URBAN HAMID: This particular footage is from December 12. It's shot in Sumara, which is part of what's called the so-called Sunni triangle. And what you can see is, to me, extremely disgusting and horrible, because we can see how American soldiers go into a house early in the morning, and with no respect for the people, for the women, for the men. I think we can all sort of put ourselves into their shoes: what it would feel like if people came into our house speaking a foreign language with weapons and just sort of took over the house. I think we can all relate to that.
AMY GOODMAN: I'm looking at a man who has got a cane and he is trying to walk and has a hood over his head, and now a number of Iraqis who have something on their heads. What is it that has been put on their heads?
URBAN HAMID: Well, this is a plastic bag that they put over their heads, and it's part of -- as far as I'm concerned -- the process of humiliating the Iraqis. I think we can all relate to what it would feel like to be totally isolated from what's going on: not knowing what's going on, just hearing the sounds of the American soldiers yelling orders in English, being pushed around. It's just horrible. And I saw this. They were used, as you know, the whole time, even when they put people in Humvees and in trucks and in APCs. They put these hoods on their heads and they were -- It must have been extremely difficult to breathe and whatnot.
AMY GOODMAN: How did you feel filming?
URBAN HAMID: Of course, you are sick to your stomach, but you also know that you have to film, because this is something that everybody has to know. We have to know what our boys are doing in our names in Iraq. I felt that, you know, in spite of how sick and horrible I felt, I had to go on. I'm still dealing with this sort of trauma, of course: feeling that I couldn't do anything, and I'm hoping that in getting this footage out, people are going to get as outraged as I was and try to stop this.
AMY GOODMAN: I'm looking at a man who has got a cane and he is trying to walk and has a hood over his head, and now a number of Iraqis who have something on their heads. What is it that has been put on their heads?
URBAN HAMID: Well, this is a plastic bag that they put over their heads, and it's part of -- as far as I'm concerned -- the process of humiliating the Iraqis. I think we can all relate to what it would feel like to be totally isolated from what's going on: not knowing what's going on, just hearing the sounds of the American soldiers yelling orders in English, being pushed around. It's just horrible. And I saw this. They were used, as you know, the whole time, even when they put people in Humvees and in trucks and in APCs. They put these hoods on their heads and they were -- It must have been extremely difficult to breathe and whatnot.
AMY GOODMAN: How did you feel filming?
URBAN HAMID: Of course, you are sick to your stomach, but you also know that you have to film, because this is something that everybody has to know. We have to know what our boys are doing in our names in Iraq. I felt that, you know, in spite of how sick and horrible I felt, I had to go on. I'm still dealing with this sort of trauma, of course: feeling that I couldn't do anything, and I'm hoping that in getting this footage out, people are going to get as outraged as I was and try to stop this.
The full interview.
Read it. I mean it. There's serious stuff here, and it's a short interview.
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