Mayada, Daughter of Iraq

Mayada's story, both past and present, is truly incredible. Her family was one of the most distinguished and honored families in Iraq. One grandfather fought alongside Lawrence of Arabia. The other was the first true Arab nationalist (admired greatly by Saddam Hussein). Her uncle was prime minister of Iraq for nearly forty years; her mother an important government official. In her youth, Mayada vacationed with Iraqi royalty. When Saddam Hussein's Ba'ath Party seized power in 1979, Mayada didn't foresee the devastation it would wreak upon her life and her beloved country. But she soon found herself alone, a divorced mother of two, earning a meager living printing brochures. She had no idea that she could ever become a target of Saddam's secret police...until one nightmarish day in 1999.