Decoys are not just a thing you see in a spy movie. They actually exist in real life. There have been political decoys for many years as a way to protect the real leaders, officials, and presidents. Here are 4 mysterious political decoy cases:

Saddam Hussein

In 2003, a German tv network ZDF claimed that Saddam Hussein had a body double for a lot of appearances. It was backed up by sophisticated measuring techniques. However, this claim was disputed by Dr. Ala Bashir, who was Hussein’s former physician as he thought the body doubles for him being everywhere was a bunch of baloney.

Heinrich Himmler

Hugh Thomas claims that Heinrich Himmler didn’t commit suicide after his capture in 1945, but it was an imposter. This claim was backed up by different physical discrepancies. However, this theory is generally not accepted by historians.

Adolf Hitler

Hitler was known to have a body double (maybe even several). Gustav Weler was one and he was knowingly executed by guards and his body was found by the Allied forces, who thought it was in fact, Hitler. Years later, a British surgeon and historical writer, W. Hugh Thomas, reported in his book “Doppelgangers” that Weler was found alive after the war.

Joseph Stalin

The Soviet dictator apparently had a double named “Rashid.” Rashid also mentioned that there were other doubles. He passed in 1991. In 2008, another double came forward and wrote a book about his experience. The Putin government allowed Felix Dadaev to tell his story at the age of 88.