Third Regiment: Memoirs of an Iraqi Prisoner of War Doctor – 5
By Mojtaba al-Hosseini
Translated into Farsi by: Mohammad Hossein Zavar Kabeh
Translated into English by: M.B. Khoshnevisan
2025-11-17
Third Regiment: Memoirs of an Iraqi Prisoner of War Doctor – 5
By Mojtaba al-Hosseini
Translated into Farsi by: Mohammad Hossein Zavar Kabeh
Translated into English by: M.B. Khoshnevisan
***
Of course. Here is the translation from Persian to American English, rendered in a formal, analytical tone suitable for a historical or political context.
6-Forced migration of Shias to Iran
In 1980, the Ba'athist regime of Iraq expelled thousands of Iraqi families to Iran, claiming that they were of Iranian origin and responsible for numerous acts of sabotage in Iraq. This deportation was carried out with extraordinary cruelty and brutality. A large number of innocent people were arrested and imprisoned, and their movable and immovable property was confiscated. Women, the elderly, and children were then transported to the Iranian border in several military vehicles and forced to cross into Iran on foot. The young men were sent to prisons. As a result, some members of these families remained in Iraq while others settled in Iran. At that time, the pro-Aflaq magazine "Alefba" printed a bold headline that read: “A Humanitarian Act of the Revolution: The Deportation of Iranian Nationals!” The fathers and ancestors of these “Iranian nationals” had been born in Iraq decades earlier—at a time when no state called Iraq even existed. Back then, the land was alternately ruled by the Safavids and the Ottomans. Yet today, these “Iranian nationals” possess Iraqi identity cards and citizenship. Despite that, their children were either imprisoned in Iraq or sent to fight on the front lines against Iran. As a result, many of them ended up in prisoner-of-war camps in Iran, while their deported families were scattered across various Iranian cities.
In contrast, the Ba'athist regime allowed those Iraqi Jews who had unwillingly left their homeland four years earlier—to take part in building a state called Israel upon the skulls of the Palestinian people (for whom Saddam and his party hypocritically shed crocodile tears)—to return once again to Iraq. Meanwhile, the property and assets of these Jews have remained preserved in Iraq under the supervision of the “Department of Abandoned Property,” and no one is allowed to buy or sell them. Yet the possessions of Iraqi Shias have been plundered by the Ba'athists. Sadly, this crime—and others like it—takes place before the eyes of a backward, dying world and so-called humanitarian and human rights organizations. Of course, the silence and indifference of the international community is by no means surprising, since these crimes were carried out under the direct planning and orders of the West—the true owner and controller of these organizations. The goal was, and still is, to suppress the Shiites of Iraq, create social and economic difficulties for Iran, and intimidate Iraqi citizens by deporting them to Iran as punishment for taking a stand against the regime. [1]
7-Propaganda and psychological warfare against the Islamic revolution
This mission was assigned to the Ministry of Information, which oversaw all media and propaganda activities in the country—including newspapers, radio and television, publishing houses, theater, and cinema. In Iraq, no voice other than that of the Ba'ath Party could be heard in the political or media spheres. Saddam himself paid special attention to this ministry, allocating it a massive budget to further advance the regime’s political objectives. It is worth noting that the ministry played a major role in deceiving public opinion. It assembled a large cadre of writers, journalists, artists, and poets, who, in exchange for substantial sums of money, dedicated their talents and resources to serving the regime’s propaganda goals. The main focus of the activities of these mercenaries was to praise Saddam and portray him as the only figure worthy of leadership—a symbol of courage and patriotism—without whom Iraq could not survive. The most prominent activities of the Ministry of Information can be summarized as follows:
A-Songs and anthems
With the participation of local and foreign poets and artists, numerous songs and anthems were composed in praise of Saddam. Some wrote lyrical odes glorifying him, while others even elevated him to the level of divinity! There were so many of these compositions that the radio did not have enough airtime to broadcast all the songs and anthems dedicated to Saddam.
B-Production of a film About Saddam’s life
A film depicting Saddam’s life—from his birth to his rise to power—was produced. This movie, based on a script written by a Ba'athist named Tahsin Mu’alla and titled “The Long Days,” was created with enormous financial resources and full support from state propaganda media. It was screened in all Iraqi cinemas. According to a directive issued by the Party, all Ba'ath members were required to attend and watch the film. Another movie titled “Al-Qadisiyyah” was also produced. The film depicted the Battle of al-Qadisiyyah, during which early Muslims conquered Persian lands. However, the events were portrayed as if the war had been a conflict between Arabs and Iranians, with the Arabs triumphing over their rivals. This historical distortion was crafted by Arab historians at Saddam’s request. Through such films—which cost millions of Iraqi dinars to produce—the regime’s propaganda apparatus sought to stir up ethnic and nationalist sentiments among the Iraqi people. The main purpose behind making these films was to glorify Saddam as an Arab leader and to revive a sense of racial superiority over the Iranians.
To be continued …
[1] After the martyrdom of Imam Ali (peace be upon him), the Umayyads also deported about 150,000 Shias from Kufa to Khorasan, traces and remnants of whom can still be found around the holy city of Mashhad.
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