Saddam Hussein’s secret daughter, the arrogance of the Houthis who plundered her and the honor of a desert tribe that pledged to protect her in exchange for a lock of her hair. It sounds like an Arabian fairy tale, the latest version of “One Thousand and One Nights”, but in fact it is a story that risks opening another conflict in the troubled Yemen and becoming an international issue. The protagonist is a 34-year-old woman who declares that she is Mira Saddam Hussein al-Majid, the daughter of the Baghdad dictator. When Iraq was preparing to be attacked by the Americans in 2003, her father allegedly sent her to Yemen and entrusted her protection to the then president, Ali Abdullah Saleh. There, to avoid reprisals, she would have taken on a false identity: Sumaya Al-Zubairi.
Of course, the former Iraqi leader had not left her without financial resources, and she grew up in a luxurious palace in the upper part of the capital Sana’a, with a garden and every comfort. This “golden exile” ended with the arrival of the Houthis, the fundamentalist Shiite militia that took control of the country. At the beginning of the year, the new rulers seized the residence, jewelry, money and, according to the woman’s complaint, even a diplomatic passport in her real name.
Like her father, the Iraqi princess sought help from the only ones who could stand up to injustice: she turned to Hamad bin Fadgham Al-Hazmi, leader of the Bani Nawf tribe, part of the powerful Dham clan in the northern regions. According to tribal law, she made her sacred request by handing over a lock of her long black hair.
There is also a video that captures the scene, filmed in a tent covered with luxurious carpets. It shows the so-called Mira Hussein in an elegant black dress and a sequined hijab as she hands over a lock of hair to the tribal leader. The man, with the dagger symbol of the sheikh’s rank at his belt and a Kalashnikov in his hand, solemnly promises to defend her rights. The Houthis reacted with a decisive and immediate move: a month ago they arrested both the woman and her protector. This act prompted the entire clan to declare “Nakaf,” a collective armed mobilization. The fighters gathered in camps in the desert, organized patrols on the streets, and declared themselves ready to march on the capital if the two were not released by today’s deadline.
The issue quickly became a state issue, as it called into question the credibility of the Shiite militias, accused of being “dishonorable and disrespectful” predators. The Interior Ministry intervened with a propaganda campaign. The authorities installed by the Houthis claim that the woman is lying: according to them, a DNA test has proven that she has no Iraqi roots.
According to the official version, her real name is Sumaya Ahmed Mohammed Issa Al-Zubairi, born in the Hebra neighborhood of the capital, while her family comes from the Arhab area. To prove this, experts from the Criminal Police Directorate are said to have carried out genetic tests on ten siblings, as well as on her parents: her real father would be a welder and not the former leader of Baghdad. The ministry goes further, stating that the woman has been married many times and has carefully prepared her “appearance”. It also threatens with severe penalties anyone who spreads false information.
In the climate of ongoing tension under Houthi rule, there has also been widespread speculation that Saudi Arabia may have helped stage the incident, by faking the video of the handover of the lock of hair. But the answer came with another video, in which the woman insists that she is a victim of injustice: “I will not give up my rights and my family lineage, even if they cut off my head… I am stubborn like my father.”
The Dham clan revolt is not dying down. Yesterday, on the eve of the ultimatum’s expiration, state television broadcast footage of a special forces column heading towards one of the tribal camps. It is not yet clear whether the aim was to confront the rebels or block the road to the capital. Like many tales, Mira’s story also tells a truth: the pressure of the Houthis to limit the autonomy of the clans, still very powerful especially in the northern regions. But this time the Shiite militias must also face the shadow of Saddam Hussein, who continues to remain a popular figure in the Arab world, as he is considered by many to be the only one who opposed American imperialism. (The Republic)