The Black Flag

In the frontlines of the war against ISIS, Seyyed Ahmad and Seyyed Jafar lead a group of Shia volunteer fighters in action at the battle for Jorf al-Sakhar, 60 km southwest of Baghdad. These under-equipped but determined volunteers manage to liberate in two days of intense fighting an area that the American forces had all but conceded to Al-Qaeda for over a decade. Majed Neisi, a documentarian of war who has worked extensively in the region took his camera and joined a group of Shia volunteer fighters who were involved in the eventual liberation of Jorf al-Sakhar. The camera follows hour to hour activities during the days leading to the assault on Jorf al-Sakhar, the battle itself and the immediate after. The film depicts ordinary volunteers who are literally fighting for the survival of their homes and families. The camera follows some thirty ‘pointmen’ who assault the thickly canopied date palm forest of Jorf al-Sakhar where ISIS has long entrenched itself. We witness the men’s grief, laughter, fear, fatigue, and hope and dedication to their cause in the midst of one close combat firefight after another, as well as during periods of brief and poignant rest and celebration, against a notoriously ruthless international enemy.

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