Baghdad Cop

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• 2020
• Documentary

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• Watchlist

Policing Baghdad is a monumental task. The city has suffered decades of bloodshed owing to war, insurgency, invasion, aerial bombing, and sectarian killing. These ravages have mutilated the city's infrastructure and eroded social bonds. Domestic violence, suicide and child abandonment are all on the rise, and there's no longer a welfare system to pick up the pieces. Baghdad's underworld is brutal, and tribal conflicts and honour killings add to the turmoil. The Baghdad police force is the only institution trying to hold the city together. But they're weak and mismanaged, and have a reputation for corruption. In the midst of it all is Major Aziz Nasser, trouble-shooter for Baghdad's chief of police. Major Aziz is always on the move, driving through the night, visiting station after station. His brief is wide-ranging : investigate any case, sort out mess, and restore credibility to the police. We watch him question a man who murdered a woman at her own wedding. We hear a blind woman beg him for a temporary transfer for her son, a policeman whose five brothers, also policemen, have all been killed on duty. We watch him trying to find a safe home for five small children found abandoned in a mosque. Major Aziz is recognised wherever he goes. He claims to have 12,000 social media hits a day. In the street people stop him to thank him, seek his help or simply take a selfie. But his public image is little protection in a police force run on personal loyalty and private influence. While this film was being shot, Major Aziz was summarily sacked. It was a complete surprise - the shock was evident, the tears very real. But when he recovered his composure, he called his friends and benefactors.