It is testament both to the strength of the human spirit and to the extremes we'll go to in order to keep our loved ones safe. Out of Iraq is an exhilarating and terrifying story of one man's escape from one of the harshest regimes of the modern era. But, of course, it wasn't quite that simple. The only thing which could help was money and lots of it, so Lewis fraudulently transferred GBP37,000 from the accounts of William Hill (where he had a temporary job) into his own bank, and wired it to Baghdad in order to pay the necessary bribes.

Now he had to work out how to rescue his mother, brother and sister, who had been apprehended by security forces and thrown into jail once Lewis's escape became known. Against the odds, Lewis survived this trek, made it across the border into Jordan, and eventually sought asylum the UK, where he had spent his childhood. Going under the wire of the army compound where he was posted, Lewis was shot in the leg, making his escape - which required a gruelling journey in disguise across the desert at night with a group of Bedouin, at the mercy of ravenous wolves - all the more arduous. This left him with only one option - to escape from his native land, leaving his family behind him. Things went from bad to worse once his superiors discovered his ability to speak English, and Lewis was selected for Saddam's elite, top secret intelligence service, an offer he literally could not refuse. “We believe in their vision of providing fresh content to an emerging market, and look forward to supporting them with the wealth of resources within Brillstein,” said Khanna.Aged 17, Lewis Alsamari was conscripted into the Iraqi army. Tigris is represented by management/production banner Brillstein Entertainment Partners, with 14-year veteran Jai Khanna shepherding the production slate.

Tigris is sounding out directors, with Alsamari attached to star. With private equity being assembled, the movie is aiming to begin production in February, 2013 in the U.K.

and went on to write the Random House published “Out of Iraq.”īilled as an exhilarating and terrifying story of one man’s escape from one of the harshest regimes of the modern era, the book has been adapted as a screenplay and will launch Tigris’ development slate. This young and brave generation is tech savvy and came of age.”Īn in-house team will drive distribution, with Middle East and North Africa providing the bulk of the presales.Īlsamari, who went AWOL from Saddam’s military intelligence unit in the 1990’s, landed as a refugee in the U.K. Rihanna, Jeremy Pope, Anne Hathaway and More Channel Karl Lagerfeld Love at the Met GalaĪlsheikh added: “The population of MENA stands at 500 million people, of whom some 65 percent are under 30 years old.

Out Of Iraq.. by Lewis Alsamari