Arguably the most infamous megayacht in modern-day history has a surprising new purpose. Basrah Breeze, built for the late Saddam Hussein, is plying Iraqi waters on behalf of local university oceanographic researchers.
Actually, Basrah Breeze is hoping to ply those waters. The captain tells National Geographic magazine that there aren’t enough funds to operate her this year. He’d like to see fellow Persian Gulf nations in better financial situations donate to the cause.
The former dictator’s megayacht hasn’t been sitting idle, though. She undertook three missions last year, with an international group of researchers. The focus: water quality and sea life off the coast of Iraq. The waters had been improving in recent years, so the goal was to learn more about what was occurring.
Basrah Breeze wasn’t always known by that name. She was built in 1981 as Qadissivat Saddam. She was glitzy and gilded from top to bottom, with accommodations for 28 guests and 35 crew. Hussein intended the superyacht to be a sister to Al Mansur, a larger yacht he used. But, he never actually set foot aboard Qadissivat Saddam. In fact, she didn’t even reach Iraq until after his death. The yacht was routed from her builder, Helsingor Vaerft in Denmark, to Saudi Arabia for safekeeping upon completion, due to the Iran-Iraq war. Qadissivat Saddam remained in Saudi Arabia for many years, registered as Al Yamamah under the watch of King Fahd. At some point, King Fahd gave the yacht to King Hussein of Jordan. Following the latter’s death in 1999, King Abdullah of Jordan sent the yacht to the Med. She remained under the country’s control, via a Cayman Islands company.
A year after Hussein’s execution in 2006, the yacht was marketed for sale as Ocean Breeze in Nice, France via Burgess. The Iraqi government suddenly spoke up, however. It filed paperwork to block the sale, claiming it still owned her. Months of hearings and more paperwork followed. A French court finally ruled in 2008 in favor of the Iraqi government, saying no documents were ever submitted to show a transfer of ownership.
The Iraqi government soon gave the yacht the name Basrah Breeze. It also attempted to sell her, for a reported $30 million, in 2009. Failing to find a buyer, the government had her undergo a refit in Greece and re-listed her in 2010. That, too, was unsuccessful. So, Basrah Breeze has been in Iraq ever since.
According to information conveyed to National Geographic by Basrah Breeze’s captain, professors from the University of Basrah petitioned the government in 2014 to allow them to use her. They believed the megayacht would make a good extra marine-research platform. They had discovered a coral reef off the country’s coast, for example. The government handed the yacht to them, and they set out on their first mission aboard in early 2015.
Oddly enough for a research platform, Basrah Breeze still has much of her original glitziness. The Iraqi, Iranian, and Kuwaiti researchers who were aboard last year were surrounded by smoked glass and rococo details. Original engine-room equipment remains, too. Despite rust accumulation in recent years, National Geographic says “the vessel appears surprisingly shipshape.”
The captain and the university professors hope she can continue to contribute to research efforts. The captain also seems to hope Basrah Breeze can cruise in general. “I love the sea,” the captain is quoted as saying. “It’s so much better on the open water. You are free from all the problems of the Earth.”
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