The Battle For Haditha

A meticulous and moving reconstruction of an incident in late 2004, in which US marines are accused of slaughtering several Iraqi families in revenge for an IED attack on their convoy.  Directed by Nick Broomfield (Ghosts), with performances from real Iraqi refugees and real ex-marines.  See my review.

(Click here to see the whole film)

Robert Newman – From Caliban To The Taliban

In 2003 Robert Newman toured his one-man political/musical comedy show From Caliban To The Taliban – 500 Years Of Humanitarian Intervention, the precursor to his acclaimed A History of Oil which was filmed for More4, and his BBC TV series The History of the World Backwards.

(Go to Youtube)

In a breathtaking ninety minute performance filmed in front of a live audience at the Brighton Corn Exchange Theatre during the 2003 Paramount Comedy Festival, From Caliban To The Taliban details an unlikely but true history of modern imperialism, from the Virginia Company to the occupation of Iraq, and demonstrates the towering intelligence and sparkling wit of comedy superstar and former teen heart-throb, Robert Newman.

Robert Fisk – Beirut To Bosnia

Filmed in the 1990s, this series takes journalist Robert Fisk through Lebanon, Palestine, Egypt and Bosnia. He warns that the crimes of the West and Israel are breeding a culture of resistance, resentment and religious radicalism in the Middle East – a warning that the last decade has surely vindicated.

(3 episodes, 52 mins each. h/t Israel’s 60th Birthday)

1. The Martyr’s Smile

2. The Road To Palestine

3. To The Ends Of The Earth

Timewatch: Operation Gladio

This 1992 BBC documentary (Three episodes of one hour each) uncovers at Operation Gladio, the American-led operation to establish a network of right-wing (often fascist and neo-fascist) paramilitaries in postwar Europe.

Initially conceived as a safeguard against Soviet invasion, Operation Gladio was used to manipulate domestic politics and keep the left from power – and may be behind some of the century’s most notorious terrorist attacks and political murders.

Part One: The Ringleaders

Looks at the establishment of the stay-behind networks during the liberation of Europe.

Part Two: The Puppeteers

In the decades that followed, terrorist attacks and high profile assassinations set the pace of politics – what became known as the “strategy of tension”.

Part Three: The Foot Soldiers

Investigates the role of the stay-behinds in a series of grisly murders in Belgium and the killing of a former Italian Prime Minister, as well as their infiltration of the extrem left.

Breaking The Silence

This special report (52 mins) from 2004 sees John Pilger explode the War On Terror myth with revealing interviews and shocking coverage of warzones.  The segments on Afghanistan are particularly illuminating – especially if we bear in mind that, eclipsed by the disaster that is Iraq, the violence has only been escalated there since this film was made – and it’s also the source for that “pre-fascist” quote.

Voices of Resistance, in Algeria and Iraq

La Bataille d’Algiers

In this vivid 1966 film (121 mins, in French and Arabic with English subtitles), Gillo Portecorvo puts a human face on the resistance movement that drove the French out of Algeria.

The film enjoyed a special showing at the Pentagon in Summer 2003, advertised as follows:

How to win a battle against terrorism and lose the war of ideas. Children shoot soldiers at point-blank range. Women plant bombs in cafes. Soon the entire Arab population builds to a mad fervor. Sound familiar? The French have a plan. It succeeds tactically, but fails strategically. To understand why, come to a rare showing of this film.

… which, strangely enough, brings me to Iraq.

Hidden Facts: a message from the Iraqi Resistance

Purporting to be the work of the Resistance group 1920 Revolution Brigades, this is an insightful and compelling video (16 mins) with surprisingly high production values. I can’t guarantee it’s real, but I can guarantee it’s worth watching.

(click here to watch both parts)

Transcript in English and Arabic available here.

Survivors of the Summer War

This short (~20mins) documentary looks at Southern Lebanon and Beirut a year after being flattened by Israeli bombs.

Part two follows:

The Power Of Nightmares

Do you believe in al Qaeda?

In this seminal 2004 documentary series (3 episodes, 60 mins each), Adam Curtis traces the intertwined histories of two ideological movements – the neoconservatives and the radical Islamists – and the political reality they helped create. For rather than following the most inspiring dreams, we now select the leaders with the most terrifying nightmares.

1. Baby, It’s Cold Outside