Projects > Angel in Black > Synopsis

When the Iraqi army invaded Kuwait, on August 2nd, 1990, Lorraine Dyer remained of her own free will. At the age of twenty-nine, the beautiful, fun-loving airline hostess became an unlikely spy, passing vital information to the allies.

Born and raised in Kuwait, Lorraine learned how to survive in the extreme conditions, from her father, who worked as an engineer. When he retired to England, after thirty years in the Middle East, Lorraine stayed on in her adopted country and became engaged to a Kuwaiti airline pilot, Captain Aws Al Qemlas.

The young handsome Captain immediately joined the Freedom Fighters when Saddam's butchers began to ransack and rape his beloved nation. Although the Iraqis systematically stripped Kuwait's identity, they could not destroy the pride of its people.

Despite Aws' protests, Lorraine stubbornly refused to leave and became the only western female in the resistance. Dressed in the traditional black robes, she risked her life alongside the Kuwaiti women, who were already playing a major role in their fight for freedom. For over seven months, the defiant women acted as bait; drawing Iraqi soldiers into ambushes; leading civil demonstrations and sabotaging military vehicles.

They used their black abayas, to carry weapons, secret messages and even to disguise allied pilots, to help them escape.

Although most of the Western hostages were rounded up and used as human shields, many fled to Saudi Arabia or went into hiding in local safe houses.The Kuwaitis knew that the consequence of sheltering them was instant execution, nevertheless, Lorraine and the "Angels in Black" kept twenty western men concealed from the ruthless Iraqi secret police.

Since most of the Kuwaiti armed forces and police had been killed or taken prisoner, the Resistance was mainly made up of civilians. Most of the young local Arabs had to once again learn to become warriors.

Several of the servicemen in hiding helped train the resistance fighters in urban guerilla warfare. They included US and British military advisors and even an ex-IRA terrorist, who was an expert in making homemade bombs.

Even after all the Western hostages were released, Lorraine stayed on throughout the brutal Iraqi occupation, until the liberation. At an award ceremony she was internationally recognised as one of the bravest women in the history of human conflict. This is her true, yet incredible story…