Voices from Iraq

The Statues of Iraqi Women

2009-10-01T05:56:00.000-07:00

This is a collection of links to some TV programs and reports dealing with the Statues of Iraqi women now. The report write-ups were copied directly from the source.

Inside Iraq - The condition of Iraqi women- 01 Aug 08 Part 1 & 2

Although brutal and violent, a study has shown that Iraqi women were more protected under Saddam's reigm compared to the situation after the US-led invasion in 2003. Iraqi women today are subjected to random violence of assault, rape, kidnapping or death at the hands of suicide bombers, American troops, Iraqi police, even radical religious groups and local thugs.

Inside Iraq - Zainab Salbi - 14 Aug 09

Zainab Salbi, a critically acclaimed author, is the founder of Women to Women International, an organisation which helps women in post conflict zones.

As an Iraqi American, women in Iraq hold a special place for Zainab.

She grew up in the shadow of Saddam Hussein, the former Iraqi president as her father was his personal pilot.

She also witnessed first hand the violence of the Iran-Iraq war and decided early on in her life that she would help other women whose lives had been torn apart by war.

She fled Iraq at the age of 19 and just a few years later, in 1993, started Women to Women International. Her organisation has now helped more than 120,000 women in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Rwanda, Kosovo, Nigeria, Colombia, Afghanistan, Iraq, Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan.

Since the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, she has made more than 20 trips to her home country to chronicle the status of women and girls. Zainab just returned from her most recent visit and reports that there have been many changes.

She is deeply concerned about the growing number of impoverished women and the effects that will have on the rates of literacy, early marriage and polygamy.

And she is shocked by a new generational development, where young women in their 20s are less educated than their own mothers and are growing up with fewer liberties.

In this special episode of Inside Iraq from Washington DC, Al Jazeera's Abderrahim Foukara discusses with Salbi the status of women and girls in Iraq today.

Everywoman - Iraqi women - Part 1&2

Four years after the start of the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, Everywoman explores the real issues facing women in Iraq today.

The Plight of Iraqi Women

Journalist (Observer) Peter Beaumont
on the plight of Iraqi Women. "There is a culture of permissive violence against women in Iraq"

NBC Report on Violence against Iraqi Women
NBC investigates the recent wave of violence against women in Iraq.

IRAQI women are being attacked.
IRAQI women are being attacked.

Iraqi women in "silent emergency" - 08 Mar 09
On International Women's Day, a new report released by the aid agency Oxfam says women in Iraq are trapped in a "silent emergency".

It describes the women of Iraq as the forgotten victims of the recent war.

Many have been widowed by the violence and are forced to work, while looking after their children at the same time.

Iraq Women Speak Out (Excerpt)
http://www.deepdishtv.org In March 2006, Code Pink invited eight Iraqi Women to the U.S. to speak about their experiences under the U.S. invasion and occupation. They were doctors, engineers, professors, and journalists. Two of the women had their entire families killed by U.S. troops. They were denied visas to enter the U.S. on the grounds that they did not have sufficient family to guarantee they would return to Iraq.

The six women who were given visas traveled separately to dozens of cities throughout the U.S., speaking with community groups, churches, veterans, and families of active duty GIs. They asked Americans to end the occupation and bring all the troops home immediately. Upon their return to Iraq they faced death threats, lost their jobs, and some were forced into exile.

The remarkable courage of these women and the authenticity of their witness to the horrendous reality of the occupation challenges Americans to take responsibility for the actions of the U.S. government and force an end to the

Iraqi Women Prisoners
The status of Women in Iraqi prisons currently under US occupation. A report by Arwa Damon for CNN.

Rare footage inside Iraqi women's prison - 07 Oct 07
Iraq's vice-president is highlighting the plight of women prisoners in Iraq. Many are detained for years without charge. Some have been sentenced to death without being questioned. Sebastian Walker has been looking at rare pictures just released of women's prisons in Iraq.

Iraqi women and girls swap one hell for ...
Thousands of women and girls have left Iraq and its extreme violence for countries such as Syria. But, once there, they find themselves trapped in a world of forced prostitution.

A nation crucified

2009-05-22T23:58:00.001-07:00

The decision by President Obama not to release the picture of torture at Abu Ghraib and other US detention facilities did not surprise me. President Obama did not want the world to see pictures of Iraqi kids being raped by US military personal in front of their mothers or kids were sodomized. He defiantly did not want the world to see pictures detainee’s hair shaved to resemble a Christian cross especially when he is going to address the Muslim next month.

The Average American (Mr. AA) does not want to believe that the government he elected was involved in torturing and killing innocent people in Iraq and Afghanistan. More than 270 torture pictures were published by Salon.com. Other pictures were later published by Australia's Special Broadcasting Service. Despite of those pictures and US official reports Mr. AA has been in state of delusion and denial for the last seven or eight years. He much rather sweep this under the rug so he doesn’t see evil.

One of the reasons why Obama changed his mind and blocked the release the picture is the fact that some of the pictures and videos show prison guards sodomizing young boys in front of their mothers, both with objects as well as physical rape. This was first reported in 2004 by the British newspaper the Guardian.

The London Telegraph also reported “US soldiers 'seen raping woman' in new jail photos” and “US soldiers beating an Iraqi prisoner nearly to death and having sex with a female PoW,” as well as a videotape, apparently made by US personnel, which shows “Iraqi guards raping young boys”. Some of these facts could also be found in US official Taguba Report.

Abu Ghraib, or better renamed Abu Gulag, was not the only American detention and torture center. NAMA "Nasty Ass Military Area" at Baghdad Airport and run by US elite task force 6-26 is another US official torture center. Their motto is "No Blood No Foul," meaning "If you don't make them bleed, they can't prosecute for it." This torture center was a subject of Human Rights Watch report.

The release of the Bush administration torture memos and the COMMITTEE ON ARMED SERVICES UNITED STATES SENATE report concluded among other things that:

“The abuse of detainees at Abu Ghraib in late 2003 was not simply the result of a few soldiers acting on their own. Interrogation techniques such as stripping detainees of their clothes, placing them in stress positions, and using military working dogs to intimidate them appeared in Iraq only after they had been approved for use in Afghanistan and at GTMO. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld's December 2,2002 authorization of aggressive interrogation techniques and subsequent interrogation policies and plans approved by senior military and civilian officials conveyed the message that physical pressures and degradation were appropriate treatment for detainees in U.S. military custody. What followed was an erosion in standards dictating that detainees be treated humanely.”

A video Abu Ghraib Torturers Expose US Government Direct Torture Orders and the American documentary film GHOSTS OF ABU GHRAIB are worth watching. CNN last week interviewed on of the detainees of Abu Ghraib watch Abu Ahmed interview

Ancient civilizations were remembered by the hug pyramids that they built. I hope Americans can do something to destroy the image of their disgraceful human pyramid they built at Abu Gulag

Back in 2005 I published something about this subject I am adding it for further information.

Abu Ghraib, Abu Gulag and Abu American Lies

by Ghazwan Al-Mukhtar

Abu: “The father of” in Arabic.

Gulag: The worst type of prison.

With the migration of torture from from Guantanamo Bay and Afghanistan, Abu Ghraib evolved into Abu Gulag. With the protection of those responsible for the U.S. torture policy it has become Abu American lies.

In the late 1950s the Iraqi government commissioned an American consulting firm to design and build a modern prison in Baghdad. It was decided that the nearby agricultural area of “Abu Ghraib” was the best place to build the prison. We had our American designed “model” prison in the early 60’s.

Like many police forces in the world the Iraqi police forces had “detention” centers inside the police station where suspects are kept. It is at these police stations that interrogations are done. These interrogations were supposed to be supervised by interrogation judges from the ministry of justice. In most cases suspects continued to be the responsibility of the ministry of interior until the end of trials. Once sentenced to prison the criminal was handed over to the ministry of social affairs which is responsible for Abu Ghraib prison and others.

Iraq Security police and the Iraqi intelligence agency “Mukhabarat” and other security forces each has their own “detention” centers and interrogating judges independent from the ones at the local police stations or Abu Ghraib prison.

It is most likely that at these “detention” centers human rights are violated or “torture” is used to extract “confessions” to be “used” in the court to put “criminals” at Abu Ghraib prison. “Convicted” criminals, prisoners, very seldom were re-interrogated in the prison hence very seldom were “tortured” at Abu Ghraib prison. In most cases torture was done before the prisoner was sent to Abu Ghraib to serve a sentence issued by a court.

Under Saddam, the notoriety of Abu Ghraib prison was in fact due to the very large number of prisoners in death row rather than “torture.” Since 1980 laws were introduced or amended to make more crimes punishable by capital punishment. Some laws were strange. Breaking into a house for stealing carries the death penalty if it is done at night while the same crime committed during the day carries a less penalty. Drug cases were also another example. Courts in Iraq were obliged to follow these laws.

The increased number of executions at Abu Ghraib was mostly attributed to the increase number of crimes punishable by death and due to the socio-economic crises that Iraq went through during Iraq-Iran war, 1991 Gulf War and the 13 years of economic sanctions.

In November 2002 Saddam surprised everyone by freeing all prisoners in prisons as well as those in detention centers and police stations. Criminals arrested that day were actually released some without literally setting a foot in the police stations. That day I saw TV reports of journalist going through the empty Abu Ghraib prison. I also saw relatives of detainees waiting for family members at one of the known interrogation centers of the fearful Mukhabarat.

After the fall of Baghdad in April 2003 people looted what ever was left in Abu Ghraib prison, doors, window frames – anything they could put their hands on. It is fair to say that after one week of looting Abu Ghraib was not fit to be used for anything. Similarly police stations and their small detention cells and other interrogation centers were looted and burned. The Iraqi police force was dissolved and the American armed forces were the “only game in town.” The American forces started arresting common criminals, people suspected of resistance activities, sometimes people suspected of nothing and they needed “detention centers” and “interrogation centers” outside their military camps. This forced them into using the Abu Ghraib prison after fixing it.

Under the American control Abu Ghraib was transformed from a prison to a “detention and interrogation” center. American forces lacking the language skill, the cultural understanding and sheer volume of detainees were frustrated by the lack of progress in getting the intelligence information they needed. This frustration led to the “migration” of interrogation methods developed in Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay. This was the beginning of the Abu Gulag prison. It is at that time that the father of the worst prisons was created in Iraq by the American forces.

Saddam’s Abu Ghraib was a jail of convicted criminals – at least there was an appearance that they were convicted in Saddam’s courts. The American Abu Gulag was a place where people were detained with no judicial orders and detainees were tortured to speedily extract information from them.

Three factors contributed to the atrocities at the American Abu Gulag. Firstly, America shielded its people of any legal responsibility under Iraqi law. This blanket immunity encouraged American forces and American civilian contractors to violate the law without being prosecuted in Iraq or answering to their atrocities. Secondly, U.S. officially “migrated,” meaning approved, authorized, these inhuman interrogation techniques. Thirdly, the U.S. intimidated Arab media from even talking about such things. I provided information and photos to Arab media outlets and they would not touch it because of U.S. pressure. In August/September 2003 I approached Al-Arabia satellite station in Baghdad about a torture story. I was told by the station director in Baghdad that they have instructions from the American forces not to cover such subjects. I went to Al-Jazeera office and they agreed to send a reporter with me. I documented the torture story in the presence of an American lawyer, Al-Jazeera was reluctant to broadcast the story. Eventually Dahr Jamail broke the story along with pictures and information I provided.

Torture and human rights abuses apparently were common even before the official “migration” of the interrogation rules. Now we know that the U.S. Navy seals had pictures of human rights violations in May 2003. I know that Amnesty International was handed different pictures of torture also in May 2003 when they were visiting Baghdad.

President Bush told the Iraqi people and the world that Iraqis will not be tortured again since he has deposed the dictator, Saddam who tortured his people. For one year we the Iraqi people tried hard to believe him. Then when the Abu Gulag pictures were made public we were told over and over that those responsible for what happened to our countrymen would be held accountable. But now, one year later, those who signed the decrees authorizing torture, and those like President Bush himself, who were told by human rights groups about the torture, have not been held accountable. We are now told that what was done was by few people taking the “law” into their own hands and were actually just “seven bad apples.” But, we are not fools – we know an Abu Lie when we hear one.

Yes we nailed you bastards lying

2009-05-17T09:15:00.000-07:00

This posting is not about whether Saddam Husain was or was not a dictator. It is not about whether his police force used torture or not. It is about the US government manipulating the US media to spread lies and fabricated stories to convince the world that he was what they claimed, a dictator and his police force use torture!!!

On July 21, 2003, nearly three months after the fall of Baghdad, the Washington Post published the following article “A Lone Woman Testifies To Iraq's Order of Terror”. It was copied and republished by hundreds of newspapers across the US.

In his article Peter Finn told the story of Iraqi Christian women named Jumana Michael Hanna who claimed that she was arrested, tortured, raped and beaten by police at the Iraqi police academy. She “identified” to the American occupying authorities the people “responsible” for her ordeal.

Bernard B. Kerik, the senior policy adviser to the Iraqi Ministry of Interior and former police commissioner in New York City was quoted as saying "This is the first case where someone has given us information that appears to be credible and that we can corroborate and act on. A lot of Iraqi women will see that we are serious. This is an event that will lead to closure for a lot of people -- and justice." Dennis Henley, the American director of reconstruction at the police academy said “We'll nail the bastards,"

Jummana “Hanna became a potent symbol of Iraqi liberation, and the Bush administration brought Jummana and her children to the United States for their protection.” “US Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz testified about her before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. "Her courage in coming forward to offer U.S. officials what is very likely credible information," he said, would help the coalition "root out" Baathist killers.”

She was such a valuable assists to the US government propaganda war that they wanted her story to be told to the world. A ghost writer, Sara Slovitch, was hired to write her memoir. Sara is not trained crime investigator or anything like that but she had the common sense to put two and two together. This is how prefaced her article:

“In all of Iraq, Jumana Hanna was the bravest witness to the horror of Saddam's regime, telling the Americans of torture, rape, and mass murder. In Washington, Hanna became a potent symbol of Iraqi liberation, and the Bush administration brought Hanna and her children to the United States for their protection. Then the author discovered the really horrible truth.”

The “really horrible truth” is that the above Washington Post is a lie. Furthermore Jummana told Sara so many other obvious lies that instead of writing a book about the “symbol of Iraqi liberation” she wrote this article “The American Dream” in Esquire magazine exposing all the lies told by this lady who was arrested in Iraq “on charges of prostitution”.

After reading the Esquire article I had exchanged few messages with Sara Slovitch. I also wrote to the Washington Post ombudsman telling him that based on the Esquire article regrettably his paper look more like the Washington Pravda!!! Towing the line of the US government, and spreading lies.

To its credit the Washington Post revisited the story again. It published a follow-up article “Threads Unravel in Iraqi's Tale” by the same journalist, Peter Finn, exposing more lies about America’s “symbol of Iraqi liberation”

I want to tell Dennis Henley, the American director of reconstruction at the police academy and his government Yes we nailed you bastards lying !!!

Slave labor build Baghdad US embassy,

2009-05-10T06:39:00.000-07:00

In this posting I will be addressing the issue of migrant workers in Iraq. I will talk briefly about their conditions before the 2003 war on Iraq. They entered Iraq legally with approval of the Iraqi government and hence were protected by the Iraqi labor law.

After the 2003 occupation migrant workers were “smuggled” into Iraq by contractors working for the US military. Some of them entered Iraq flying directly to American bases in Iraq. Others were taken directly from airport to US installations without going through the Iraqi passport control. Similar procedure is used for those entering Iraq by road.

Entering Iraq “illegally” and working at foreign military bases denies those people the legal protection of the Iraqi laws. American labor laws do not apply to them either. Some of them worked for KBR through “five levels of subcontractors and employment agents”. That leaves them into the “NO LAW” land.

Poor labors from third world countries signed contract to work in the gulf from there they were trafficked illegally where actually prisoners at US military installations. According to the UN IOM their working condition could be summed up "They are very much exploited -- working 16 hours a day, seven days a week; doing menial jobs, domestic servitude with no possibility of getting out of that situation for several reasons. The first one is they are in some cases kept under lock and key. The second reason is that their passports have been confiscated and the third reason is that most of these migrants are completely disoriented," One Indian worker told the WP that sometimes were “treated like a kind of animal”

The US Congress looked into human trafficking in Iraq. The hearing confirmed that slave labor was used in building the US embassy in Baghdad. The fact that SALVES build the symbol of Freedom in Baghdad makes America’s Freedom a JOKE.

Human trafficking, mistreatment of migrant workers, poor living conditions (4 to a bed!), lack of water, shortage of food, confiscation of passports…etc was reported in December 2008 by CNN. I am sure it is continuing today.

American Slaves were freed 1862. It is regrettable that the same America introduces slavery 142 years later into a country that had no slavery!!! I am sure that we will need someone to end SLAVARY in Iraq. For sure, also, it is not going to be the Americans. I am sure that Abraham Lincoln would be turning in his grave now.

Back in the late 70’s and early 80’s Iraq went into huge and unprecedented construction boom. Construction companies from all over the world were implementing contracts in Iraq. They imported labors from nearly every corner of the world. Iraq insisted that those companies respect and implement the Iraqi labor law concerning their projects in Iraq.

Due to that construction and economic boom some 3-4 million Egyptian migrant workers moved to work in Iraq. Contrary to the rest of the Arab Gulf States migrant workers in Iraq were free to “jump” from one contractor to another without having to pay penalties or leave the country.

Migrant workers rights were protected by the Iraq labor laws and those were in line with the international labor guidelines and rules.

Things took a bad turn since the occupation in 2003. American military contractors with billions of dollars contracts ranging from providing meals and doing laundry for American service personal to building and maintaining US bases had to hire “third country nationals” to do the job. American KBR directly or indirectly hired more than 100000 TCN to fulfill its obligations.

To induce those TCN labor to serve in the war zone some were tricked into believing that they will be working in Kuwait, Dubai, or Jordan. Once arriving they were shipped to Iraq. In some cases their passports were withheld by employers. Being locked at military bases they were not allowed to contact their embassies and had nowhere to go or turn to for help.

Wikipedia had this on TCN conditions “The accommodations, security, and treatment of TCNs can vary greatly from the way that U.S. and multinational coalition personnel are treated. Their contracts often require them to work for one year continuously without a break to return to their home country. Many TCN contractors have also been lured by preemployment deals that have guaranteed them the job as long as they give a percentage of their pay to an 'employment agent' or 'representative'. TCN housing compounds are generally in less secure areas outside of the main base.”

The deplorable conditions of those TCN were brought to attention in May 2004. CNN reported that the US is to “Probe into Iraq trafficking claims”. The New York Times also reported “Indian Contract Workers in Iraq Complain of Exploitation”. The Washington Post said “Many Foreign Laborers Receive Inferior Pay, Food and Shelter” and that an “Underclass of Workers Created in Iraq”.

Many newspaper reports, of human trafficking of labor to work for US military in Iraq, were written in around the world. Papers from Sari Lanka, Philippians, India, Bangladesh, Nepal and others all reported on this problem. They also reported of demonstration against this 21^st century form of exploitation and slavery.

According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM) spokesman Jean-Philippine Chauzy "They are very much exploited -- working 16 hours a day, seven days a week; doing menial jobs, domestic servitude with no possibility of getting out of that situation for several reasons. The first one is they are in some cases kept under lock and key. The second reason is that their passports have been confiscated and the third reason is that most of these migrants are completely disoriented,"

The US military contractors are not the only ones using slave labors in Iraq. The US State Department which is responsible for combating human trafficking and slavery around the world, oddly enough, is using slave labor to build its new Embassy in Baghdad.

US Rep. Henry Waxman chaired a committee in the US House of Representative investigating the construction of the US embassy in Baghdad. Rep Waxman opening statement and Rep Tierney's Opening statement both addressed the human trafficking at the site. Committee witness Owens opening statement and witness Mayberry's Opening statement shed light on the human trafficking to the site. Questions asked by Rep. Tierney of the witness shows the miserable working conditions. Ironically it also shows that the US State Department did not investigate the human trafficking allegation as it should

Human trafficking by American military contractors is still continuing problem in Iraq. In Dec. 2008 CNN showed this report Iraqi police surround 'slave labor' camp. The US McClatchy had another report Military contractor in Iraq holds foreign workers in warehouses. Worth seeing.

Our mission accomplished

2009-05-02T06:37:00.001-07:00

When Baghdad was occupied six years ago American military forces set up a base in one of most prestigious high schools in Baghdad. They had a Military tank right at the gate of the School and they prevented students from entering the school. My son Ali was one of those students.

I would stop at the school every two days and ask “When are you going to leave the school so that our kids could continue their education?” I kept getting the same answer from the Gunner on the tank “we are not leaving”!!! There was no sense in arguing with a high school dropout about the value of education, he has the big Gun and he just wouldn't understand.

I was escorting Aljazeera TV to document that Iraqi Universities have restarted classes 2 weeks after the occupation. On our way we stopped at the Baghdad College High school (BCHS). The gunner on the tank refused to allow us to take pictures of tanks at the gate in the school.

I went to CNN bureau in Baghdad and talked to a producer “Linda Holt” who agreed to meet us at the gate of the school the next day. Again the Gunner refused to allow CNN to take pictures of the tank at the gate. CNN was able to talk to the headmaster of the school who told her that the teachers are ready to resume teaching if American forces would allow them. She also interviewed few students who were near the school. I personally do not think that “Big brother” in Atlanta allowed that report to be shown.

I talked to CBS Baghdad bureau and again the CBS were not allowed to take pictures of the tank at the gate. They talked to a teachers who was coming to work. Three students and their parents were interviewed also.

All these efforts did not convince the US military that they should “end their occupation of schools”. As a last resort to liberate our school we issued this press release. It was distributed to almost every Journalist in Baghdad, a simple thing since almost all of them lived at the Meridian and Sheraton hotel. It was posted at the notice boards and entrance of the hotel.

Free our high school from US occupation!!!

When: 9am, Saturday, May 3rd, 2003
Where: Baghdad College High School

Baghdad College High School was established 70 years ago by the Jesuits, to be an excellent educational institution. The school was nationalized, but remained an excellent high school.

1750 students attend this school from grade 7 to grade 12. The American Army has occupied the school and converted it to a military camp with tanks inside the school, and refused to allow students to attend classes. The U.S. army, while occupying the school, destroyed the school’s library and the school’s laboratories and classrooms.

We as parents have asked the Americans to vacate the school so that our kids can go back to school-so far unsuccessfully. Those of us who were permitted to visit inside our school were shocked at the destruction inflicted.

At 9:00am, Saturday, May 3rd, 2003, we are taking our kids back to school and demand the end of the American Occupation of the school. We will demand that the school should be opened to students and journalists so that the whole world can judge whether the destruction was caused by vandals or by the American forces.

How can the Americans condemn Saddam Hussein’s regime for using schools as military bases, and then turn around and do the very same themselves?

On May 3, 2003 we took our school back and our kids resumed their education. Many media outlet were present to witness the American destruction of the school laboratories and the school library.

Regrettably most American media did not come to cover the event. They were more interested in finding achievement after May 1^stBush. mission accomplished speech. Our simple mission was accomplished.

Powered by Qumana

Oh Jesus, It stinks to high heaven

2009-04-22T22:56:00.000-07:00

The Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA), the de facto American occupation authority in Iraq, issued regulation No. 2 for the creation the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI). All financial assets of the Iraqi government were transferred to DFI including the Iraqi funds held up by the UN for oil export prior to 2003 occupation.

Section 4 of the regulation state that “The Fund shall be controlled by the Administrator of the CPA, for and on behalf of the Iraqi people.” Also section 7 states “The Fund and the export sales of petroleum, petroleum products, and natural gas from Iraq, shall be audited by independent public accountants nominated by the Administrator and approved by the IAMB.”

The occupation authorities did not respect their own regulations nor did they spend our money for the benefit of the Iraqi people.

The US congress investigated the corruptions by the CPA and found out that the appointed “independent public accountants” had NOT a single qualified accountant on its staff and that the firm was actually operating from a residential address in San Diego!!! Someone was working from a basement of his house!!!

This firm was supposed to have audited billions and billions of American and Iraqi money under the disposal of CPA; I was so shocked. This is why I am posting the link to the video of the US congressional hearing for you to see.

What is even more shocking is that US congress knew in January 2005 about the “unaccounted for” 8.8 billion USD of the IRAQI money. Today four years later the US congress still doesn’t know more than it is “unaccounted for” or simply VANISHED. I wouldn’t be surprised that 4 years from now we will not be any closer knowing WHERE DID IRAQ’S MONEY GO!!!

Corruption by the US government and the American backed government of Iraq is so WIDELY spread that it has reached 23 billion! CNN The Cafferty File has a video segment “Iraq corruption-Billions missing”. It has interesting views from viewers. Watch it!!

The BBC investigative program Panorama had a documentary video report, available at YouTube, on corruption in Iraq. TOTAL CORRUPTION, TOTAL LAWLESSNESS. AMERICA IN IRAQ details numerous corruptions cases that are known to the US government.

Another good documentary film was shown on the British Chanel 4 TV. IRAQ'S MISSING BILLIONS It paints a very depressing picture that Iraq was turned into a fraud free zone!!

American film maker Robert Greenwald produced a film about corporations and corruption in Iraq. Iraq For Sale, the war profiteers is worth seeing just click the link.

Corruption within the Iraqi government is costing the country billions of dollars. Aljazeera program Inside Iraq- Iraq\s corruption interviews the chairman of Iraqi public integrity commission.

It looks like Americans and their friends in Iraq are trying hard to be NUMBER ONE in corruption. They only have to beat the pirates of Somalia and the military junta of Burma!!!

One Million dead and counting

2009-04-15T02:55:00.001-07:00

American columnist Helen Thomas publish an article " Bush turns on Iraq give columnist whiplash" December 27, 2005. I sent her a message started by saying "Greetings from Baghdad occupied Iraq!! Your whiplash is simple!! It is nearly breaking our necks!!" . I was very happy to get this reply from her "You are right on all scores -helent"

I was referring to the 1995 study commissioned by United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization and published in the prestigious British Medical Journal BMJ. That study concluded that the deaths of more than 560000 children can be attributed to the UN's sanctions.US Ambassador Madeleine Albright said that the death of that many children is the price is worth it !! see the video.

Gen. Tommy Franks, the top officer in the U.S. Central Command for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, summed up the American military's attitude when he told reporters during the Afghan campaign, "We don't do body counts.". This was meant prevent the world from knowing the true extent of the crimes committed by the occupying (US) forces in the occupied Iraq and Afghanistan.

The US appointed Minster of Health in Iraq prevented his statistics department from collecting or releasing casualty figures. It is not surprising he serve's his masters and handlers who brought him from outside Iraq on the back of American tanks. He will go back to America RICH and to hell with the Iraqi people.

Both the occupying power and its segregate "national government" Abdicated their responsibilities to prevent the death of innocent Iraqi civilians and actually keeping record of the casualties. It was left to academic community to carry out studies to estimate such figures.

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health published such a study in the peer reviewed British medical journal The Lancet. TheKey points of the study include:

• Estimated 654,965 additional deaths in Iraq between March 2003 and July 2006

• Majority of the additional deaths (91.8 percent) caused by violence

• Males aged 15-44 years accounted for 59 percent of post-invasion violent deaths

• About half of the households surveyed were uncertain who was responsible for the death of a household member

• The proportion of deaths attributed to coalition forces diminished in 2006 to 26 percent. Between March 2003 and July 2006, households attributed 31 percent of deaths to the coalition

• Mortality data from the 2006 study reaffirms 2004 estimates by Hopkins researchers and mirrors upward trends measured by other organizations

Simply stated that is an average of 200000 (yes Two hundred thousand) Excess death per year!! That is double the excess death of 100000 found in 1991 -1995 UN FAO study.

The innocent people of Iraq did not stop dying after the July 2006 study. We continue to die because our health system is still crumbling, our water system is not functioning, water is not safe to dink, food is unaffordable, raw Sewage flowing in the streets, security situation is still worse than it was before 2003 invasion

Soon we are coming to July 2009 and it would be 3 years after that study was made. I guesstimate that another 400000-600000 would have died as a result of the conditions precipitated by the occupation of Iraq. Soon the excess death will exceed one million .How many of them are children ? GOD only knows. Yes America IN GOD WE TRUST, not in your government.

This is the message I sent to Helen Thomas 2005.

Dear Helen Thomas

Greetings from Baghdad occupied Iraq!! Your whiplash is simple!! It is nearly breaking our necks!!

I am sure that Bush is still not telling the Americans the truth!! It was not the " faulty intelligence" it is the "fabricated intelligence" that drove him to war. Joe Wilson's case is only one of them.

The US government had the money to pay for "defectors" to fabricate other stories of WMD that the US would then use as "intelligence" to justify the "liberation" of Iraq. Khudair Hamza, the father of the Iraqi Atom bomb !!!, and others are only few of examples of this Fabricated "intelligence".

Similarly today the pentagon is paying Iraqi "journalist" to publish articles written by the American military spin group telling the Iraqis of the "vapor" achievements in Iraq. US media will retranslate them back to English and will use these, paid for, advertisement, to claim that things are going very well in Iraq!!!

The poor Americans will be fooled again into believing their own government "lies" this time again quoting Iraqi sources!!!

One of the biggest insults to human "intelligence" is his claim that "30,000 Iraqis, "more or less," as Bush put it, have been killed and thousands more wounded." The UNICEF study have suggested that nearly 500000 child under the age 5 have died from 9991-1996 from bad and deteriorating health, sanitary and food conditions due to the sanctions imposed on Iraq. That is an average of 100000 child under the ago of 5 a year!!!

With worse conditions now than, any time in the past, one could safely assume that at least 100000, if not more, child under 5 are dying every year of the "liberation"!!! That alone would mean nearly 300000 child in 3 years!! I know that will shocks the conscious of Americans but that is the fact that Mr. Bush doesn't want Americans to know. Mr. Bush is leaving the American people wondering aimlessly in the bush.

I could go on and on but, Helen, it is Christmas time and I do not want to spoil yours. I sincerely wish you a Merry Christmas and a very happy new year.

Best regards,

Ghazwan Al-Mukhtar

Baghdad, occupied Iraq

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Living in darkness

2009-04-13T09:18:00.000-07:00

New York Times Baghdad bureau blog provide a unique view of life in Baghdad. American N Y Times reports working in Baghdad are blogging about things that you do not see in the printed version.

The blog is also an opportunity for the Iraqi staff of the paper to share their experiences of being Iraqis living in Baghdad and working for this important American newspaper.

The Iraqi staff are the paper’s “eyes and ears on the ground” in Baghdad. They are the ones who risk their life’s and go out on the street talking to people, collecting information and provide information and analysis of local events.

The information that is collected by many of those “fixers” are “distilled” to form a major part of the articles we read in the printed version of N Y Times. I hate to speculate on how the Iraqi coverage would be without help from those Heroes.

Naturally those “fixers” are more at ease witting about their living conditions and problems faced by their follow Iraqis than speculating whether Obama withdrawal time table would be implemented in time or not. One post on the Baghdad bureau blog painted a grim picture. it is worth reading.

I am furious and extremely disappointed that the availability of electricity in my country has not improved a bit over the last 6 years of occupation. Billions and Billions were spent on “reconstruction” yet the electricity production is still nearly where it was 2003. See this US government Graph.

In 1991 war America destroyed most of our electricity generators and distribution system. In less than a year and despite of the genocidal sanctions that was imposed on Iraq WE the Iraqi engineers managed to restore the electricity in 6 months. Compared to the dismal lack of progress for the last 6 years it makes me very proud of our achievement.

Keeping Iraq in the Dark is a very informative OP-ED published by the New York Times. It was written by Glenn Zorpette the executive editor of I.E.E.E. Spectrum, the magazine of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.

I am posting it here and hope that NY Times do not sue me for copyright infringement!!!

Wires running from private generators to electricity-starved homes in Baghdad in 2007.

Photo: Marko Georgiev for The New York Times

Liquid Electricity

By Mohammed Hussein

Last year I came back to Iraq from Syria, where for 15 months I enjoyed electricity 24 hours out of 24.

Since that time I have been trying to supply myself and family by any available means here in Iraq. But in vain. After many attempts, I admit that I have failed to maintain electricity in my home most of the time.

The main power board in my home is packed with power wire extensions from different power sources. You cannot imagine what it looks like, an electrical board choked with circuit breakers, power switches and green and red lights.

Many times I thought that I could switch the power to my home without help, but I stand regretfully gazing at that repulsive board. Even with inscriptions on the circuit breakers and power switches that clarify power sources such as “national power” and “street generator” it takes all my brainpower to understand what use I can get from that board.

One day an idea knocked at my head. A swimming pool. Yes, it would be the best alternative. I could spend a couple of hours in a swimming pool each day with my family, without the need for electricity. The next day I went to the market looking for a plastic pool. I picked one and returned home very satisfied, thinking that I was triumphant because electricity could not defeat me in the summer any more. I am the winner.

But in Iraq you can never guess what the next failure is. I set the pool in my garden in a proper place under the shade. I opened the water pipe to fill the pool, but another problem. There was no water in the pipe.

At that moment all my dreams were broken on the hard ground of reality. No water means no swimming, no refreshment. I thought it would be better to leave the water pipe open and check it from time to time, then if there is water and electricity, I will run the water pump so I can fill the pool quickly. I became like a fisherman waiting for fish.

I spent the rest of that day waiting for water to come from the pipe. Finally it happened before midnight and I had water.

I spent with a wonderful time swimming with my family, forgetting electricity for a couple of hours each day. But that happiness lasted until a disastrous announcement about an outbreak of cholera in Iraq.

About 417 cases of cholera were reported, according to the Iraqi Ministry of Health.

No more swimming. This was the end of my precious alternative. I could not risk my health. I removed the pool and everything was finished.

Electricity defeated me.

On 6th anniversary: Was the war on Iraq Justified? Legal?

2009-04-11T09:17:00.000-07:00

On the 6th anniversary of the war on Iraq Hans Blix a Swedish lawyer and former chief UN weapons inspector, Clair Short a former British minster in Blair government and Adam Ereli of the US Embassy in Baghdad discussed whether the war on Iraq was justified.

Mr. Ereli had a hard time refuting the fact that the war on Iraq was unjustified, illegal and had a catastrophic and long lasting impact on the innocent Iraqi population.

Link TV is monitoring “more than 36 broadcasters originating from the Middle East”. Commenting on the 6th anniversary TV reports “portrays a totally different image of Iraq compared to what has been reported in the US media”. He went on to say “Stories about poor health conditions, the spread of disease and poverty have been abundant”. The report is worth reading.

This is in fact the reason for this blog. It is to show to the English speaking world “on the ground reporting” broadcast on our televisions in the Arab world. These reports will influence our perception on events not Fox or CNN. I can assure you it is a lot different than what you see on Fox news or even CNN.

Please read my previous post on conditions in Iraq.

Was the war justified?
The war on Iraq has revealed some important lessons and its consequences will be with us for decades to come.

Click to see Part 1 Part 2

Iraq: Stories You May Have Missed
A report and video segment from link TV

After six years and more than 4,000 U.S. casualties, the Iraq War seems to have disappeared from the national conversation. Violence in Iraq is down sharply when compared to 2006 and 2007 levels; however, it still continues at levels that most countries would find alarming.

Click here to read and see report

Iraqi refugees mark six years of war in poverty

Six years on from the Iraq war millions of its citizens are marking the anniversary as refugees in another country.There are around 700 thousand Iraqi refugees in Jordan. Most are poor and destitute as they do not have the right to work. Even if the security situation is improving in Iraq they can not afford to go home. Al Jazeera's Nisreen El Shamayleh reports on what life is like for some of them.

Click to see report

Six years on, security still a concern in Iraq

Six years since the US invasion of Iraq, security remains a major concern as the US prepares to withdraw its troops.In the latest bloodshed, two men, including a village mayor, were shot dead.Omar Salleh takes a look now at Iraq's security challenges.

Click to see report

Clear daylight robbery. The situation of the Iraqi oil industry

2009-04-10T05:46:00.000-07:00

In Oct 2003 I posted the message bellow dealing with Halliburton import of oil to Iraq. I accused Halliburton of stealing our country blindly . Today I watched a testemony by an Iraqi oil expert confirming that the Iraqi people are being robbed right left and center for the last 6 years.

The situation of the Iraqi oil industry

Part 1 of "The situation of the Iraqi oil industry", by Faleh Al-Khayat, oil expert. This speech was a part of "Occupation Year 7: What future for Iraq?", a series of events organized by The BRussells Tribunal, and took place in the European Parliament, 18 March 2009, in Brussels.

Click here to see the testemony

ARMY, Halliburton Deny Iraq Fuel Price AllegationWashington Post, DC <<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A44061-2003Oct17.html">http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A44061-2003Oct17.html>
Dear Casi,

The price of gasoline in Iraq was and still is ID20 (1 US cent) for normal and ID50 (2.5 US cent) for supper gasoline per liter equivalent to about (5 US cents) and (12.5 US cents) per gallon. This price includes transportation and distribution cost.The occupation authorities are unable to have our refineries operating effectively which forced them to import gasoline from abroad.

Halliburton is importing gasoline to Iraq at a cost of about USD 1.60 per gallon. That is more than ten times the cost of the gasoline provided by the government that supposedly robbed the Iraqi people!

"KBR was paid $762.4 million as of Oct. 16 to purchase and distribute gasoline, as well as diesel fuel, kerosene and propane, according to the Corps of Engineers. Of that, $90 million was paid for with seized Iraqi assets and $600 million came from the Development Fund for Iraq, created in May by the U.N. Security Council to replace the oil-for-food program. The U.S. government, through funds appropriated by Congress, paid the remaining $72.4 million.". $690 million out of $762.4 million (90%) came from the Iraqi money that the US is spending to enrich Halliburton and others.

This is a clear daylight robbery

Best regards

Ghazwan Al-MukhtarBaghdad,
Occupied Iraq

City of walls. Putting lipstick on a pig

2009-04-09T16:00:00.000-07:00

In 2001 we (my wife and I) decided to build our dream house. We worked very hard for nearly 3 years with the architects, engineers, contractors to fulfill our dreams. We moved in the house after the “liberation!” of Iraq.

Soon after that some American companies moved into the neighborhood and brought with them their security contractors. Side streets were blocked and check points were put manned by armed contractors.

To complicate the problem 9 ministers of the American backed government of Iraq moved to the neighborhood also, naturally each one of them brought his own security guards. I suspect reason is that our neighborhood is very close to their offices in the Green Zone.

Very high Blast walls started to be brought into the neighborhood. I was told the CNN is moving into our neighborhood and that they would install some of it in front of our house!!! I was told that there is no sense in objecting to it because the American security contractors have decided to put it there!!!!

Being a stubborn person I contacted Kevin Flower chief of CNN Baghdad bureau and objected to installing the blast wall in front of our house. Kevin stopped the work and they moved the check point and the blast wall few meters away from my house.

Then our neighborhood was isolated from the rest of Baghdad by 4 meters (9-10 feet) high blast walls. All side streets were closed by this wall. We were restricted to through THE one check point. Every time we come to our house our cars will be checked and searched even if we only go out for few minutes to get a loaf of bread.

Our friend or family members will have a very hard time getting to our house. One cannot call a taxi or an ambulance because they will not easily allowed into OUR neighborhood. With no friend of family members able to visit us we became prisoners in our house.

Every once in a while I used to call Kevin and invite him to move from his CNN prison to my prison (house) for a drink or two in the house garden. He comes escorted by his security guard for the 50 meter walk!!!

This Blast wall was NOT erected to protect the Sunnis from the Shies or the other way around. It is simply to protect the American companies that invaded our neighborhood.

The main commercial street in Baghdad (Saadoon street) blast walls were put right in the middle of the street dividing the incoming and the outgoing traffic.

Not only this another set of blast walls were put (left side of the street) in the street leading to the Baghdad hotel. This 4 meter high blast wall with watch towers extended to 2 lanes of the street and the side walk reducing traffic to one lane going to the Ferdous square as can be seen in this photo.

Ironically Ferdous in Arabic means HEAVEN!!! I am not suggesting that America is restricting our way to heaven but for sure they are making our life looks like hell !!!

Not everything is as UGLY as I make it sound. Iraqi artists decided to hide the ugliness by using the blast wall to draw murals on them.

The picture to the left was drawn on the right side of the blast wall dividing “Saadoon street”. Note artist were standing on the island dividing the road !!!!

An ugly pig is an UGLY PIG no matter how much lipstick one puts on it !!!!!

Baghdad City of Walls

A documentary film about blast walls in Baghdad

Ghaith Abdul-Ahad, a Baghdad-born award-winning photographer and journalist, returns to the streets of a Baghdad now divided by security walls separating Sunni and Shia. Ghaith's ability to move around the city despite the dangers, gives us a unique insight into this Baghdad and to a story so far untold.

Click to see Part 1Part 2Part 3Part 4

See also another Film

After Siege, Wall Sadr City's New Oppression

and another film

City of Walls - Iraq

In this exclusive report we investigate whether the US surge has really managed to transform Baghdad? Has life in the city actually improved and violence fallen, or is it just because of the walls which have temporarily stopped the fighters in their tracks?

Click to see Film

Killing the Children of Iraq

2009-04-08T02:30:00.000-07:00

I am a firm believer that the current military activities in Iraq are only phase 3 of the ongoing war on Iraq since 1990. Phase 1 was the 1991 “first gulf war” followed by phase 2 which was the 13 years of US/UK backed UN sanctions.

I lived with my family in Baghdad during all the phase 1 and 2 and nearly 3 years of the phase 3 (in all 16 years) before I was forced flee my country for our safety.

What makes the following film important to me is that it documents thing that I have seen while I visited the same Basra hospitals, seeing the same horrifying picture of children suffering from cancer due to the US military using Depleted Uranium (DU) in the Area.

I spent 2 days talking to the same D.r Jenan and Dr. Jwad Al-Ali and others in Basra in 2001. I spent one day taking radiation measurement in and around Basra. Destroyed Iraqi military vehicles and the destroyed oil pumping station showed a very high and dangerous radiation levels.

A study, by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations published 1995 in the prestigious British medical journal BMJ concluded that the deaths of more than 560000 children can be attributed to the UN's sanctions.

Few months later US Ambassador Madeleine Albright was asked by 60 Minutes correspondent Lesley Stahl “We have heard that half a million children have died. I mean, that is more children than died in Hiroshima. And, you know, is the price worth it?”. Albright responded, “I think that is a very hard choice, but the price, we think, the price is worth it.”. Click and see it. It is so repulsive!!!

Madam Albright nothing in the world justify killing half a million children ever. The technical definition of the crime of GENOCIDE is (when persons are killed for WHO THEY ARE and not for WHAT THEY HAVE DONE). Those children were killed because THEY WERE IRAQIS, they could NOT have done anything AT ALL. It is a crime committed against innocent civilian CHILDREN for God sake!!.

CRIMES committed by dictators should NOT be the yard stick with which America is to be judged!! Surely America should be judged by a higher standard than that of dictatorships. Damn you Madam Albright you brought SHAME to your country.

Paying the Price: Killing the Children of Iraq
A documentary film by John Pilger

After Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990, the United Nations (backed strongly by the US and UK) imposed harsh sanctions on Iraq that lasted for 10 years (1991-2001); the harsh restrictions on imports of everything, including access to key medicines, resulted in over a million deaths, more than half a million of which were women and children. That's more deaths than the two atomic bombs dropped on Japan and 9/11 combined. The purpose was regime change, but it never came. The overwhelming majority of those killed were the poor, elderly, women and children. Empirically, sanctions overwhelmingly punish the poor, the destitute. While the sanctions were in place, the richest people in control of the resources (Saddam Hussein et al.) still had everything they wanted: food, cars, mansions, access to the best medicines, etc. Award-winning journalist John Pilger has documented the reality of UN harsh sanctions in this hard-hitting film.

Click to see the Film

Conditions in Iraq

2009-04-03T09:36:00.000-07:00

To help Americans understand the actual situation in Iraq I have selected few video documentaries on living conditions in Iraq that are available on YouTube. Theses documentaries were shown on Al-Jazzera International and are in English language. In general it paints a completely different picture from what is being shown on US televisions.

American NPR had some good videos that will be posted at a later date. Leila Fadel, McClatchy's Baghdad Bureau Chief, was interviewed on the current fighting in the center of Baghdad it is worth seeing it. I suspect that similar fighting will be erupting in other places.

I have selected Al-Jazeera International because it is one of the few Arabic satellite stations that are broadcasting in English. It is one of the most important instruments to bridge the gap of misunderstanding and the overcome the language barrier.

I welcome your comments. It is only through dialog and exchange of ideas that we can achieve a better understanding that will lead to real peace.

City of Widows

Filmmaker Rashad Radwan follows Zahra, a Shia in Iraq, as day after day, she visits police stations, hospitals and morgues in a desperate search for her kidnapped husband, and in the face of disapproval from a society where widows are still expected to be invisible.
Click to see: Part 1 Part 2

Betrayed in Iraq

Leila Fadel, Baghdad Bureau Chief of McClatchy Newspapers speaks to Paul Jay about the recent escalation in violence in Iraq's capital. She says the former fighters termed the "Sons of Iraq" who have turned on Al Qaeda and joined the U.S. are now being persecuted by the Iraq government. She says the Maliki government is afraid of the power they've accumulated in the neighborhoods they were put to protect by the U.S. and many are now in exile or in hiding.
Click to see: Interview

Return to Iraq

Witness presenter Rageh Omaar returned to Iraq five years after reporting on the US-led invasion. He found much had changed and, as ordinary Iraqis told him, rarely for the better.
Click to see : Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4

Iraq's healthcare crisis

Inside Iraq looks at the crisis facing Iraq's healthcare system. Experts say that as many as half of the estimated 655,000 civilian deaths in the war so far might have been avoided if proper medical care had been provided but billions of dollars intended for the reconstruction of the country's medical and hospital network have gone missing while 18,000 doctors have left the country and the remaining ones have been the targets of kidnappings and murder.
Click to see: Part 1 Part 2

Failing health care in Iraq

Five years after the invasion, Iraq's health care system remains in crisis. Hospitals have to deal with the aftermath of bombs and shootings on a daily basis. It is very hard for doctors to do their job. They often lack basic equipment and the necessary drugs to treat the injured. And many health workers have just been murdered or kidnapped.
Click to see: Health

Half of Iraq hit by cholera

Cholera is spreading throughout Iraq, with half of the 18 provinces affected, Kirkuk and Sulaymaniyah being the hardest hit. Over 3,000 people have been infected with the disease, according to the World Health organisation, but it's estimated that number could be much higher, and as many as 30,000 people could now be suffering from Cholera.
Al Jazeera's cameras have travelled to a remote area of Al Anbar province.
Click to see: Cholera

Iraq's Education System

The education system is now in a state of collapse after the US invasion in 2003.
Click to see: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4

Iraq casualties

We examine the controversy surrounding civilian casualty figures in Iraq.
Click to see: The Listening Post

Ongoing struggles make Iraqi voters cautious

Iraq's provincial elections are seen as a test of the country's stability, ahead of a general election planned for later this year. However, many people hold out little hope of real change as they continue to struggle with shortages of electricity and water.
Click to see: Iraqi voters

War Without End: 2006

On May 1, 2003 George Bush, the US president, gave a speech on the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln declaring an "end to major combat operations" in Iraq. Five years on, with violence continuing unabated across the country, Al Jazeera's Hoda Abdel Hamid looks at the major events of the Iraq war. Each episode in this special five-part series will focus on one of the last five years - looking at the events, policies and people that helped to shape Iraq and its current chaos. As well as speaking to top policy makers from the US and UK, along with their senior Iraqi advisors, War Without End hears from ordinary Iraqis and US soldiers.
Click to see: Year 2003 (Part 1 Part 2) 2004 (Part 1 Part 2) 2005 (Part 1 Part 2) 2006 (Part 1 Part 2) 2007 (Part 1 Part 2)

A letter to a listener

2008-11-26T09:51:00.000-08:00

One of KTAR listeners called me " a sore point with this radio show". Here is my respons to him. His letter is inclouded at the end.

Dear Philip
Thanks for the message. I hope that this will give you an idea about the way I look at situation in Iraq. You will see that it is based on facts and figures. I will be happy to answer any question you have.
Regards
Ghazwan

The best way to judge whether an ACTION is good (beneficial) or bad is to look at the BEFORE and AFTER effects. This applies to any action irrespective. I have realized few years ago that I must work to find out where Iraq was before 2003.

Data for conditions of 2002-2003 were not available and not universally acceptable. It was either data from the Iraqi government (hence the west considered it (Saddam propaganda) or from the west (and it was western propaganda). The best “independent and unbiased” data were available from UN reports prior to the war of 1991.

For this reason I collected data of where Iraq was in 1991 as my bases of reference. This is also connected to my belief that the war of 1991 was phase 1 of the war between USA and Iraq. The 13 years of sanctions were phase 2 of the war and the 2003 war is phase 3. Therefore the 1991 data also used to compare the effects of the war (in its 3 phases) to the current situation. I sometimes use US pre occupation data and compare it to current US data to show progress or the lack of it.

Having established my BEFORE reference point I could easily use that data and compare it to the AFTER and judge quantitatively.

In 2004 I was to present this paper in New York which deals in details with BEFORE and AFTER conditions. I have not found any reason to change the validity of the BEFORE condition. Today I can assure you that on EVERY single point raised conditions are a lot WORSE than it was in 1991!!!!

How do we describe this? 1- Saddam was doing a very good thing then!!!! Or 2- US is doing a bad job now. Take your pick.

Few years ago Bush said “you are either with us or with the terrorist”. I said sorry Mr. Bush I am not with you because I think what you are doing is wrong. I refused to be terrorized into changing my ideas of what is right or wrong. He can call me whatever he wants but I am not with him.

I base my assessment of Iraq situation on solid facts and figures. Those who disagree with me must show me where I am wrong. Just calling me “Anti-American” does not scare me. By the way “dictators” like Saddam could not scare me I called him atrocious dictator from Baghdad 2002!!!

Maybe I am not seeing the “good” things that the US is doing in Iraq. Maybe I am closing my eyes. Please let me know and I will be grateful. I will even admit my mistakes on Radio but please be specific.

From: Philip ,,,,,
Sent: Sunday, November 16, 2008 11:56 PM
To: vtafrombaghdad@hotmail.com
Ghazwan,
I have noticed that you are starting to become a sore point with this radio show. I think it is the negativity that you portray on a week to week basis. People are beginning to take your rhetoric as anti-american which is obviously not popular here to listen to. You are starting to sound like the US has done absolutely nothing positive. I know there are many bad things going on, but there have to be something good in your country. Healthcare? Schools? I dunno.Why don’t you tell me. Is there anything positive going on in your country? It doesn’t even have to be something positive the US has done. Maybe your government has done something positive in your neighborhood. Maybe you have done something. Most Americans do not favor the war, don’t favor the occupation, and are not really pleased with the way things are going on in our part. We don’t listen to you on the radio to remind us of what we already know and feel. Your job should be to share with us the things we don’t know. The things that we can’t read about or hear about on TV. Personally, I can’t stand Tony and you are really the only interesting part of his show. Unfortunately, as of recent, I have grown a little tired of hearing you complaining over and over about the same stuff. Mix it up. Become interesting again and you will make us interested again. If you respond, I will happily write you back.
A fan,
Philip A.
Phoenix, AZ USA

My letter to G.W.Bush

2008-11-25T10:10:00.000-08:00

This is my response to Thomas Friedman article “Dear Iraqi Friends (Published September 23, 2008).

From: Ghazwan Al-Mukhtar

To: President George W. Bush

Dear Mr. President, I am writing to you because I know that your letter to President Talabani and others will not be answered. I suspect that they are busy jockeying for power and the wealth of my country Iraq. As an Iraqi citizen I have taken the liberty to reply for them.

Mr. President, I am writing to you on a matter of grave importance. It’s hard to express how deep the humanitarian crisis in Iraq today. There are nearly 3 million Iraqi refugees living in poverty in surrounding countries. Another 2 millions are internally displaced. Those who lucky not to be forced out of their houses are living in darkness because the electricity generated now is less than that before the fall of Baghdad more than 5 years ago.

To compound the misery of the Iraqi people your friends, Talabani and Maliki, are starving the civilian population of Iraq. Through corruption and inefficiency the food ration system provides now less than that before the fall of Baghdad. The food ration system was installed in 1991 in response to your father’s war on Iraq. The UN said then that the Iraqi food ration system was “the most equitable food distribution”. More than 80% of the population is dependent on the system. It was less than 60% before your war of terror 2003.

Probably your friends, Talabani and Maliki, are too ashamed to tell you that the people of “the land between the two rivers” do not have clean drinking water. As a result now Cholera epidemic is killing hundreds of poor Iraqis mostly children. Last year Cholera started in “Al Qaeda free” Kurdistan. This year it started south of Baghdad and is speeding fast. Your friends, Mr. President, deny it but the death is continuing.

The Sick and injured civilians in Iraq can not find the proper medical care that they used to enjoy in the past.. Nearly half of the Iraqi doctors have fled the country for their own safety. I know, Mr. President that you do not like to be reminded that John Hopkins School of Public Heath study which estimated that more than one million Iraqis died then, because of your war of terror on Iraqis. That is a fact my friend that is a fact.

I know Mr. President that you are now interested in the economic conditions in your county which you called the economic 911. I totally agree with you, that it is too much for America to spend One billion dollars a day in Iraq. America could save hundreds of billion of dollars by pulling your troop out of my country. I am sure that the billions saved could be a great boost to the American economy. It could used to help rebuilding New Orleans, or Galveston. I do trust your wisdom of knowing what to do with the saved Billions.

Do not misunderstand me, Mr. President; I do appreciate Americans effort to establishing the “New Iraqi Army”. What I am criticizing is the wisdom of dissolving the “Old Iraqi Army”. Iraq had compulsory military service which made the “old Army” a truly representative of the Iraqi society. Everybody, irrespective of his ethnicity, or religious sect served in the “Old Army”. It was The Notational Army. What you have created now is an ethnic, secretion and sometimes party affiliated “New Iraqi Army” units. Probably you know that the separate Kurdish parties have separate military units of the “New Iraqi Army”. Those unite follow orders from their respective parties and not the Central government in Baghdad.

I find it strange, Mr. President that you talk about constitutions being imposed on the Arab people by kings or dictators. The current Iraqi constitution was written by Noah Fieldman and was imposed on us by the Americans and not by Arab kings or dictators. It was cosmetically modified to ensure its acceptance. So far after 2 years the parliamentary committee has proposed modification to 60 of the 142 articles. I am sure that the committee will continue quarreling for the next few years without reaching agreement on the supposedly our “Noah Fieldman” constitution.

No doubt you know the Iraqi government has accumulated more than 80 billion dollars deposited in US banks. They have the money to help the poor Iraqi refugees. It is just that your friends do not give a damn. They are busy running their corruption racket. For two years in a row Iraq occupied the top of the list of the most corrupt governments behind only the war lords run Somalia and the military Junta in Myanmar.

Mr. President, Iraq does not need a new oil law to give long term concessions to your oil companies. Iraq in 1980 exported twice as much as the current export figures. Few short term service contracts will double our production in a very short time. Even your best Iraqi friends, Talabani and Maliki, could not accept conditions put to them by the American companies. They activated a Saddam era service contract with the China. Mr. President, we owe it to future generation of Iraqis to safeguard their wealth. It is important that Iraq oil should be explored wisely and rationally. It is important also to keep the oil in the ground if for nothing else to safely keep it away from the hands of the Thieves of Baghdad.

Finally, Mr. President, even your friends in Baghdad, Talabani and Maliki, want the US forces to leave Iraq by 2011. My question, to you and to the American people, are you going to impose yourself on the Iraqi people? Are you going to continue to be un-welcomed guests in our country? I know that no self-respecting American would agree to stay.

It takes courage, Mr. President, to admit a mistake. It is even more courageous to take actions to correct the mistake. Please have the courage to order the withdrawal of your troop from Iraq now before someone else makes that decision. It will save your legacy and will show you as a courageous leader.

I pray to God almighty to open your eyes to see the facts and give you the wisdom.

Respectfully

Ghazwan Al-Mukhtar
Ordinary Iraqi Citizen