I Was Saddams Prisoner
Chapter Twenty
"Fi Amanillah", the men from Mukhaberat blurted, and turned their
backs. We were brought by them to Saddam Airport under guarded escort
and handed over to Immigration. Moments later, we were in the departure
lounge waiting for the announcement telling us to proceed to the
aircraft. We were asked to wait as other passengers proceeded, and when
none but my wife and I were left, my wife asked: "Are we really going,
or is it just another joke played on us?" "God forbid," I said.
Finally, the ground hostess led us to the aircraft. Our Passports were
given to the steward with an instruction to part with them after the
take-off. On our way to London, my wife kept on warning: "Do not talk to
anyone, please. He could be a devil from Mukhaberat. They are capable of
recalling us from the air. This is their national airline".
As we landed in London, the reactions to the torment I had undergone
began to surface. My right foot refused to move; a severe backache and
high temperature further disabled me. Surprisingly, my wife, who was
equally weakened, kept her calm and composure. She helped me through the
formalities, and we came out of the Airport.
No one on earth knew that we had been at last released. Emotion within
me welled up, and oddly enough, I decided to keep my arrival a secret
for further few hours. My wife insisted that I ring our daughter and
request her to come to the Airport. I dialed the number.
Our daughter picked up the phone.
"Hello", she said.
I could not respond. Words choked up my throat, and my tongue wagged
nervously.
"Hello"? She repeated.
"We have come.... dear.... we have come." I managed to say.
"But who are you?" she queried.
"Your father and mum - we have come." She wept.
The sincere and earnest prayers by Momineen all the world over were
heard. How the menacing threat of execution was averted, and which
factors contributed to our release, is a matter of anybody's conjecture.
One thing is sure.
"Who answers the oppressed when they cry out to Him and relieves
affliction, and makes you inheritors of the earth. Another God besides
Allah? How little you reflect."