Cynics Unlimited

Title: The Cult of the Suicide Bomber
Release: 2005
Genre: Documentary
Run Time: 96 Minutes
Studio/Publisher: Disinformation
Rating: 90%

Former CIA agent Robert Baer narrowly missed becoming a statistic in 1983 when a car full of explosives was detonated near the American Embassy in Beirut. Since then, Baer has relentlessly studied the concept of suicide bombing and sought the mastermind behind the attack that cost him many colleagues, crisscrossing the Middle East in search of motives, tactical information and justification. The Cult of the Suicide bomber traces Middle Eastern suicide attacks to their Iranian origins, where 13 year old Hossein Fahmideh blew himself up on the front lines of the Iran-Iraq war. From there, Baer traces the evolution of suicide bombing from a military operation to an instrument of terror against civilians - predominantly Israelis, though the film opens with scenes from the London train bombing and ends with scenes from the sectarian violence between Sunni and Shia Muslims in Iraq.

The most impressive aspect of this documentary is just how deep into the suicide bombing cult Baer manages to delve. At one point, Baer is standing on the stage at a Tehran University during a lunchtime rally rife with chants of “Death to America”. Later, he sits -petrified- in the middle of a Hamas rally featuring pre-teen children marching with semi-automatic rifles. Baer speaks with leading Hezbollah commanders within plain view of Israeli border guards, speaks with those same border guards later and visits holy sites where attacks were executed by Muslim/Jewish extremists.

Viewers concerned about the “spin” of this documentary will be pleased to know that, despite his history as a CIA agent and an indirect victim of a terrorist attack, Baer manages to avoid any strong bias in his narration or during interviews. Like a good journalist, he acts as medium through which the story is told rather than attempting to sell the viewer on his personal cause. Very few reporters in documentary or in print even try to achieve Baer’s level of objectivity when speaking on Middle Eastern affairs.

Through this rare opportunity, nations and political groups that employ suicide bombing were able to tell their side of the story (often lacking in Western media) and several noteworthy observations could be made -

• Suicide bombing was conceived as and still works most effectively as a weapon of war rather than a weapon of terror. Its use against a superior military power has been proven, as one lightly armed “soldier” can kill dozens of enemy soldiers or one vehicle in one shot
• Suicide bombers prefer not to be called suicide bombers, as suicide is frowned upon. Instead, they consider themselves soldiers in the conventional sense and their deaths (or “martyrdom”) are feted with traditional military patriotic fervor from the public. A previously unknown student who executes a suicide can suddenly become a town hero with his portrait placed in a shrine and honorable mention given during religious ceremony.
• Most of the suicide attacks in the Middle East are directly or indirectly financed by Iran, which suggests the assault on Western interests -including the 1983 attack in Beirut- were merely an extension of Iran’s revolutionary war. The money and arms trails detailed in the film stands in sharp contrast to the “human rights” explanation offered by social activists and NGO’s.
• Middle Eastern suicide attacks are not confined to religious groups - The Syrian Socialist Party is an example of a secular organization that makes heavy use of suicide bombers (particularly female bombers) for political purposes.

The final observation leads to the strongest criticism of Cult of the Suicide Bomber - the scope of the documentary is too narrow for its title. Hossein Fahmideh may have been the first suicide bomber in the Middle East, but the tactic has been around for centuries. The Japanese Kamikaze bombers are the most popular example of suicide bombers in modern times while the first suicide bombing on record was reportedly executed by the Knights Templar during the Crusades over 700 years ago. Sri Lanka’s Tamil Tigers continue to be biggest practitioners of suicide attacks but are barely mentioned in the film. The Cult of the Suicide Bomber triumphs as a portal into the current Middle East hotspots, but viewers expecting to see a complete overview of suicide bombing (which could be inferred from the title) will be disappointed.

Nonetheless, if you are even remotely interested in Middle Eastern affairs or “what makes those people do it”, Cult of the Suicide Bomber is almost certainly the gold standard.