, uh, this is my hobby, I was playing basketball, and he come and put his car, where it's the basketball place, you know, he don't let anybody play basketball, he don't, he harassed anybody, at the time, we have this, you know, uh,
00:06:38.380we're talking 70s, and beginning 80s, these Afro hair, you know, big hairs, and he have really big, big hair, you know, and, uh, he come on two, three security with him, always just stand up around, when he come to the class, because he was taller of us, he was sitting in the back,
00:07:03.520and two people sit, and two people sit, one here, and one here, and one beside him, write for him, all the teachers, say, he don't do anything, uh, this was his, uh, attention in the class, but I can't deny it, he was very, very clever.
00:07:24.640So, he was also clever like his father, interesting.
00:07:27.540He's very clever, he's very clever, but in a mean, mean way.
00:07:33.940Yeah, and he don't like to see somebody higher of him, or clever more on him, or answer the teacher in a good way, he'd be really upset, because he think he's a bigger person, he's a more powerful, even with that, he have so much jealousy inside him, I don't know, after I, we met, and sit, and I understand why he was suffering from that.
00:08:01.920What was he, did he have a reputation even then in high school, as somebody who was ruthless, or he hadn't developed a reputation yet?
00:08:10.840In the beginning, in the beginning, he was very shy, to be fair, he was very, very shy, but the second year start, all the exaggeration stuff, because, you know,
00:08:24.260as you are from Middle East, and we are neighbor, you know, as a school separate, boys and girls, you know, only in university, but as a boy school, he come in with a girlfriend,
00:08:42.180who was the closest school for a girl beside us, he picked his girlfriend, and come to the school, with his girlfriend, sitting in class, and one of the teachers, he asked him, you know,
00:08:55.220you're not allowed to do that, you know, please take this girl out of here, anyway, we didn't, never saw the teacher anymore, I don't know what's happened to him.
00:09:08.180Also, when the teacher told to take the girl out, you never saw the teacher ever again?
00:09:12.400Yeah, we never saw him, after he left the class, I don't know where he disappeared.
00:09:17.400Got it. So that was one mistake right there, telling him he couldn't have girlfriends there. So, did you, but did you hear stories with him? Like, even when you went to high school, did you see him fighting? Did you see him killing yet?
00:09:31.420Did you see him doing anything yet during high school? Was there any signs yet?
00:09:35.060No. Killing? No. Fight, we can say, in a mean way, yeah, he always pushing people like that, but he always have a gun, small gun, magnum, he always carry with him, in a school, in a high school, you know, you can't have a gun, but he come and he's always put it in his pocket, or he put it in, he have a cover or a gun beside his leg,
00:10:02.740and he sometimes play with it like that, you know. There's a lot of people, especially in the school, was want to be close to him because he's the power, and you know, us Middle East, people like power, people like that.
00:10:21.080At the time, you know, my family's, the rich family, and no one in Baghdad, I have a car, too, in this age.
00:10:31.840But it wasn't a Porsche, you know, we can't say Porsche, or like, there's something, just my dad, he bought it for me, and in this age, you can't have even a car.
00:10:42.120I don't have even a license, but something, you know, this, you know, Middle Eastern business people do the fantasy, okay, my son, he's underage, but he's driving a car, you know.
00:10:59.740Yeah, I did. My first car was a ladder, but at the time, we're talking 70s, ladder was something when it came to Iraq, and especially this ladder was a story.
00:11:09.680In 1979, when the Iraq football won something champion, the president, Ahmad Hassan al-Bakr, he imported from Russia or Soviet Union, because he's made there, ladder, for a footballer, as a present, as a gift.
00:11:29.920And when the first car has been sold, my dad bought it for me on my birthday, and was ladder, you know, wow, you know, somebody have a ladder.
00:11:41.380And the life went, till we finish school, I get a good degree and good numbers.
00:11:51.100My dream was, really, up till now, in this age, my dream to be an engineer.
00:11:58.980I like to be an engineer, civil engineer, building these houses and luxury.
00:12:03.740I still, till in this age, even I didn't go to University of Engineering, I still drawing, you know, how I do.
00:12:12.400I designed all my house, how many houses I have in Europe, I designed all my houses, how I like it.
00:12:21.100And, when I went to University, I saw that he's applied there, I said, I'm not spending another four or five days with this idiot.
00:12:35.080I went to the law, something absolutely out of the numbers I get.
00:12:40.100I can be an MD or an engineer, or the numbers I get.
00:12:44.660But, I went to the law, it's very classy, I say, okay, we go to the law, finish my degree, and, at the time, you know, was Iraq-Iran war.
00:12:59.680They need soldiers, they need officers, they need...
00:13:02.640By Iraqi law, when you finish school or university, or you don't go to school, must you do the army things, you know.
00:13:11.660At the time, uh, when you are educated, university and like that, they give you a rank of officer on your shoulder.
00:13:21.980But, if you don't have any, you'll be just soldier.
00:13:25.820Because I was tall, and at the time, you know, healthy and muscles and like that, they picked me to be a commandos.
00:13:33.260Because, you know, we went to the commandos, training six months, straight away to the war.
00:13:40.940We was in a battle, you know, us Iranian, it was a shame to two nations to be fighting each other for no reason.
00:13:49.980Up till now, I fight, and I'm left nearly 30 years out, until now, I don't know why we fight.
00:13:57.260You know, I don't understand, what's happened between these two countries, because our relation, when the Shah was, was different from when the Khomeini came.
00:14:10.460Uh, us, I hear, because my dad, he was going holiday to Iran in the Shah time, he was saying this parish of Middle East is so nice, so this and that.
00:14:22.220Um, but you know, politics change and the stuff was changed, and Khomeini come and, we start hate each other, war start and, you know, war is not a fun thing, is not something to enjoy.
00:14:37.980No matter, no matter what you do, it's not a fun place to go.
00:14:44.900And, uh, I was seeing, you know, front of me my soldier be killed, I've been injured several times.
00:14:51.280uh i see iranian dead i see iraqi dead but all was the question in my head why we are here
00:15:02.880you know in my head i was more open in politics but in my head my father he hate politics
00:15:11.200he said don't talk politics don't say anything you know even the world have
00:15:15.360ear to hear you in iraq and this is the problem with me even my father was saying to me you don't
00:15:23.600listen you have a stone head what in your head you heard you do it i was sitting for example in a
00:15:31.360bunker and the night sometime peaceful is not two or three hours no shut hearing no bombing no nothing
00:15:39.040i think with myself i have a candle and two soldier three soldiers and i say to them why we are here
00:15:49.040why i was saying loudly to them and they were terrified because the similarity at the time
00:15:56.000between us and the shape of our face look like more i am related to this family especially the creed and
00:16:05.200al-oja all similar face thick mustache and all that when i was saying to them look we are brothers here
00:16:14.480don't look at my ring don't look at i'm officer but i'm asking you also human us iraqi why we are here
00:16:21.600why we don't see oh they and cosi the other son fighting here they terrified they don't know what
00:16:28.800they answered because they think i am one of them and i'm spying for example or but anyway one day
00:16:40.240my general called me you know we are on a front line it was like between us 600 meters no more on that
00:16:47.280between the first line with the iranians uh he called we have a you know like a radio it's common called
00:16:55.920dracal i like the sir is you know the general i said okay he said you come in now we leave everything
00:17:04.560you come in now at the time was like a lot of water around us they sent a small boat to us and
00:17:11.520bring the and we won i want he say what did you do love it i say i didn't do anything sir he
00:17:20.640say look at this letter coming from class i say which palace he said how many palace and you like
00:17:27.920the republic palace i look at the letter and you know must be that on the you know let it come in
00:17:36.560in 72 hours to the palace and like that anyway i took my car and i want i want it's like a it's like a
00:17:47.520reception i give the letter i say just sit there uh i wait like 10 15 minutes um another guy come in
00:18:02.640they put me in a car dark you can't see anything car is going around and there and left and right and i
00:18:10.640don't know where is going and then i was in front of palace shape the door like a eagle
00:18:18.880and here i want inside and somebody come to me and stay here one second sir okay
00:18:29.280there the doors open are they front of me how are you my friend how are you keeping
00:18:38.480this is today today is in front of you this is saddam's son that's in front of you yeah okay and i
00:18:44.640look at him and i said i'm good they say well done what you doing you have a few medals now and
00:18:54.160you're a good fighter and all these reports coming about you on this and that and sit down and he bring
00:19:01.920a cigar for me and he just clicked something and orange juice coming and fruit on the table and dies
00:19:12.320oh it's a long old days and start talking and i say to make it short to you