The elegant villa in the Jordanian capital’s upmarket Abdoun district belies the tumultuous history of Raghad Saddam. The oldest daughter of deposed Iraqi dictator, Saddam Hussein, Raghad was once his favorite. Growing up in Saddam’s palaces, she was a quiet girl, very different from her notorious brothers Uday and Qusay.
Married to Hussein Kamel, she fled to Jordan in 1995 with her husband. When Kamel returned to Iraq, Saddam had him killed, making his daughter a widow at a young age.
Eight years later, war once again ravaged her country, and her friends, relatives and two brothers were killed while her father was captured.
Only the small army of security guards surrounding her home in this leafy part of town, built from Amman’s distinctive limestone, bespeaks Raghad’s dramatic background.
Sayidaty: I saw lots of security guards around here; are you afraid that you might be a target for assassination?
I travel with security guards, but I am not afraid. I have been in many dangerous situations in my life. The last time was during the last war before the fall of Baghdad. Coalition forces said that they had a target, and that target was me. The place where I was hiding was hit moments after I left. My parents were not with me at that time. We had to stay away from each other because of security reasons. My brothers Uday and Qusay took care of security arrangements.
Would you like to go back to Iraq?
Iraq is my country. If I had the chance I would go back immediately, but I am afraid that what happened to prisoners in Abu Ghraib prison would happen to me.
Could you tell us about your education?
I graduated from Mustansereya University in Baghdad, majoring in English translation in 1990. I worked as assistant manager of a girls’ school. Most of students are from our family and our tribe. But after I’d been working for a year I developed a voice problem and my doctor advised me to quit my job. Not many people knew about my job because we were so isolated.
Did your father allow you to get involved in politics?
No, we were kept away from politics. We met our father at lunch, and then we only talked about family matters. My father made sure that we stayed away from politics and did not get involved.
Did you expect that your father would invade Kuwait?
No, it was very surprising to us. We didn’t see it coming at all.
How did you receive the news of your father’s arrest?
I was in Al-Nadwa in Amman when I heard about it. My sister Hala called me to confirm the news. She was stronger than me — I completely fell apart.
Have you had any letters from your father?
Yes, one letter of six lines; three of them had been erased. He said to pass on his regards to the family and to the people of Iraq and that his spirits were high.
Talk to us about the most difficult situation that you have been through.
Two experiences stand out: The death of my husband, and the loss of my country. I did not expect that my husband would be killed, else we would never have come back to Iraq. We left Iraq because of a family dispute involving my husband and my brother Uday. I tried to convince my husband not to leave because I knew he could not bear to stay away from Iraq. One month after we left he began feeling tired and lost some weight; that is when we decided to go back to Iraq.
How was your relationship with your father after the murder of your husband?
He was very angry with me because he never expected his oldest and favorite daughter to run away like that. My relationship with my mother was normal. However, I had a furious row with my sister Hala because her husband took part in my husband’s murder. After two years, our relationship returned to normal because she is compassionate and kind. We have become very close.
How do you spend your days?
I wake up and go to sleep early. I have my breakfast and watch the morning news. Then I do some exercise, attend to the details of running a household. I stay with my children until they finish their homework. I don’t go out at night; usually, I stay home reading or surfing the Internet. I hate staying up late, even when my friends visit me. I go to sleep around 11 p.m., sometimes even before my children. I keep a diary as well.
How would you describe your childhood?
I had a very loving, stable upbringing. I remember whenever my mother visited Europe, my father would insist that we sleep next to him, and he would take us with him wherever he went. He taught us how to swim in the Tigris River, encouraging us to reach the other bank and swimming behind us to make sure that we got across safely.
I remember my father at home when we woke up early in the morning. He went to work and came back in the afternoon to eat lunch with us, then took a nap.
After working through the evening, he would come back at night for dinner. He always made sure that my mother was at home when he came back; he loved and respected my mother and he made sure that he did not upset her.
