Jordan Times
Thursday, July 29, 2010
New documentary highlights
impact of 2005 hotel bombings
By Taylor Luck
AMMAN - The 2005 Amman hotel bombings are the focus of a new documentary
launched by survivors of terrorism in the US on Wednesday.
“Killing in the Name” premiered in Los Angeles at the LA Shorts Fest yesterday
as part of the Global Survivors Network's (GSN) campaign to bring to light the
stories of people impacted by terrorism.
The short documentary centres on Jordanian Ashraf Khaled, who lost his father
and in-laws in one of the 2005 Amman hotel bombings when his wedding party was
targeted by suicide bombers sent by Al Qaeda in Iraq.
The documentary follows Khaled’s quest to speak with victims and perpetrators
and expose the true cost of terrorism.
“These stories are so important to tell. Often the stories we hear are about the
terrorists, we know their names and debate their actions, but we forget the toll
and the persons left behind,” GSN co-founder Carie Lemack told The Jordan Times
over the phone yesterday.
According to Lemack, the movie shows Ashraf and his family’s quest to ensure
that what happened to them never occurs again by speaking and sharing with
others.
“Our dream is to screen the film in Amman,” she said, adding that the GSN is
continuously looking for “unique and effective methods to get victims’ stories
out there and heard”.
In the film, Khaled speaks with an Al Qaeda recruiter, a militant behind one of
the world’s worst terrorist attacks, and radicalised Indonesian students,
according to GSN.
The documentary, directed by Jed Rothstein and produced by Moxie Firecracker
Films, was filmed in Amman and elsewhere in the region and highlights the true
essence of Islam as well as the Amman Message, Khaled told The Jordan Times
previously.
The Global Survivors Network, which was launched in Amman last November in a
ceremony marking the hotel bombings, aims to empower the survivors of terrorist
attacks to make their voices heard.
The GSN has sponsored events in Jakarta, Indonesia and Lahore, Pakistan, with
its members helping to establish local associations to raise awareness of the
needs and stories of those impacted by terrorist acts.
From July 30 through August 5, “Killing in the Name” will screen at the
International Documentary Association's annual showcase DocuWeeks, making the
film eligible for an Academy Award nomination.