Tag: Basra

Truth & Reconciliation, Part III, by Ross Caputi

Posted on by kathiemm

 

 

Child at Fallujah Maternity and Children’s hospital. Photo by Dahr Jamail, used with permission
Child at Fallujah Maternity and Children’s hospital.
Photo by Dahr Jamail, used with permission

 

There was no casus belli (just cause) for the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The leaders of the coalition forces treated the lives of Iraqi civilians with reckless disregard as they bombed and invaded Iraq, citing intelligence they knew to be questionable. The shock-and-awe bombing of Iraq claimed over 7,000 lives, and the subsequent occupation claimed hundreds of thousands more.

The occupation also shredded the social fabric of Iraqi society, exploited a social division in Iraq that previously held little significance, provoked a civil war between the Sunni and Shia communities, and has resulted in entrenched resentments and a divided country.

Entire communities have been displaced, uprooting people, robbing them of their historical bond with their locality. The agricultural system, the historic seed bank, the marshes, have all been forced to change.

The medical and educational systems have been destroyed too. Many Iraqi researchers, instructors, and doctors have been assassinated. Many others have fled the country, leaving these essential services understaffed and incapable of meeting the needs of Iraqis.

Worse yet, pollution from war has left Iraq with a crippling public health crisis. Rises in birth defects and cancers have been reported throughout the country, with extreme rates in cities like Fallujah and Basra. Iraq will remain contaminated with radiation for billions of years because of uranium weapons. And the extent of the contamination from other sources—such as burn pits and lead and mercury from conventional munitions—is still unknown.

The occupation has left Iraq divided, polluted, and silenced under a corrupt political system and an oppressive government that enjoys considerable support from both the US and Iran.

What was taken from Iraqis can never be given back to them in its entirety. The harm our society caused theirs is immeasurable. Reparations are a moral imperative. Though the cause of the harm may be unidirectional, the healing will not be. Assisting Iraqis in the rebuilding of their society will cultivate in us a culture of responsibility, solidarity, and caring.

Join us at Islah [http://www.reparations.org/projects/truth-reconciliation/ in collaborating with Iraqis who are rebuilding the social infrastructure of their society. Help us in confronting the public silence surrounding the crimes committed against the Iraqi people. By campaigning for an international war crimes tribunal too, we hope to collaborate with Iraqis to create the requisite conditions for a future truth and reconciliation commission.

Ross is currently on the Board of Directors of ISLAH. He is also a graduate student and a writer. In 2004, he was a US Marine in the US-led occupation of Iraq. His experience there, in particular his experience during the 2nd siege of Fallujah, compelled him to leave the US military and join the anti-war movement. His activism has focused on our society’s moral obligation to our victims in Iraq, and to the responsibility of veterans to renounce their hero status in America.

“I think tomorrow, we lose air” (Liberate THIS, Part 14)

Posted on by kathiemm

[A continuing series by guest author Dr. Dahlia Wasfi]

I stepped off of the rickety bus at the Iraqi border along with my fellow passengers making the difficult journey into occupied land. I was so tired, both from the long trip and my recent crying. My eyes alternated between staring vaguely into the distance in a sleep-deprived daze and darting toward my belongings to make sure nothing got stolen.

U.S. government providing clothing to Iraqi people
U.S. government providing clothing to Iraqi people. Photo by ThinkpadR50 at en.wikipedia; used under CC Attribution-Share Alike 30.0 unported license.

I was trying to put my thoughts together to decide what to do next when I believe I witnessed a divine intervention. My gaze moved up from my cart of belongings to find Ahmed standing right before me. I felt an unbelievable rush of relief and joy.

The harrowing part of the journey was over.  I believed then that everything would be all right.

Ahmed did all the paperwork for me; he had to since it was in Arabic. We meandered over to a car where another cousin and their friend were waiting. All that I’d brought was loaded into the trunk, and I relaxed into the back seat, feeling safe for the first time in what felt like days.

When we arrived at my uncle’s house, I got the same beautifully warm welcome from my family as I had before. It was early afternoon, which was early morning for me back home, and I was utterly exhausted. Though it was rude of me, while the family sat down to the big midday meal made in my honor, I curled up in my cousin’s bed and slipped into a deep, serene sleep.

On my first full day back in Basra, we lost electricity completely. On the second day, we ran out of water.  On the third day, we lost telephone service. When we realized the phone lines were dead, Ahmed jokingly predicted, “I think tomorrow, we lose air!” We all laughed.

Despite suffering the hardships of war, sanctions, and occupation for their entire lives, my cousins showed resilience and tenacity. I was amazed by their intact sense of humor in unpredictable and dangerous conditions.

But this spoiled American accustomed to the luxuries of electricity and running water thought worriedly, “What the hell did I get myself into for the next three months?”

Iraq’s borders were sealed (Liberate THIS, Part 12)

Posted on by kathiemm

A continuing series by Dr. Dahlia Wasfi

Map of Iraq & Kuwait
Image in public domain

In late 2004 through early 2005, kidnappings of Westerners became prominent news stories.  Fearing for my safety amidst ever-escalating anti-American sentiment, my Iraqi family advised me to stay safely at home.

Yet I was undeterred from making another trip and selfishly gave little thought to the potential danger for my family’s “harboring” an American.

That my father is Iraqi and I was on vacation probably wouldn’t mean much to those seeking expensive ransoms to feed their families or wishing to send a message to foreigners to get out of Iraq.

But I was mostly oblivious to the risks.  I figured that if I were kidnapped, I could use the few words of Arabic I’d learned growing up (from when my father was angry) in reference to my government.  Surely, I thought, with such skills of wit and a photo of my father, I could get myself out of any sticky situation.

By the end of 2005, with no end to the chaos in sight, my family agreed to host me once again, before the situation deteriorated further.

Because the road from Amman to Baghdad was now exceedingly dangerous, my trip was planned only for Basra this time. Hostility still governed relations between Iraq and Kuwait, not only from the era of Gulf War I, but from the decades of territorial dispute dating back to the early twentieth century.

Even with an American passport, I knew my Iraqi background might be sufficient cause for Kuwaiti border officials to make my trip more difficult. But I didn’t see any other option. I bought tickets to fly via London to Kuwait City, which sits about 82 miles (132 kilometers) from Basra, with the Iraq-Kuwait border about halfway in between.

I had a planned layover in London for two days to attend an anti-war conference organized by the UK Stop the War Coalition. My scheduled flight to Kuwait was for the following evening, December 11th.  If Kuwait had been my final destination, I could have made the trip without a problem.

However, four days before the scheduled December 15 elections, Iraq’s borders were sealed for “security” reasons.  I had to postpone my trip out of London until the borders were reopened.

With bitter sarcasm, I joked with my family that the new Iraq had so much freedom in it that occupation forces had to close the borders to contain it all.

 

A bouquet of stories: Valentines for peace

Posted on by patdaniel
Malbin peace sculpture
"Vista of Peace" sculpture by Ursula Malbin. Photo by Guillaume Paumier / Wikimedia Commons, CC-by-3.0.

For the second Valentine’s day in the life of Engaging Peace, we want to re-share some posts that have been among the wonderful gifts our readers have given us.  The following selection focuses on messages of peace and love.

(1) A few years ago I joined “Checkpoint Watch,” an Israeli human rights organization of women who monitor and report human rights violations towards Palestinians who move from the occupied territories of Palestine to Israel.  Continue reading →   (Dalit Yassour-Borochowitz, October 21, 2010)

(2) It has been a privilege for the Paraclete Foundation to bring the Benebikira Sisters to Boston and to tell their story of courage and love during the 1994 Rwandan Genocide that claimed over 800,000 lives in 100 days.  Continue reading →   (Sister Ann Fox , November 8, 2010)

(3) In a way that only being physically present in this country could convey, I’ve realized that the genocide is a very difficult thing for Rwandans to talk about. If people do speak about the horrors they have encountered, it is only under very hushed circumstances or around people they trust.  Continue reading →   (Andrew Potter, June 23, 2011)

(4) The framework for my reflections is constructed from Dr. Martin Luther King’s Speech delivered at Riverside Church in April, 1967 (a year before his assassination).  Continue reading →   (Dean Hammer,  July 21, 2011)

(5) My father was born and raised in Basra, Iraq. Graduating from Baghdad University, he earned a government scholarship to study in the United States. He completed his graduate studies at Georgetown University. While in DC, he met and married my mom, a nice Jewish girl from New York. Her parents had fled their homeland … Continue reading →   (Dahlia Wasfi, September 19, 2011)

(6) I have just returned from the demonstration to support Occupy Boston (10-10-11) and can happily report that it was a successful march of probably two or more thousand people.  Continue reading →  (John Hess, October 17, 2011)

(7) Over the past few weeks we have heard stories of bravery, courage, hope, happiness, and grief from Palestine. The stories accompanied the news that just over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners would be freed in exchange for … Continue reading →   (San’aa Sultan, November 3, 2011)

(8) Eva Mozes Kor, a “Mengele Twin” who survived the genetic experiments at Auschwitz, chose the non-standard route to recovery: forgiveness.  Continue reading →  (Elina Tochilnikova, December 26, 2011)

(9) From the time of… Moses, who helped guide the Israelis out of slavery and oppression to freedom, to Jesus, who preached equality and love and changed the whole human understanding of power structures, to … Continue reading →   (Majed Ashy, January 12, 2012)

Kathie Malley-Morrison, Professor of Psychology, and Pat Daniel, Managing Editor of Engaging Peace