Gorilla’s Guides

Baghdad-Death (Feature) (English) :: Aswat al Iraq ::

Iraqis say Death forced them to stay indoors
By Monther Hamad Zahi

Abu Mohammed, a taxi driver, was speaking his own mind about Iraqi politics but broke into tears when memories of the tragic death of his children, killed in sectarian violence, stirred his feelings.

“My 14-year-olds, Mohammad and Rafid, had gone one day to visit their (paternal) uncles in one of Baghdad’s areas and vanished there before even reaching their uncles’ homes,” Abu Mohammed bitterly told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).

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The big story this morning is that Saddam has been hanged. I’m stuck for time this morning so English language coverage only I’m afraid:

Aswat Al Iraq [English]

Voices of Iraq: Saddam-Execution-Update 3

Posted by: nadioshka on Saturday, December 30, 2006 - 06:41 AM

Saddam-Execution-Update 3
Saddam, Barzan and Awwad hanged in Iraq – TV
(Adds details)
Baghdad, Dec 30, (VOI) – Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, his half-brother Barzan al-Tikriti and former head of revolutionary court Awwad al-Bandar were all executed at dawn on Saturday, the first day of the Moslem Eid al-Adha (Bairam), al-Iraqiya official TV channel said.

Read more…

Voices of Iraq: Saddam-Execution-Update 2

Posted by: nadioshka on Saturday, December 30, 2006 - 06:11 AM

Saddam-Execution-Update 2
Saddam Hussein executed on Saturday– media
(Adds al-Iraqiya TV report)
Baghdad, Dec 30, (VOI) – Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was hanged on Saturday, the first day of Eid al-Adha (Bairam), al-Iraqiya official TV channel said.

Read more…

Voices of Iraq: Saddam-Execution-Update 1

Posted by: nadioshka on Saturday, December 30, 2006 - 05:49 AM

Saddam-Execution-Update 1
Saddam Hussein executed by hanging - media
(Adds other sources, details)
Baghdad, Dec 30, (VOI) – Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was hanged on Saturday, the first day of Eid al-Adha (Bairam), several news agencies and TV channels reported.

Read more…

Voices of Iraq: Saddam-Execution (Urgent)

Posted by: nadioshka on Saturday, December 30, 2006 - 05:34 AM

Saddam-Execution (Urgent)
Saddam Hussein hanged – Reuters quoting al-Hurra TV
Baghdad, Dec 30, (VOI) – Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was hanged at dawn on Saturday, Reuters news agency quoted al-Hurra TV channel as saying.

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Voices of Iraq: Saddam Hussein hanged – Reuters quoting al-Hurra TV

Posted by: nadioshka on Saturday, December 30, 2006 - 05:24 AM

Saddam Hussein hanged – Reuters quoting al-Hurra TV

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Voices of Iraq: Saddam-Execution-Update 1

Posted by: nadioshka on Saturday, December 30, 2006 - 12:29 AM

Saddam-Execution-Update 1
Conflicting news about Saddam execution
Baghdad, Dec 29, (VOI) – Conflicting news surfaced about whether Iraqi former President Saddam Hussein would be executed on Saturday or after Eid al-Adha (Bairam) and whether the U.S. army has handed him over to the Iraqi government or not.

86 Reads
Read more…

Voices of Iraq: Saddam-Gallows

Posted by: nadioshka on Friday, December 29, 2006 - 11:57 PM

Saddam-Gallows
Gallows set up for Saddam inside Baghdad’s Green Zone
By Wathiq Ismael
Baghdad, Dec 29, (VOI) – The gallows have been set up for former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein inside Baghdad’s heavily-fortified Green Zone, al-Hurra satellite TV said on Friday.

78 Reads
Read more…

Voices of Iraq: Saddam-Execution (Urgent)

Posted by: nadioshka on Friday, December 29, 2006 - 11:42 PM

Saddam-Execution (Urgent)
Saddam to be executed Saturday dawn – sources
Cairo, Dec 29, (VOI) – Iraqi deposed President Saddam Hussein is to be executed at dawn on Saturday, informed sources revealed on Friday evening.

50 Reads
Read more…There’s more coverage below the fold:

Read more »

The team told me I had to be the first to poke my head from out of the clutter of moving boxes, stuff on the floor, and unwashed coffee cups - so here goes.

Welcome

On behalf of all of the team for “Gorilla’s Guides” I’m very glad to say “Ahlan wa-sahlan,” “Welcome” to our guests at this, the new home of “Gorilla’s Guides.”

When Abbas, Ali, Laith, Maryam, Omar, and my son Dubhaltach, talked me into starting “Guides” they did so as an offshoot of a larger project, their crowning argument was that a westerner who both knew and liked Iraq and Lebanon had a duty to try to help bridge the gulf of mutual suspicion and ignorance between the peoples of the Middle East and their counterparts. Their other argument was that Du and myself were in a unique position to teach people whom we knew in both Iraq and Lebanon some of the basics of research, data-gathering, writing, editing and publishing to the Internet in a language and alphabet that is not their own.

I was relutant as I feared that the amount of work involved would be both exhausting and would hinder my other work. I’m very glad that I “caved in.”‘ Several of our “graduates” now make their living as freelance researchers and writers in both Arabic and English in Iraq and elsewhere.

The series of postings of news from Iraq translated and summarised from Arabic language Iraqi independent news source is the first fruit of that training. Credit for that particular project’s inception goes not to me, but to Dubhaltach, Laith, Omar, and Laith’s son Mohammed.

I’m very pleased that the Iraqi contingent are increasingly taking over both writing for, and moderating, “Guides.”

The “brown people,” as they refer to themselves in our internal discussions, are already the overwhelming majority of moderators, within months I expect them to be the overwhelming majority of writers and editors. They have always set both the tone and policy of the site.

As a group the “Gorilla’s Guides” team is very disparate. We’re from different countries, backgrounds, religions, and sects. What we have in common is that while we may not be brothers and sisters in religion we are brothers and sisters in humanity. What we also have in common is the passionate conviction that war and all its attendant evils, is invariably the result of arrogance and of folly. Wars invariably take place because Somebody somewhere thought they could get away with it. We share the belief that in the case of the wars being waged primarily by America and her allies in the Middle East, the folly, the miscalculation, is the idea that colonialism is still viable. It isn’t. The Middle East belongs to her peoples, not to Western interlopers, it’s their home not ours and other than as freely invited guests we’re not welcome there.

The world has changed. The “brown people” no longer say “Freedom, what a good idea, we’d like some.” These days they say “Freedom, what a good idea, we’ll take it.”

markfromireland

Main stories  on Aswat Al Iraq last night:

• Baaquba 4 civilians kidnapped.
• Baghdad At least 8 civilians  killed at least 10 wounded by a car bomb in Talibiyah (east Baghdad).
• Baghdad Director of Baghdad medical city hospital survived 3 of his guards wounded.
• Baghdad The occupations forces said that one U.S. army of occupation soldier was killed and two wounded when their vehicle rolled over by the side of a canal in Southern Baghdad.
• Baghdad Two higher education ministry employees wounded in an attack by gunmen.
• Basra Two British army of occupation soldiers wounded in a bombing attack on their patrol.
• Karbala District mayor and his driver shot and killed in Karbala.
• Najaf The U.S. forces killed in the early hours of Wednesday Sahib al-Aamiri a major Sadr movement leader at his home  near Najaf.

  The head of the Shaheed Allah Foundation Sahib al-Aamiri was shot at his home Hiyrah  18 km south of Najaf, in front of his wife and children during a raid led by American army of occupation troops at 4 am this morning. 

• Sulaimaniyah Iraqi police arrested 15 people suspected of involvement in the Khanaqin bombing.
• Sulaimaniyah 30 members of Islamic Kurdish parties with charges of planning arrested and charged with planning “terrorist” attacks.
• Wassit Three Iraqi soldiers were killed in a road side bomb attack near Sawiyrah.

URL [Arabic] 

Analysis & Commentary:

There’s absolutely no doubt what the main story of the day is. Nor can there be any doubt that this development is going to be disastrous for the American occupation of Iraq and its war against her people. Who was Sahib al-Aamiri?

Sahib al-Aamiri and The Shaheed Allah Foundation

Sahib al-Aamiri was a lawyer who was the the head of the Shaheed Allah [Martyr of God] foundation. He was deeply religious and deeply charitable. Like many who work with the poorest of the poor in Iraq he became a Sadrist and in his personal capacity was active in politics. The key word in the preceding sentence is “personal”.

The Shaheed Allah founation is a charity for orphans and the poor it’s not part of the Mehdi Army it is renowned for the charity work it does - particularly for widows, orphans, and street children. So was its director. Moreover contrary to what you’ll read in the Western reports it was not a political organisation.

There’s no doubt he was a Sadrist, there’s equally no doubt that a less likely candidate for leading a bomber cell could be found anywhere in Iraq.

How He Died

At 4AM this morning green zone government troops from a unit conspicuously loyal to SCIRI and led by American army of occupation troops burst violently into his home. However who it was who actually shot him dead in front of his wife and children was the American “advisor” in command of the raid.

The ATBABBO Version of Events 

This latest ATBABBO action was described by the art-loving ATBABBO spokesweasel in chief Major General William Caldwell as follows:

“8th Iraqi Army Division Forces, with coalition advisors, killed a suspected improvised explosive device facilitator and cell leader during operations Dec. 27 in Abu Sukhayr, near An Najaf. The person was implicated in an October 2006 IED attack on a police chief in An Najaf. The suspect allegedly provided recently several IEDs to his cell for an attack that he allegedly directed be carried out against Iraqi and Coalition Forces in the An Najaf area.

During operations, Iraqi forces and coalition advisors entered the individual’s house to search for and detain him. Upon entrance, a man was observed moving up a set of stairs leading to the roof of the house. He ignored repeated verbal warnings to stop. Iraqi Soldiers and coalition advisors followed the man up the stairs and onto the roof.

First on the roof was an Iraqi Soldier, followed by a Coalition Forces Soldier. The Coalition Soldier observed the male, now armed with an assault rifle, turning his weapon toward the Iraqi Soldier. The Coalition Soldier observed the man’s hostile intent against the Iraqi Soldier and shot the man, neutralizing the threat and resulting in his death.

The man was identified as the suspected IED facilitator.

There was minimal damage done to the objective. There were no Iraqi forces or Coalition Forces casualties.” [I don’t have any press briefing transcripts yet that’s the press release - markfromireland.]

Caldwell’s statement however is flatly contradicted by the family who say that he was shot:

“on the pretext that he resisted arrest. “

Source

It’s far more likely that the family is telling the truth than Caldwell. Consider the following:

• The raid took place at 4 in the morning.
  • Visibility isn’t exactly good at that time.
• To those who’ve seen them in action green zone government troops aren’t exactly good at moving around quietly.
  • The victim would have heard them arrive.
• The reports I’m getting from people in Najaf are that as a cautious man he would have gone up onto the roof to investigate the suspicious noises from outside. This is an entirely reasonable course of action for a father with a young family in present day Iraq.
• Najaf is one of the parts of Iraq where SCIRI are desperately eager to hang on to control.
  • The deceased was a popular and increasinly infuential man. He believed passionately in the unity of Iraq.
  • He was adamantly anti-sectarian.
  • He had repeatedly and trenchantly criticised SCIRI on both those counts.
  • He had repeatedly condemned death squad activity throughout the governorate.

All of these are amongst the reasons why people in Iraq don’t believe a word of Caldwell’s statement. Come to that I don’t either. Trigger happy doesn’t begin to describe the ATBABBO troops in Iraq. It’s entirely likely that the ATBABBO who shot him simply opened fire without warning. It’d be very far from the first time. All you have to do is look at the CERPS figures to give an idea of the scale of carnage wreaked by American troops upon the Iraqi populace.

The Reaction and Consequences

Reaction in to the killing was swift and angry. Al Sadr issued a statement calling for “calm and restraint.” More to the point is the reaction of many of his followers who refuse to be drawn into a confrontation with the occupation yet. However you  take it that when his senior policy adviser Abdul-Razzes al-Malawi said:

“U.S. forces want to drag us into a confrontation, but we won’t be dragged into it. However, we promise them there will be a reaction at the appropriate time.”

That he wasn’t making idle threats.

markfromireland

Breaking News: US Forces Kill Sadrist Leader Near Najaf : Aswat al Iraq:

U.S. forces kill a Sadrist leader near Najaf

By Haider al-Kaabi

Najaf, Dec 27, (VOI) – The U.S. forces killed in the early hours of Wednesday a leader of the Shiite Sadr movement after a raid to the killed Sadrist’s house near Najaf.

“The U.S. forces raided on Wednesday 4:00 am the house of Shaheed Allah foundation chief Sahib al-Aamiri in Hiyrah district, 18 km south of Najaf, and shot him dead,” an al-Aamiri’s family member told the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).

Sahib al-Aamiri is a prominent leader of the Shiite cleric Muqtada al-sadr’s movement.

Neither Shaheed Sadr office in Najaf nor the U.S. army made a comment on the incident.

VOI correspondent in the Shiite sacred city of Najaf reported the Iraqi security forces immediately went on alert in preparation to any emergency situation.

The incident came only one week after the security responsibility in Najaf province, 160 km southwest of Baghdad, was transferred to the Iraqi army from the Multi-National forces.

URL [Arabic]   URL [English]

This comes under the heading of “Uh Oh” Or if you prefer to put it this way it comes under the heading of “You’ll be sooooooooooooory.”  For crying out loud.

markfromireland