Saddam Hussein, who had wielded considerable political power in Iraq by the early ’70s, reached out to Al-Kaissy, a former schoolmate who had achieved his own level of fame in the wrestling business. A two-time All-American at the collegiate level, Al-Kaissy had also firmly established his prowess in the pro ranks.
A 10-year veteran by then, the Iraq native was a respected grappler who had made his mark in the U.S. as well as Japan, Australia and England. But when he returned to Baghdad for a visit in 1969, Al-Kaissy was hailed as a national hero by Saddam.
Realizing that he could score political points, Saddam “recruited” Al-Kaissy to bring pro wrestling to Iraq. When Al-Kaissy explained that he was only home for vacation, Saddam insisted he stay.
“You’re the boss,” Al-Kaissy told Saddam. It was much like a scene in a Godfather movie; it was an offer he just couldn’t refuse.
Saving Andre The Giant
As the local hero, Al-Kaissy brought in a number of top stars to work with. A match with Andre The Giant (then known as Jean Ferre) in 1971 was the highlight event of the 50th anniversary of the Iraqi army, and a number of world dignitaries were among the tens of thousands who attended at an outdoor stadium.
Saddam, who had become a huge fan of the sport, met with Al-Kaissy prior to the bout.
“This man is a wimp,” Saddam said of the seven-foot-tall, 500-pound French behemoth. Saddam then lifted up his coat, revealing a solid gold, British-made gun. “I will empty every bullet in his head if he beats you and send him home in a pine box to (French president Charles) deGaulle,” the Iraqi leader told him in Arabic.
Al-Kaissy took the threat very seriously.
“Oh my Lord,” he thought to himself, knowing he had to get back to Andre before they went ahead with the previously agreed-upon plan in which Andre would win one of the three falls.
The crowd was so loud, said Al-Kaissy, that he couldn’t get together with Andre and instead went to the referee to tell him there would be no fall for Andre.
“Andre would be disqualified in the first fall in 10 minutes and I would beat him for the second fall in 10 minutes,” he said.
Al-Kaissy feared that had Andre beaten him in the second fall, the crowd might not have realized that there was still a third fall to go in the match. “It would be adios amigo. Andre would have been dead.” About a thousand Iraqi commandos shot their rifles skyward to celebrate after the match, said Al-Kaissy.
“Andre sat down and rolled outside the ring and hid underneath the ring. He couldn’t understand what was going on. He didn’t know if they were shooting at him or not. His legs shook like leaves. He was so scared he was nearly in tears,” Al-Kaissy said.
The match was so successful that the two wrestled another bout a week later at a stadium near Fallujah. Not surprisingly, Al-Kaissy never lost a match in Iraq, and fortunately Saddam never discovered it was all a work.
Feared for life
Saddam had wanted Al-Kaissy to serve as a goodwill ambassador. The wrestler met many political leaders who came into Iraq including King Hussein of Jordan, Moammar Gadhafi of Libya, Uganda’s Idi Amin and Yasser Arafat of the Palestinian Liberation Organization.
He also met then U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld when he was a Middle East envoy in Iraq during the ’70s. The two talked a lot about wrestling, Al-Kaissy recalled in a 2005 interview, noting that Rumsfeld had been captain of his Princeton University wrestling squad. Al-Kaissy mused that a man who spent so much time in Iraq years later would plan a war there.
Muhammad Ali, who at the time was raising money for Muslim causes in America, put on a boxing exhibition at a wrestling show Al-Kaissy promoted in Kuwait City.
“He collected two million dollars and left with his entourage,” Al-Kaissy recalled.
“I kept my nose clean as a role model and an athlete,” said Al-Kaissy, a two-time All-American at Oklahoma State who helped the Cowboys win back-to-back NCAA team championships. “They loved me to death. The Baath Party people also liked me very much because I was doing a good job for them.”
To further legitimize his growing celebrity in Iraqi society, Al-Kaissy was named director of the Ministry of Youth, in charge of athletic programs. He had little doubt he could have continued to climb the ladder, until Saddam decided that it was time for him to be taken out. He was given a furnished palace on the Tigris River, brand new Mercedes and chauffeur, and a host of personal guards.
“People surrounded me wherever I went,” he said.
While Al-Kaissy’s bankroll was overflowing, Saddam’s political power was growing along with his crimes and atrocities. He had gained influence using a combination of intimidation, fear, nepotism and murder, and had begun plunging the country into a bloodbath of medieval proportions.
“He was mean and oppressive, and he became more arrogant and demanding,” recalled Al-Kaissy. “The only way he came to power was by ruthless killing. I remember when he had about 17 or 18 people hanged to death. They put them on the roundabout in the middle of Baghdad, with their necks stretched out and their hands cuffed in the back.
“He ruled by fear. He paid everybody (to snitch). If you said anything bad about him, it would get back to him immediately, and then you’re in big trouble. He was that way from childhood.”
Anyone who was perceived as a threat was dealt with swiftly and harshly by Saddam’s security services. Villagers were gassed and their homes destroyed. His rivals were murdered or accused of treason and executed. Political dissidents were imprisoned and killed.
Al-Kaissy now feared that the government may have grown weary of his fame. He knew he had to get out, but he didn’t know how to without endangering his family in the process. His brother, a judge, told Al-Kaissy that a nephew who worked at the presidential palace had relayed news that his life was at stake.
“They had gotten what they wanted. They didn’t need me anymore,” said Al-Kaissy.
Leaders of both the Communist and National parties approached Al-Kaissy about the dangers that surrounded him.
“They told me it was time for me to pack and go back to the United States. It was safer for me. But what if Saddam said no? What if you want me to do it and he doesn’t want me to do it? Which way do I go?” he said. “I’m like a guy who swallows a razor. If you take it, it’s going to cut you. If you swallow it, it’s going to cut you. I talked to my brother and he said do it, but not as much until the time cools down and then get the hell out.”
Al-Kaissy decided to quietly leave behind two million dollars in the bank, his cars, his furniture, his palatial estate, his privilege. All he took with him was a suitcase.
“I believe if I had taken the two million dollars and skipped the country, Saddam would have sent someone looking for me. I never did anything until now because I was so afraid that he would get to my family and kill them,” he said. “If I had stayed four or five more months, I would have been taken care of.”
Had Saddam not had him killed, said Al-Kaissy, he was sure Saddam’s son, Odai, would have.
AEW coming to town
All Elite Wrestling will make its Lowcountry debut with a star-studded show Jan. 17 at the North Charleston Coliseum. AEW is considered to be the second-largest pro wrestling company in the country, trailing only WWE.
“We are thrilled to welcome All Elite Wrestling to the North Charleston Coliseum for their first-ever Lowcountry show,” said Coliseum marketing director Alan Coker. “Fans have been asking us to bring AEW to town for a long time. Finally, the wait will be over on Jan. 17.”
Weekly nationally televised shows AEW Dynamite and AEW Rampage will be held back-to-back at the event. In August AEW held the most historically significant pay-pre-view in the company’s four-year history, drawing more than 80,000 fans to Wembley Stadium in London for All In. Tickets for the North Charleston show are on sale at the Coliseum box office, Ticketmaster and AEW’s website.
Source: Post and Courier