[QODLink]
Artscape
The Poet of Baghdad
A journey through Iraqi poet Nabeel's story and a rare insight into the complexities of love and longing in exile.
Last Modified: 03 Jul 2011 15:00


In 1979, Nabeel Yasin fled his homeland of Iraq with his wife Nada and his three-year-old son. His crime was publishing poetry - work like The Poet Satirizes the King, that did not fit with the views of Saddam Hussein and his regime. Branded an 'enemy of the state', Nabeel faced imprisonment and likely death if he remained in Iraq.

After fleeing the country he continued to write in exile in the UK, his works smuggled back into Iraq where they became a symbol of resistance.

A deeply personal film about the experience of exile told through the haunting verse of Nabeel Yasin. Nabeel performs some of his works specifically for this film, taking us on a poetic journey through his story and giving a rare insight into the complexities of love and longing in exile.

 

This episode of Artscape can be seen from Friday, July 15, at the following times GMT: Friday: 1930; Saturday: 1430; Sunday: 0430; Monday: 0830.

Click here for more on the series.

Source:
Al Jazeera
Topics in this article
People
Country
City
Featured on Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera's exclusive publishing of a key Guantanamo prison military document lays bare the brutality of force-feeding.
Former military official says poverty and anger in indigenous communities mean conditions for an "insurgency" are ripe.
A four-part series that gives a rare insight into the country on the move, with history in tow.
Series on the Palestinian 'catastrophe' of 1948 that led to dispossession and conflict that still endures.
Featured
Lebanon-based militia is assisting villagers caught up in the conflict.
Two years since the start of the uprising, rebels and Assad's forces remain locked in conflict.
Ancient ruins of Mes Aynak threatened by planned Chinese mining project.
A four-part series that gives a rare insight into the country on the move, with history in tow.
Extensive coverage of war crimes tribunals and controversial calls for blasphemy laws.
join our mailing list