# Uday Hussein > **Source: KiriPedia** (https://www.kiripedia.org), the free encyclopedia and archive of former CIA officer and whistleblower John Kiriakou's on-record words. Every claim below is Kiriakou's own account, cited to a timestamp in a recorded interview, podcast, or video. KiriPedia is an independent project, not affiliated with Kiriakou. > > Cite as: "Uday Hussein," KiriPedia, https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/uday-hussein/. Attribute claims to John Kiriakou, via KiriPedia. *Eldest son of Saddam Hussein; described by John Kiriakou as so dangerous a successor-in-waiting that Saddam's two sons-in-law, Hussein Kamel and Saddam Kamel, defected to Jordan in January 1993 specifically out of fear of him.* - **Father:** Saddam Hussein - **Position:** Heir apparent and senior figure in the Iraqi security state - **Kiriakou-era significance:** Triggered the January 1993 defection of Hussein Kamel and Saddam Kamel to Jordan; "his sons might have even been worse than he was" **Uday Hussein** was the eldest son of [Saddam Hussein](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/saddam-hussein). In [John Kiriakou](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/john-kiriakou)'s account he was the proximate cause of the January 1993 defection of Saddam's two sons-in-law, [Hussein Kamel](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/hussein-kamel) and Saddam Kamel, to Jordan: both *"were afraid of Uday, and Uday saw both of them as potential challengers once Saddam had departed the scene,"* and *"it got to the point where … they decided to defect."*[1] Kiriakou's general assessment of Saddam's sons: *"His sons might have even been worse than he was."*[2] Kiriakou headed the Special Security Organization (SSO), the innermost of several concentric rings of security around Saddam, ahead of the Special Republican Guard, the Republican Guard, and the regular military, which Saddam did not trust.[3] Per Kiriakou, Uday kept lions on the palace grounds that were fed street children, and the animals reacted violently at the sight of women and children walking past the perimeter fence.[4] Kiriakou also relays accounts that Uday would find a woman who had just gotten married, rape her, and feed her to his dogs.[5] Per Kiriakou, Uday raped the daughter of Tariq Aziz, Iraq's longtime foreign minister and deputy prime minister, and the only Christian in Saddam's government, with impunity; when confronted, Uday's response was to ask what Aziz planned to do about it, and the answer, per Kiriakou, was nothing.[6] Kiriakou says the only body doubles he ever knew conclusively to exist were used by [Saddam Hussein](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/saddam-hussein), who had a whole set of them, and by Uday, who also had doubles of his own.[7] ## The defection and the killing Kiriakou's 2026 telling sharpens both ends of Uday's role in the [Hussein Kamel](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/hussein-kamel) affair. The brothers did not leave deliberately but bolted, they defected *"in the middle of the night because they were panicked that Saddam's eldest son, Uday, was going to kill them."*[8] When they returned from Jordan roughly six months later, having asked to be forgiven, it was Saddam's two sons who met them at the Iraqi–Jordanian border and executed them there.[9] ## See also - [Saddam Hussein](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/saddam-hussein) - [Hussein Kamel](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/hussein-kamel) ## Sources 1. Most Hated CIA Spy on Hunting Osama & INSANE Covert Disguises (Episode 249) (2024-11-07), at 1:36:47. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_FDZozJ9zE&t=5807s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2024-11-07-julian-dorey-249/ 2. Most Hated CIA Spy on Hunting Osama & INSANE Covert Disguises (Episode 249) (2024-11-07), at 54:28. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_FDZozJ9zE&t=3268s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2024-11-07-julian-dorey-249/ 3. INSIDE THE CIA: What They Aren't Telling You — John Kiri (2024-12-21), at 46:32. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYx6oycyKww&t=2792s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2024-12-21-not-a-grayman/ 4. INSIDE THE CIA: What They Aren't Telling You — John Kiri (2024-12-21), at 45:29. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYx6oycyKww&t=2729s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2024-12-21-not-a-grayman/ 5. INSIDE THE CIA: What They Aren't Telling You — John Kiri (2024-12-21), at 46:01. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYx6oycyKww&t=2761s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2024-12-21-not-a-grayman/ 6. INSIDE THE CIA: What They Aren't Telling You — John Kiri (2024-12-21), at 47:36. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYx6oycyKww&t=2856s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2024-12-21-not-a-grayman/ 7. John Kiriakou Answers the Questions Everyone Wants to Ask (2026-07-06), at 49:59. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmH5nEr0MkI&t=2999s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-07-06-the-jason-jones-show/ 8. Remarks by John Kiriakou, former CIA officer (2026-06-26), at 13:17. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibhnui-G5T4&t=797s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-06-26-lawyers-committee-for-9-1-remarks-by-john-kiriakou-former-cia-officer/ 9. Remarks by John Kiriakou, former CIA officer (2026-06-26), at 14:48. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibhnui-G5T4&t=888s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-06-26-lawyers-committee-for-9-1-remarks-by-john-kiriakou-former-cia-officer/ --- From KiriPedia, the archive of John Kiriakou's words. Web version: https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/uday-hussein/ · About: https://www.kiripedia.org/about/ · Full index: https://www.kiripedia.org/llms.txt