Live from Baghdad

Iraqi Law Students Compete in International Moot Court Competition

Test their forensic skills against top students from 88 countries

By Phillip Kurata
Washington File Staff Writer
March 31, 2005

Washington -- Law students from Iraq have matched forensic wits against law students from 87 other countries in Iraq's first participation in an international competition for budding lawyers.

Lajan M. Amin, Paiwast A. Marouf, Erian J. Hamid and Rebaz K. Muhammad from the law school of Sulaymaniya University are representing Iraq in the 46th annual Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition taking place in Washington March 27 through April 2.

Working in teams of two, the law students presented their arguments before a mock tribunal of three justices pretending to be the International Court of Justice. The Iraqis spoke in Arabic, the judges in English, and their exchanges were interpreted simultaneously.

The competition was structured in a way that pitted one team of student lawyers representing the fictitious Republic of Appollonia against another team representing the fictitious Kingdom of Raglan, an archipelago lying about 700 kilometers off the Appollonian coast.

The dispute, which Appollonia and Raglan have taken to the International Court of Justice for settlement, arises from a hypothetical incident involving the Appollonian-flagged cargo ship, the Mairi Maru. The Mairi Maru, carrying a cargo of toxic nuclear waste, was seized by pirates as it was passing through the Raglan archipelago.

The pirates stole the ship's navigation and communication equipment and its safe, disabled its steering system and abandoned it to a storm. The storm drove the disabled ship onto uninhabited sandbars, unclaimed by any nation, southeast of the Raglan archipelago, where the ship began to leak toxic waste. The sandbars, famous for sport fishing, generated significant tourist income for the Raglans. To limit environmental damage, the Raglan navy towed the Mairi Maru and its toxic cargo into blue water and sank it at a depth of 9000 meters.

The hypothetical case "involves issues of responsibility for piracy, nuclear transport, and whether consent is required for a ship to enter another country's territorial waters with a potentially hazardous nuclear cargo," said Haider Ala Hamoudi, a coach of the Iraqi team.

During a preliminary round March 29, Lajan M. Amin and Paiwast A. Marouf presented oral arguments on behalf of Raglan. The two Iraqi women invoked the U.N. Conference on the Law of the Sea, international conventions related to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and a number of legal precedents to press Raglan's claims for compensation for the release of nuclear waste following the piracy.

In presenting their arguments, the two Iraqi law students faced a withering barrage of questions from the three judges.

"If Raglan is not party to the IAEA, then how can you use the IAEA as a basis for law? Does the IAEA specifically establish rights for third states? What is the binding nature of IAEA law?" the presiding magistrate asked.

A judge asked Marouf about Raglan's right to sink the Mairu Maru because it posed an environmental threat.

"Raglan is entitled to take any action necessary to protect its environment," responded Marouf.

The magistrate pointed to the three women arguing the case of Appollonia. "If it is determined that these three women pose a threat to the environment, can I take them out and shoot them?" the magistrate asked.

The question provoked a momentary silence from the Raglan counsel while a chuckle rippled through the spectators in the room, but the serious intent of the question was unmistakable.

It highlighted the degree of legal sophistication required to operate in the international legal environment.

After the moot court was adjourned, Amin commented, "This was a wonderful experience for us because it was the first time for us to practice at this level and it was a great opportunity to learn a great deal."

Marouf said, "It was a great experience for us. It was the first experience for Iraq to participate in international competition. I hope that in future years not only our university but also universities from other cities will be able to participate."

Rebaz K. Muhammad, a Sulaymaniya University law student, who sat in the audience at this session, said participation in the competition allowed the students to gain a great deal of experience in presenting oral arguments in an international legal setting.

"We learned a great deal about public international law as well as maritime law, an issue which is not covered very deeply in the Iraqi educational system. We learned a great deal from the other teams as well in the process of arguing with them," he added.

The Iraqis' participation in the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition was arranged by the International Human Rights Law Institute, located at DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois. With funding provided by the U.S. Agency for International Development, the institute is operating a legal education reform project at three law schools in Iraq: Baghdad, Basra and Sulaymaniya.

David Guinn, the executive director of the institute, said the program involves four main components: 1) library reconstruction, information technology and infrastructure development; 2) curriculum reform; 3) clinical education; and 4) a national effort involving law professors concerning legal reform.

The students' participation in the Jessup competition was part of the clinical education component.

Two Sulaymaniya University law professors, Omer R. Saman and Muhammad Hanoon Jafar, accompanied the students to Washington.

Saman said the Iraqi team held training sessions with Italian and American teams before the competition began. He said the training sessions helped the Iraqis spot weaknesses and improve their performance.

"Hopefully, in the future, we will be able to improve our preparations and send a better performing team," Saman said.

Jafar said after returning to Iraq, he is going to organize a similar moot court competition to demonstrate oral arguments presentation to the entire law school student body.

"The notion of practice-based education has generated a lot of interest in Iraqi law schools. Holding this court would hopefully raise student interest in practice-based education," he said.

(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

Soldier from Oregon, 46, dies in Kuwait

NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense

Apr 20, 2005

DoD Identifies Army Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Maj. Steven W. Thornton, 46, of Eugene, Ore., died April 18 in Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, when he collapsed during physical training. Thornton was assigned to the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command, Fort Monmouth, N.J.

Saddam's men strike back in purge that left river of blood

From James Hider in Baghdad
The Times (London)
April 22, 2005

ABU QADDUM lays out the pictures of mutilated bodies dredged from the Tigris River like a player dealing cards.

Some had their hands cut off, others are headless or burnt. Another was strangled, with his tongue lolling out. He thinks one bloated, slime-covered corpse might be his younger brother.

The shocking images come from Iraq's new killing fields - the small town of Madain just 20 miles from Baghdad.

In other times the massacre might have prompted calls for international intervention. But there are already 150,000 US and British troops in Iraq and this was done under their noses. Abu Qaddum's pictures are a terrifying testament to the chaos of Iraq.

Madain has had no police force since a mob of criminals and insurgents burnt down the police station last year. The police fled.

Sunni guerrillas quickly took over, running the town as their own criminal fiefdom and randomly killing Shia residents, whom they considered infidels and US sympathisers. Then they launched an all-out attempt to purge the town of its Shias.

News of this "ethnic cleansing" leaked out in confusing rumours.

Shia officials spoke last weekend of a massive hostage-taking. But when Iraqi Interior Ministry commandos stormed the town they found car bombs, weapons and a training camp - but no kidnappers and no hostages. The whole story was dismissed as scaremongering.

Then the photographs of the bodies emerged and with them the tale of Abu Qaddum - a resident who survived the massacre and this week alerted President Talabani. "I think there may be 300 bodies in the Tigris," he told The Times yesterday.

He recounted how, for the past year, Sunni insurgents have built bases in abandoned farmhouses in the lush river plains south of Baghdad.

First the gangs attacked Madain's police station. An armed mob set fire to the building and the police cars. Emboldened by the lack of a response from the US-led occupation, the guerrillas then started using a former Republican Guard base as a training camp.

More guerrillas dribbled in, many affiliated to the extremist group Ansa al-Sunna and led by a Syrian called Annas Abu Ayman.

They installed a reign of terror, kidnapping government employees and members of Shia political parties. Sometimes the bodies surfaced in the palm groves, more often people just vanished.

When US forces stormed the guerrilla stronghold of Fallujah in November, more fighters arrived in Madain, on the eastern fringes of a lawless area known as the Triangle of Death. During Ramadan last autumn, throngs of Sunni guerrillas mustered around a mosque, denouncing Shias as traitors and spies, lambasting them for not joining the resistance.

Abu Qaddum said that the Shias did not respond until the guerrillas assassinated their leader, Sheikh Mahmoud al-Madaini, as he headed to prayers. His car was intercepted by a convoy of 15 vehicles packed with gunmen, who riddled it with bullets. The sheikh, his son and three others were killed.

The Shias went to Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, their spiritual leader in the holy city of Najaf. Abu Qaddum said that the septuagenarian cleric, who is an avowed moderate, told them that their relatives were martyrs but that they should stay their hand: the terrorists wanted the Shias to attack to spark a civil war - which would be worse.

On February 10 a convoy of police finally arrived in Madain. At first the officers found the place calm. But news of their arrival had been leaked - even Abu Qaddum knew that they were coming - and the guerrillas sprang a well-planned ambush. Many officers died and the wounded who were captured were doused in petrol and burnt to death.

After that, the kidnapping and killing accelerated. "They were taking two or three people a day, killing people in the street, going into people's houses to drag them out," Abu Qaddum said.

The guerillas also set up checkpoints on the road to Baghdad, executing government officials when they could find them, and looting and burning lorries.

People were too scared to go to market for fear of being seized. At night families stood guard in two-hour shifts. Six weeks ago Abu Qaddum's brother went to find a doctor for his sick wife and was never seen again.

The guerrillas blew up a mosque and posted notices saying that Shias should leave town or die. The Shia political parties started a press campaign - but it was dismissed by the Interior Ministry, whose officials said that the whole affair was a tribal feud.

When Iraqi troops finally moved in they found no sign of the horror. They asked through loudspeakers for witnesses to show them where the terrorists and their hostages were. The Shias were too terrified to come forward, knowing that the troops could be gone in a week.

The story was dismissed as exaggeration. Then the first bodies were found. Some had broken free of concrete slabs to which they had been tied before they were thrown in the river.

A distraught father looking for his son heard about this and hired a Baghdad diver to investigate. The diver emerged, filled with horror, saying that the riverbed was thick with bodies. So far 57 have been found but Abu Qaddum - now a refugee living in another city under an assumed name - says that local police are too afraid to retrieve any more. Locals want American troops to secure the area and send divers down for the rest. US embassy and Iraqi government spokesmen told The Times that they were investigating the affair.

Roadside bomb in western Iraq kills Flagstaff and New York marines

NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense

Apr 21, 2005

DoD Identifies Marine Casualties

The Department of Defense announced today the death of two Marines who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Cpl. Kelly M. Cannan, 21, of Lowville, N.Y.

Lance Cpl. Marty G. Mortenson, 22, of Flagstaff, Ariz.

Both Marines were killed April 20 as the result of the detonation of an improvised explosive device while conducting combat operations in Ar Ramadi, Iraq. They were assigned to 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif. As part of Operation Iraqi Freedom their unit was attached to a 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward).

Buffalo and Oregon soldiers are killed in Baghdad by car bomb

NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense

Apr 21, 2005

DoD Identifies Army Casualties

The Department of Defense announced today the death of two soldiers who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. They died April 19 in Baghdad, Iraq, when a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device detonated near their dismounted patrol. Both Soldiers were assigned 3rd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division, and Fort Stewart, Ga.

The soldiers are:

Spc. Jacob M. Pfister, 27, of Buffalo, N.Y.

Pfc. Kevin S. K. Wessel, 20, of Newport, Ore.

Soldiers from Brooklyn, Virginia and Michigan are killed in western Iraq

NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense

Apr 19, 2005

DoD Identifies Army Casualties

The Department of Defense announced today the death of three soldiers who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. They died April 16 in Ar Ramadi, Iraq, while conducting combat operations. The soldiers were assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 17th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Camp Hovey, Korea.

Killed were:

Sgt. Angelo L. Lozada Jr., 36, of Brooklyn, N.Y.

Sgt. Tromaine K. Toy Sr., 24, of Eastville, Va.

Spc. Randy L. Stevens, 21, of Swartz Creek, Mich.

Soldier from California, 19, dies from non-combat injuries sustained, south of Baghdad

NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense

Apr 13, 2005

DoD Identifies Army Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Pfc. Casey M. LaWare, 19, of Redding, Calif., died April 9 at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Landstuhl, Germany, from non-combat related injuries sustained April 6 in Al Mahmudiyah, Iraq. LaWare was assigned to the 2nd Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, Fort Irwin, Calif.

The incident is under investigation.

Soldier from Cape Coral, 20, is killed in Baghdad

NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense

Apr 14, 2005

DoD Identifies Army Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Spc. Manuel Lopez III, 20, of Cape Coral, Fla., died April 12 in Baghdad, Iraq, when his HMMWV was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade. Lopez was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, Ga.

Marine corporal from Michigan, 27, dies from mortar fire in western Iraq

NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense

Apr 15, 2005

DoD Identifies Marine Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Cpl. Michael B. Lindemuth, 27, of Petoskey, Mich., died April 13 as a result of wounds received from enemy mortar fire at Camp Hit, Al Anbar Province, Iraq. He was assigned to Inspector/Instructor Staff, 3rd Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division, Akron, Ohio. During Operation Iraq Freedom, Lindemuth was attached to Regimental Combat Team 2, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward).

Marine from Virginia Beach, 31, is killed in western Iraq

NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense

Apr 18, 2005

DoD Identifies Marine Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Capt. James C. Edge, 31, of Virginia Beach, Va, was killed April 14 by enemy small-arms fire while conducting combat operations in Ramadi, Iraq. He was assigned to 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif. During Operation Iraq Freedom, Edge was attached to 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward).

20-year-old soldier injured, south of Baghdad, dies in San Antonio

NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense

Apr 19, 2005

DoD Identifies Army Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Cpl. Tyler J. Dickens, 20, of Columbus, Ga., died April 12 at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, of injuries sustained April 6 in Al Mahmudiyah, Iraq, when his guard tower caught fire. Dickens was assigned to the Army's 2nd Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, Fort Irwin, Calif.

Soldier from Puerto Rico, 33, is killed in Tikrit

NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense

Apr 18, 2005

DoD Identifies Army Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Spc. Aleina Ramirezgonzalez, 33, of Hormigueros, Puerto Rico, died April 15 in Tikrit, Iraq, when a mortar struck her forward operating base. Ramirezgonzalez was assigned to the 3rd Brigade Troop Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, Ga.

Soldier from Indiana, 20, dies, northeast of Baghdad

NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense

Apr 18, 2005

DoD Identifies Army Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Pfc. Steven F. Sirko, 20, of Portage, Ind., died April 17 in Muqdadiyah, Iraq, of non-combat related injuries. Sirko was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Benning, Ga.

Anybody out there? Some departing notes

I’m here. Actually, I’m here. That is, I’m in London. I made it out of Baghdad,…"in the dark of night.” Actually, it was in the light of day – last Thursday morning. It was, though, by ground, when I…wasn’t supposed to do that – not at all. I’ll tell you – the fear is sooo…what-shall-we-call-it?…"exceptional.” The relos said, there was no way I could go overland – that is, by taxi. One cousin asked me, “What – do you wanna kill yourself?” and gave me a parting, “I’ll see you on television,” as she laughed. The main fear, is robbers and kidnappers, along the highway. Lately, though, the news had been good, and there were reports, of extra travelers and truck-traffic. There was one report, though -- you can call it a story, a rumor, whatever -- that "the mujahideen" had killed 30 of the highway robbers/kidnappers near Falluja, and captured 30 more and returned them to their relatives -- all, because the brigands were giving "the mujahideen" a bad reputation. Well, I wasn’t going to fly, blind. I called the taxi service that my mother’s brothers use, and the driver said the roads were good. My cousin's husband cautioned me not to tell anybody – that is, the servants and the grandkids – that I was going overland. “Tell them, you’re going by plane,” he advised, and…sneak out, at dawn, when the taxis depart. I told him I’d already told one or two of the grandkids I was leaving the next day, although I hadn’t told them I was going by car. Then I called my mother's sister, before visiting her, that last night, and she said she, too, had heard the roads were safe, and gave me the name of a taxi company, nearby. I stopped there, before visiting her, and they said the roads had been fine. Their price: $70 -- plus another 10, to take me to the airport, in Amman. My flight from Amman, was to depart, at two a.m. Before making a reservation with them, though, I stopped by an Iraqi Airways office, in the Chadirchi Building, in Mansour, but the man behind the desk said they were booked, till Tuesday. Along the way, I had a couple of glasses of fresh banana-apple-strawberry juice, as well as a falafil sandwich, at the shop I patronized, all last summer. The man behind the counter asked me if I was Kurdish. I said, no, and thanked him. He said I looked Kurdish, or from Kut. I asked him what the connection was, between Kurdish and Kut. He responded, the Fayli Kurds, in Kut, referring to Shi’a Kurds. I didn’t realize they were concentrated in Kut – I thought they were concentrated, farther north, in Diyaaleh province. Whatever.

After visiting my aunt, and as the sun was setting – and I’d been driving, solo, for the second day in a row – bully for me! – I went looking for a dentist, to give me a cleaning – around five dollars, rather than the 60-70 I have to pay, at home. I found one named Hashimi -- same last name, as the one I saw, last summer. The man who came out of the dentist's office – I assumed he was her husband – said she was on her last patient, but agreed they'd stay open for me. I asked him for the other Hashimi. He said there were quite a few, including Dr. Waleed, in the market's next arcade. The second floor of the next arcade was dark, so I returned to the first Hashimi, but they were closing down -- too late. Sixty, 70 bucks, it is.

I could go on to tell you about the ride to Amman, which was interesting, with a father-and-son who “loved Saddam to death” -- he was "the only honorable one." I could also tell you about my run-in with the Jordanian men behind the counters at Amman airport, and finally succumbing to their 12 dinars-per-extra-kilo charge – adding up to 160-something dollars – could’ve been a lot worse – which I paid, just in the nick of time, to get on the plane. Then, I got stuck in Amsterdam airport, all day, Friday – because I fell asleep and didn’t go down a flight of steps, to their floor of some 10 Gate 6s – A through H, I think it was – although, that did give me a chance to see the airport’s mini-Rijksmuseum, but couldn't find one of those delicious Dutch egg-salad sandwiches. I could tell you about the lovely wet greenery of London, the politeness, the efficiency, friendliness, people waiting patiently in line, my trip to the West Country, and seeing all the newly born lambs, on the rich-green hillsides, the friends I’ve been seeing and exchanging notes with, attending “Henry IV – Part I,” tonight, at the National Theatre, and the samosa, and chips, the Cadburys, the buses and the Underground. I’m not going to, though – you’ll just have to wait for the movie.

I wrote the following, late Wednesday, after midnight

I'm about five hours away from leaving Baghdad. It doesn't look like the trials of Saddam and his gang are going to take place, anytime soon, so…I'm off. I've got a plane ticket from Amman to London, late tonight, and…I'm ready to go. I started to feel the coming letdown – a couple of days ago. It's fun being here, in the middle of the action – and, of course, an audience, to follow…me, my writing, what I've got to say. Hey – it's the truth.

Anyhow, I finished my "visits." Yesterday – that is, Tuesday, I went to see the cousin in town. Actually, there's another, and I should've called her, but…shoot me. I took the car, and drove on my own – for the first time. He lives, just around the corner, behind the Iraq Foundation's office, where I worked, last spring and summer. My uncle told me that it's been shut down – that is, the local office. I'll have to find out about that. The drive was fine. The field in front of the office, has been developed further, with a basketball court, and some kind of stage, at one end of the court, to go along with the soccer field that they did up, last year. I woke my cousin up – he said he'd dozed off on the couch, watching a movie, and had broken his glasses, in the process. I said, great – then we can go out, and I can photograph that restaurant called "Tea Time," for a friend – really, my sister's friend -- doing an art project by that name. "But we don't have a car," he said – his son had gone out, to buy some gel, the maid said. "I have one," I replied. I'd already photographed the restaurant once, but at night, and my friend was going to stamp 4:00 pm, on all the pictures, from around the world. My cousin brought out his set of little screwdrivers, and persisted, in trying to fix his glasses, himself. He said the screw was too small, and it kept falling, and we kept having to search for it, on the floor, under the couch, on the coffee table. Eventually, he gave up. We drove – I drove, thank you – to Haarthiyyeh, pulled off to the side of the road, and clicked a couple of shots. They all came out dark, though, for some reason. We moved on – there were two pairs of lit eyeglasses – one red, one green -- above the sidewalk across the street. We took the first – good choice. They had three stained-glass pieces over the front door

There, I stopped, and wound down – sort of expired – the wind-me-up doll…had reached its end.

A Power Vacuum in Iraq?
How rules designed to prevent domination hobble the creation of a new government

By TONY KARON
Time
Tuesday, Mar. 29, 2005

More than two months have passed since 8 million Iraqis braved death to go to the polls, but still they have no new government. The new National Assembly met for a second time on Tuesday, with agreement on the makeup of a new executive branch as elusive as ever. So deep was the discord, in fact, that the Assembly failed even to choose a Speaker. Instead of showing signs of progress to an increasingly impatient electorate, the session portrayed the new legislature as a hung parliament.

As tempers flared among legislators, TV coverage was cut off in order to stop the broadcast of an embarrassing spectacle. But the reason for the deadlock is not simply a failure of Iraq's elected leaders to achieve consensus. The rules of Iraqi democracy, as bequeathed by outgoing U.S. administrator J. Paul Bremer, require the support of a two-thirds majority in the Assembly for the creation of a new government, a standard that the U.S. political system might struggle to meet.

The rules have forced the United Iraqi Alliance, the coalition led by Shiite religious parties that won a narrow majority of Assembly seats in the election, to cut a deal with the Kurdish list that claimed 27 percent of the seats. The Kurds see their once-off kingmaker role as their best opportunity to press for maximum autonomy and oil-revenue share for their independence-minded people.

As their price for endorsing a Shiite-led government, they're demanding not only an extension of their de facto autonomy in their three northern provinces — including the right to retain their own armed forces and prohibit the national army from entering their domain — but also control of the divided oil-rich city of Kirkuk and of Iraq's oil ministry. That's a prohibitive price for the Arab majority, both Shiite and Sunni.

The Kurds, however, mindful that their 27 percent of the Assembly counts for far more in this one moment when a two-thirds majority is required than it will ever count for again, are digging in their heels. And so, the deadlock persists, and threatens to create a long-term power vacuum.

A Weak Government

If Bremer's Transitional Administrative Law (TAL) looks likely to create a relatively weak central government in Baghdad, that was its intent — restraining any one ethnic or religious group from dominating others on the basis of a simple majority.

But the price of that restraint has been to give the Kurdish minority the means to blackmail the majority, which in turn sets the scene for an acrimonious aftermath. The Kurds want to resolve such contentious issues as Kirkuk while their power is at its peak; the Shiites insist it should be done on the basis of a consensus achieved in the new Assembly. And the electorate that put the Shiites in power — and their mentor, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani — are unlikely to accept the legitimacy of any such far-reaching agreements achieved on this basis.

Sistani himself never accepted the TAL, and urged that it be changed by an elected Iraqi body, not simply because its authors had been a U.S. occupation authority but because he rejected the de facto veto it gave to the Kurds. Sistani has begun sending increasingly urgent exhortations to the Assembly to get on with forming a government.

Tuesday's failed assembly session highlighted the fact that the Kurdish-Shiite negotiations are not the only sticking point. There had been broad agreement that the post of Assembly Speaker would go to a Sunni Arab as part of an effort to draw that community into the new polity, but when acting President Ghazi al-Yawer declined the post, legislators could not agree on an alternative.

The mortar shells exploding outside the chamber may have served as a reminder that none of the Sunni elements in the Assembly right now can be deemed representative of a community that mostly stayed away from the polls, and Iraqi politicians appear to have recognized that ending the insurgency requires reaching agreements with more hard-line but influential groupings such as the Association of Muslim Scholars.

That goal may be growing more elusive, as some recent meetings of clerics and tribal chieftains in Baghdad have expressed support for the insurgents and called for violent “retaliation” against Kurds and Shiites.

Who's in Charge?

Even as the politicians haggle over control of ministries and key posts in the new government, the seat of real power in Baghdad becomes increasingly difficult to identify. Right now, executive authority remains in the hands of the lame-duck government of interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, the U.S. appointee who garnered only 14 percent of the vote in the election and who has turned down offers of a cabinet post in order to claim the role of opposition leader.

Control of the security forces, meanwhile, remains effectively in the hands of the U.S. military, despite being formally answerable to the interim government. Washington retains no formal or open political role in Iraq, and the U.S. embassy there routinely insists, when asked by journalists, that it has no hand in the political process. That remains a wise posture, given the implacable hostility of both the Shiite and Sunni leadership to American tutelage. But given the depth of U.S. investment in lives and treasure in Iraq, it is widely assumed among Iraqis that the U.S. will seek to ensure the most favorable outcome by using its role as the guarantor of security, and the major underwriter of reconstruction, as leverage.

The U.S. priority may be to ensure that the ministries concerned with security remain in friendly hands. But the Shiite list — whose leaders have kept the U.S. at arm's length — wants the security ministries for itself, and plans to resume a vigorous program of “de-Baathification,” purging the security forces of many of the elements of the former regime that had been quietly reinstated by Allawi. They also envisage a far greater role for forces such as the Iran-trained Badr Brigade, the armed wing of the Shiite list's leading party, the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, in a revamped security arrangement.

Still, the post-election scenario leaves Washington with no formal levers to influence Iraqi politics. As long as it remained the formal occupying power, it held the ring for the competition between rival Iraqi factions. Now, nobody really holds the ring, and the contest to shape post-Saddam Iraq is more wide-open than ever. The election has not resolved the basic political conflicts among Iraqis, but it has turned the current U.S.-appointed government into a lame duck and has diminished U.S. influence over the next one.

Popular Frustration

The political gridlock has deepened the frustration of ordinary Iraqis. Their first experience of democracy may be acquiring a bitter aftertaste, having braved death to go out and vote for lists of candidates who were kept almost entirely anonymous due to security concerns, only to see a familiar cast of characters haggling behind closed doors to divide the spoils of power. They don't know who is really in charge, and they don't see anything being done to improve their lives. But the danger is far greater than a disappointing experience of democracy, or what now seems to be an inevitable delay in the timetable for the drafting of a new constitution.

The relentless bloodletting of the insurgency continues, and most of its victims are Shiites and Kurds. Pressure for reprisals is growing despite the insistence by the Shiite and Kurdish leadership that their people resist the provocation intended by sectarian killing — after all, Sunnis already imagine themselves marginalized by the transition in Iraq, and any sectarian reprisals will only deepen Sunni support for the insurgency.

A majority of Iraqis voted for the promise of change, choosing an alliance that promised peace, security, jobs, reconstruction and a timetable for U.S. withdrawal. So far, they're not seeing much progress on any of those fronts. Now the chemistry of post-Saddam Iraq may be growing even more volatile than it was before the vote.

Saddam to be tried by jury of his peers – fellow Ba'this

I may not have written this, the other day, but the legal adviser to Abdil-Aziz al-Hakim, leader of the top Shi'a party, the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, told me and my uncle, last Friday, that 40 percent of the staff of the special tribunal to try Saddam and his top lieutenants were Ba'this. A young Ba'thi jurist, Taalib a-Zubaydi, had latched onto the court, when it was established, in late 2003-early 2004. Since Saalim Chalabi, who ran the tribunal, was charged with complicity in a murder, he's stayed away from the country; Zubaydi stepped in, to take his place. Chalabi denies the charges, saying they're politically motivated. The judge who issued the arrest warrant of Chalabi, as well as his uncle Ahmad, Zuhayr il-Maliki, has since been relieved of his duties. Maliki is accused of being a novice, who used to translate for Saddam, and continued those duties for Paul Bremer, free-Iraq's first governor, who placed Maliki at the head of Iraq's Central Criminal Court. Maliki had called on Saalim Chalabi to return to Iraq, to face questioning. Chalabi refused, fearing he'd be placed in a prison cell with Ba'this or other criminals who might kill him. In the meantime, before and after Chalabi's absence, many Ba'this were hired for posts, up and down the rungs of the tribunal staff, from guards to administrators, investigators and jurists. Opponents have appealed to reverse the process, but it looks like it will take some time.

Subject: At long last Iraq joins Kurdistan

On March 23, my friend Alaaddin al-Dhahir, in Holland, sent an e-mail with the above title that I posted, two days later. Soon after, he sent me a corrected version. Here it is:

23 March 2005

Just the other day I was accidentally watching al-Arabiya program "min al-Iraq." Ahmad Chalabi partially listed the Kurdish demands to join the new cabinet. Below are what I remember he said:

1. The Kurds should have 25% of oil revenues. This demand is based on their score in the election results.
2. The Kurdish regional government should have the right to give concessions/contracts to international companies/governments on natural resources (oil etc) without having to go back to the central government. This implicitly means the Kurds will pocket the income from these agreements.
3. The Iraqi army will not be allowed to enter "Kurdistan" without the permission of the Kurdish parliament.
4. The Iraqi government must pay all the expenses for the Peshmerga.
5. The Kurds must have the presidency, deputy prime-minister, at least 2 important ministries in addition to an appropriate number of cabinet posts.
6. If the Kurdish ministers resign, then the entire cabinet must resign.
7. Prime-ministerial decisions should be made only with the agreement of the Kurdish deputy-prime minister.
8. And of course, the federal scheme.

Chalabi did not list the rest of the Kurdish demands for lack of time and because he considered them less controversial. I presume one of these demands is the annexation of Kirkuk, parts of Mosul and Diyala provinces.

When I heard these "demands" I could not help but exclaim: At long last Iraq joins Kurdistan. But before I comment on these demands I want to make two-points. The first is about the Kurdish intransigence. In any negotiation one starts with a negotiating position but must be willing to concede on some points to get an agreement. However, all the "Kurdish demands" listed above are impossible. Under any negotiation, they will be termed "non-starters." The second is about some Iraqi Arabs who formed committees to support the Kurdish right to self-determination. Indeed they go on Sat TV's and websites to make this point. One of those Piled High and Deep (Ph.D.) even said that borders "are not sacred, just a line on a map." Try to apply this to the world and see what will happen!! The most important fact missing in such proposal is this: Iraq will disappear if the Kurds secede. Not only the region will be mired in endless wars to divide natural resources, water, arid land and borders but Iran will grab the south, Syria and Jordan will grab the west and the "most-beloved" Kurdistan will be part of Turkey. To those "altruistic" guys I say this: you are not idealists, YOU ARE IDIOTS. Furthermore, you are free to do what you like with what you had inherited from your parents (maal al-Khallifook) but not with Iraq. This wonderful country is a trust we pass from one generation to another.

Now back to the Kurdish demands.

Would the percentages of the election results be the same if the other 8 million Iraqis had voted in the elections? Will the Kurds accept 11% share of oil revenues if in the next election the Kurdish parties score this percentage? Is this how financial resources are divided in the US (among Democratic and Republican voters), UK, Germany and France? Will the Kurds spend part of the 25% on Kurds living in Baghdad, Hilla, Kut, Nasiriya and Basrah? Will they reduce my tax burden (as well as that of many Europeans) by paying the expenses for the 200,000 Kurdish welfare beneficiaries who voted for them in Europe?

I have a better but no-less ridiculous system of distributing the oil wealth. Let us divide it equally and give a share to each Iraqi, e.g. $1000 dollar per head. A family of five will receive for instance $5000. We will then ask Iraqis to find ways to finance: the defense of the country (hire mercenaries), police, the education system, the health system, judicial system, civil status offices, property registration office (Tappu), passport office, citizenship office (necessary to get $1000 per Iraqi) and the office which will take care of such oil-money distribution. So you get my point!!

The 2nd Kurdish demand will not only make the central government a scare-crow (khirraa3at Kuhdhra) but will make the economic disparities between Iraqi regions even greater. I.e having a Bangladesh next to a Dubai.

As for the 3rd demand, I have this cynical comment: It must be amended to give the right to one Kurdish leader to invite the Iraqi army to support him against another Kurdish rival while giving the latter the right to invite the Iranian army to his support (remember 1996 and before).

I have no problem with the 4th demand provided that: a) the Peshmerga becomes part of the Iraqi army, b) sever all party ties and loyalties to the Kurdish parties/leaderships, c) protect Iraqi borders instead of being smugglers and looters (7aamiha 7aaramiha) as they are now. But I doubt that this is what the Kurdish leaders have in mind!

As a matter of principle, I am opposed to posts being distributed along ethnic or denominational lines. But if the Kurds will feel part of Iraq by having these posts, give them all the posts they want. However, their candidate for the presidency not only propagates an ideology that calls for secession from Iraq but he threatens with secession every time he gets what he wants.

Most curiously is their demand of 2 important ministries while claiming 25% of all "central" things. I know of no more than 5 important ministries: foreign, defense, interior, exterior and finance. How does this rhyme with 24.5% of the election results? This is no way of building a new Iraq. This is a new way to fracture Iraq even more.

The 6th and 7th Kurdish demands make the cabinet and prime minister a hostage to Kurdish blackmail.

I dealt with the federacy issue in a long article (most of you received) last year and there is no need to repeat my views here.

Did you notice lately the Kurdish regional cabinet made Nawrooz holiday 8 days long and hence prolong the anxiety of Iraqis about the formation of a new cabinet? This is the Kurdish way of getting their demands and I have one advice: Reject their demands outright and call their bluff for what it is: a bluff. If they decide to secede they will face the music: Turkish, Iranian, Arab, Muslim and even American (The US cannot afford to have a 2nd Israel in the region). The only ally they will have is Ariel Sharon and with a friend like him who needs enemies!! But even if the Kurdish leaders succeed in having a Kurdish state, it will be land-locked, its borders and air space will be closed. The water supplies will be cut off. They will have no access to export oil, not even a pack of cigarettes. As Henry Kissinger would have told them: "It is the geography, stupid."

Alaaddin al-Dhahir

Alaa is a mathematics professor at Utwente University, and a historian, specializing in the Iraqi republic's first leader, Abdul-Kareem Qasim.

There were maneuvers, whose goal was clear – to distance me from this post. The Sunni brothers were going to elect me to this post…. I will not accept a ministerial post, but we will not boycott" [the political process].

-- Dr. Adnan il-Pachachi,
April 6, 2005,
following Ghazi il-Yawer's election as one of the country's two vice presidents

Rumsfeld Presses Iraqi Interim Leaders

April 12, 2005
By ROBERT BURNS, AP Military Writer

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, on another quick visit to Iraq, pressed the country's new leaders Tuesday to avoid delays in developing a constitutional government and defeating the insurgency.

"Anything that would delay that or disrupt that as a result of turbulence or incompetence or corruption in government would be unfortunate," Rumsfeld said before he began a round of talks with Iraqi leaders.

The newly designated prime minister, Ibrahim al-Jaafari, told reporters after meeting Rumsfeld at his official residence that he realized the risk of setbacks in the political process.

"I don't deny there are challenges, but I am sure we are going to form very good ministries," he said in English. He predicted that the government bureaucracy would be staffed by "good technocrats" from a variety of backgrounds.

Rumsfeld met separately with Interim President Jalal Talabani, the Kurdish former rebel leader.

In a joint appearance before reporters after their meeting, Rumsfeld and Talabani struggled to make themselves understood to a mixed Iraqi-American press corps. At one point Talabani translated for Rumsfeld as the defense secretary fielded a question from an Iraqi speaking in Arabic. After hearing Talabani's version of the question, Rumsfeld accused the reporter of phrasing it inaccurately, and the garbled exchange ended abruptly as another Iraqi posed another question.

Speaking in English, Talabani said he had assured Rumsfeld that Iraq's interim leaders will work together.

"We are planning to have the (permanent) government as soon as possible, but you know this is the beginning of democratization in Iraq," Talabani said, adding that he expects the government to complete its selection of cabinet ministers before the end of this week. The next major goal is to have a new constitution written by August and ratified by a national vote in October.

Rumsfeld also held a closed meeting with Gen. George Casey and Lt. Gen. John Vines, the top two American commanders in Iraq. In a brief interview with reporters later, Casey said he was encouraged that the long and difficult process of training and equipping Iraqi security forces was gaining ground.

"We're getting better and more efficient at it," he said.

The Iraqis, in turn, have gained a new measure of confidence since the Jan. 30 elections.

"Iraqi security forces are operating more aggressively" against the insurgents, Casey said.

Rumsfeld also gave a pep talk to a few hundred soldiers at Camp Liberty, headquarters of the 3rd Infantry Division. He also pinned Bronze Star medals and Purple Heart awards on several soldiers and participated in a mass re-enlistment ceremony for about 100 soldiers gathered in a mess hall.

"The role you're playing is a critically important role in the global war on terrorism" he told them.

Rumsfeld arrived in the Iraqi capital before sunrise aboard an Air Force C-17 cargo plane for his second visit in three months. It was his ninth visit since the war began in March 2003.

The frequency of his visits in recent months reflected a desire to push the political and military momentum that Rumsfeld believes has been growing since the Jan. 30 elections for a national assembly.

En route from Washington, Rumsfeld told reporters he would press the new Iraqi leadership to avoid delays on either the political or security front at a time when U.S. troops are still being killed or wounded and billions of U.S. taxpayer dollars are being invested in rebuilding the country.

"It's important that the new government be attentive to the competence of the people in the ministries and that they avoid unnecessary turbulence," Rumsfeld said.

Some in the Bush administration are concerned that factional maneuvering during the formation of the transitional government could undermine the counterinsurgency effort that is a key to eventually pulling U.S. troops out of Iraq.

On the home front

We've had several slow news days – which, in addition to being good news, is just as well, since I've been carrying out my "visits," before I leave the country, which should be this Thursday. I owed two uncles, an aunt and a cousin, each, a visit. Two down – two more to go. I spent the night, Friday, with the uncle in A'dhamiyyeh. His wife, I should've added, is…my mother.

"Who is she?"

"She's my sister." Slap

"Who is she?"

"She's my daughter." Slap.

"My sister." Slap.

"My daughter." Slap.

"She's my sister and my daughter."

Funny thing – right after I jotted those "lines," Friday night, I was flipping through the TV channels, and, there, was Faye Dunaway, responding to Jack Nicholson, and his slaps, on the Saudi 24-hour movie channel MBC 2, and within a minute, she uttered those lines, allowing me to transcribe them, exactly. Well, soon after I was born, I was rejecting my mother's milk, so my mother handed me off, to her sister-in-law, whose milk was…deee-licious, making her…"ommi bir-ridhaa'ah" (my mother in suckling). I went on, to enjoy my mother's milk, too – for almost a year. Sunday, I had lunch with my mother's other brother – commonly known as my uncle. He lives in Hayy i-Jaami'ah. This afternoon, I was going to head over to their sister's, in Haarthiyyeh, but she's drying some greens for my mom, her sister, for the Iranian dish sebzee, and we agreed to give them another day to dry. Instead, I'll see a cousin, tonight, who lives nearby, in Mansour. If I make them both, that would finish…my debt. There's also a friend I should spend some time with – Layth, whose e-mails have appeared here, on occasion, and who brought for me, from Amman, the disks to restart my computer, sent there from Cleveland. I haven't reached him, yet.

In the meantime, I relaunched, at the last minute, my pursuit of an Iraqi identity card, on which I spent a considerable amount of time, last year, so, next time I'm here, I can travel around, at ease, especially outside Baghdad. To expedite the process and grease the wheels, a few days ago, I called an aide to a top government official who's related to my mother. I also asked him about the trials of Saddam, so I can decide whether to stay on, or leave, this Thursday -- he said he'd check. This afternoon, after three, four days, he said he still had no new news. Well, while I spoke with him, several days ago, he called an official he worked with, at the finance ministry. We went there, yesterday afternoon. They're housed in the old oil ministry. We first went to the new oil ministry, thinking "finance" was using space there. Traffic was terrible. There was supposed to be a national assembly session, yesterday – for the first time, I didn't follow it – and many roads and bridges across the Tigris are closed or tightly controlled, for the affairs. People have complained about the traffic congestion, when the assembly meets, and also about the searches they're subjected to. Yesterday, the head of the assembly, Dr. Haachim al-Hasani, along with other members, asked the government to ease up on the searches and traffic tightening, to minimize impositions on the public. On Hurra television's Thursday night discussion program "Burj Babil" (The Tower of Babel), political analyst Saalim al-Utaybi said that traffic congestion was leading people to become terrorists. Well, I wouldn't go that far, but it ain't fun. The uncle I had lunch with, Sunday, said that in going to work that day – or it might have been, in returning home – traffic on the A'dhamiyyeh bridge was at a standstill, and the six lanes had been turned into 12.

In our case, we made the mistake of going, first, to the new oil ministry building, which turned out not to house the finance ministry. I especially felt sorry for the driver, who couldn't open his window or turn on some air, neither of which worked, in my uncle's car. After we arrived at the old oil ministry building, and asked for our contact, people along the way were describing him as the head of the "large crimes unit," which, my companion told me, includes terrorism, theft, kidnapping and assault. I tried to pin down, where the cut-off was, between "high crimes" and "low crimes" – didn't get far. I asked, "So, if I steal an apple, is that a high crime?" No answer. Smart aleck! We had to wait – first, in the ground-floor lobby, then, in the hallway to his fourth-floor office – because the head of "large crimes" was interrogating a man who'd just driven a pick-up truck to the building at a high-speed, causing the ministry's guards to shoot at the truck. There was some buzz about the incident, around the upstairs kitchenette, made up of a portable stove-top with a pot of tea. I was starving and thirsty – hadn't passed anything past my mouth, except toothpaste, since I got up, around nine – it was now, after two, and we'd been driving in the heat, for more than two hours. My companion said I couldn't have an istikaan of tea – an istikaan is the little pear-shaped glass cup that tea is served in. I asked him if I'd get to see the people being investigated, after they were let out, and if they'd be handcuffed. He answered, I could, and they wouldn't be. We were beckoned, not having seen anybody escorted back.

In the boss's office, the name plate said, "director of the facilities protection service." The man's family name was Saameraa'i, which meant he hailed from the predominantly Sunni city Saameraa', north of Baghdad. He was very kind, and open. He said that the driver he'd interrogated was submitting payroll forms – or some-such thing -- from another ministry. Moreover, the driver's face was wrapped in cloth. This didn't make any sense. I kept asking what would make somebody who didn't have a malicious intent, do that – drive up, fast, to a government ministry building. "What could make a person do that?" I kept asking. "What -- is he crazy?"

As to my application for an identity card, Dr. Saameraa'i said I'd need more than the Iraqi passport and census booklet (from 1967) I'd brought – he photocopied both, and kept the latter. He asked me to bring back my father's citizenship certificate, his "citizenship," which turned out to be his civil-affairs card, for which I was now applying, two pictures smaller than the ones I brought, my uncle's food-ration coupon (which I forgot to bring), my uncle's residency card, his "citizenship" and anything else I could bring, including for my cousin. Last night, I had more pictures taken. This morning, the driver took my father's citizenship certificate, which I had in the file I brought with me, from my last application go-around, my uncle's civil-affairs card, the pictures and the food-ration coupon, although the driver said the 2003 food-ration coupon would not do. On the driver's return, he said he was told it would take a week to 10 days. Since then, my uncle found his "residency card," which we'll take, tomorrow morning, when I'll also retrieve my passport, so I can get out of here, the next day. I called Dr. Saameraa'i, a couple of hours ago, to get the number off my passport, so I can give it to the airlines. So, it goes.

"What's it all about -- Alfie?"

Date: Sun, 27 Mar 2005 4:02:04 AM Eastern Standard Time

hey I was just thinking about you and wondering what you are doing -

what are you doing with your days nowadays?

Do you feel like they will ever get a proper government formed?

I am working on my final papers and midterms for the semester - working seems endless. One of my papers is a policy-analysis paper and i'm looking at how the Bush strategy on Iraq was formed. I'm still not sure who was the main voice behind it (not the decision to do it - that was Bush - I mean the person who most pushed him to do it). Im thinking Cheney or Wolfowitz... Got any thoughts?

I will have a show at Arabica in University Circle mid April - just me for a 2 hour gig. So I'm practicing alot - was taking a creative break, but that put an end to it fast - had to get my chops back. I'm going to be running an open mike at Borders once a month - it'll be great - my own musical turf where others can come to play as well. It doesnt start till the end of May (I have too much going on in the end of april, so i pushed it off till may). I have written new songs (2 more done, working on another 2). This is a big deal to me.

Miriam

- write and let me know -
what are you doing nowadays,
your thoughts on the govt formation in iraq,
your thoughts on the iraq policy formation.

* * *

Date: Sun, 27 Mar 2005 17:31:58 -0500

Hi, Miriam,

That's great -- on all fronts -- the gig in April, which you told me about, before -- the open mike at Borders -- I'm sure, the Severance one -- why, you're part of the family, right? -- the new songs, your chops, and the topic.

Wolfowitz has been wanting to get rid of Saddam -- has seen what a menace, how evil he was -- since as far back as 78. Cheney has been public about making the mistake of letting him survive in 91. There are others, though -- Perle, Kerrey -- that's the good Kerrey, from Nebraska -- of course, Chalabi, Kristol, Woolsey, Kagan, and so many others -- in and out of government -- plus media people -- that a center of gravity -- or, I should say, a critical mass was reached, that there was no way of getting around it -- this was the sine qua non -- this guy had to go, for any forward progress in the Middle East, and against the terrorism. That's my brief summary. There are others, who are more intuned, than I am. If you want, I'd recommend getting in touch with Dr. Laurie Mylroie, at xyz@abc.com. She's a friend, and she's in Washington, and swims in those circles. Also, maybe my cousin can help, too. She's in Washington, she was Iraq's ambassador in Washington, and has been active there, since 91. Her name is Rend Rahim-Francke, and her e-mail address is -- or should be -- xyz@iraqfoundation.org.

Tell me how it goes. I'd love to see, the end-product. Good luck.

As for me, I just write. I watch news, talk with the relos here, go out shopping, hang out, and write some more. That's pretty much it. Nothing much, in the way of...outside fun. It's all family, and all politics -- all the time.

The government, here -- yeah, they're really dawdling. I don't have much faith in this guy Ja'fari. I was rooting for Chalabi, and, who knows, he might get the call, in the end. They've gotta do it, soon -- it's getting ridiculous. Who knows!? What do you think? I'm no expert, on this stuff.

See ya.

* * *

Date: Mon, 28 Mar 2005 10:45:56 AM Eastern Standard Time

I guess what I'm suspecting is that someone specific tipped the balance after 9/11 and was the main impetus for the Iraq policy - your thoughts?

What do you think was the actual main reason for going after him?

* * *

Date: Thu, 31 Mar 2005 21:28:35 -0500

Hi, Miriam,

I don't think any one person tipped it -- other than Saddam. He's been there, all along, and, with 9/11, he couldn't be there, anymore -- he was more of a danger...well, his danger was realized, felt...more apparent, closer-to-home, than ever before. Joe Lieberman called him the most dangerous terrorist in the world. Bin Ladin bought three countries for a couple hundred mil. That's chump change, compared with what Saddam was playing with. Oh, long topic -- so much more. But if you're looking for a "person," who tipped it, don't trouble yourself -- not there.

And the actual main reason -- pretty well stated -- out in the open: he's the biggest danger in the world, that part of the world -- the Arab Mashriq -- from Egypt, eastward -- has to change -- it's the source of the terrorism we face -- it's gotta change, and Iraq was the worst of the bunch. I don't think it's much more, much less.

See ya. Gotta go.

* * *

Sent: Thu, 31 Mar 2005 11:13:45 PM Eastern Standard Time

What do you mean by "its the source of the terrorism we face"? Saddam as a supporter of terrorists or as a terrorist in his own right? (obviously both are true, but which was your main meaning?)

* * *

Date: Fri, 08 Apr 2005 21:20:37 -0400

Hi,

I was trying to remember what I wrote. Oh, wait a minute -- it's in your e-mail -- my e-mail is.

Hold on a second.

Whoops -- no it isn't.

Well, what I think I was referring to, is the seven countries in the Arab Mashriq -- the part of the Arab world that starts in Egypt, and heads east from there -- in this case, includes Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Yemen. The worst of them, Iraq, has been taken out of the equation. These countries, are the bastion, the base, the source, of the notion that the Arab world deserves to be atop the world, and its failure -- the Arab world's failure -- is blamed on others, and, hence, the others, who intentionally keep the Arabs down, must be destroyed. So, it's material support for the terrorism, which starts, with the idea -- the emotional root of it. Makes sense?

See ya.

Car bomb kills 42-year-old soldier from Carlsbad, in Baghdad

NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense

Apr 08, 2005

DoD Identifies Army Casualty

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Spc. Glenn J. Watkins, 42, of Carlsbad, Calif., died April 5 in Baghdad, Iraq, when a vehicle-born improvised explosive device detonated near his military vehicle. Watkins was assigned to the Army National Guard’s 1st Battalion, 161st Infantry, Kent, Wash.

Two soldiers, a New Yorker and a Tennessean, are killed, northeast of Baghdad

NEWS RELEASE from the United States Department of Defense

Apr 09, 2005

DoD Identifies Army Casualties

The Department of Defense announced today the death of two soldiers who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. They died April 4, 2005, in Balad Ruz, Iraq, when their patrol was attacked by enemy forces using small arms fire.

Killed were:

Sgt. 1st Class Stephen C. Kennedy, 35, of Oak Ridge, Tenn. Kennedy was assigned to the Army National Guard's 1st Squadron, 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment, Lenoir City, Tenn.

Staff Sgt. Christopher W. Dill, 32, of Tonawanda, N.Y. Dill was assigned to the Army Reserve's 2nd Battalion, 390th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 98th Division, Buffalo, N.Y.

The Turks are coming

I found a Turkish-language Iraqi TV station. It's called CANLI TV, and it looks like it's based in Kerkook. I asked a Turkish-speaker, today – an uncle's wife -- what that meant. She said it depends on how the word is pronounced – that it could be "soul," or "blood" -- the latter, of course, doesn't make sense. She added, it could also be an acronym. Well, I was flipping through the channels in my room's non-satellite TV, Monday night, and came across this local station. I parked there, for a while, and…lo and behold…sure enough, it was, indeed, Turkish – I recognized the language from the singing. When I got stuck there, a traditional music troupe was playing, with the caption "BiR SOZDEN BiR SAZDAN" at the base of the screen. The station is directed, mainly, towards Iraqis, and appears to based in Iraq -- I saw a couple of commercials – one for a furniture store, another for a travel agent, in Kerkook and/or in Baghdad. There was also some targeting to Turks to visit Iraq. In particular, during the few minutes I watched, a shrine for Imam Sultan Izbek (I believe, in Kerkook) was featured prominently. When I mentioned that part, to my uncle's wife, she asked if it was for the Prophet Daniel, whom she said is buried there, near her great-grandfather. I didn't remember Sultan Izbek, and I didn't get around to looking it up for her -- I'll try to call her, and tell her.

Kirkuk: Between Kurdish Separatism and Iraqi Federalism

By Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli*
Middle East Media Research Institute
Inquiry & Analysis - Iraq, No. 215
March 31, 2005


Introduction

The City of Kirkuk with its Kurdish, Arab and Turkmen population of 700,000 will serve as a critical test of the ability of the emerging democratic government in Iraq to fashion workable compromises among diverse populations and conflicting demands while preserving the country's national integrity.

The Kurds maintain that the city is the heart of Kurdistan and should be integrated into the Kurdistan region of Iraq, which currently comprises the three governorates of Dahouk, Irbil and Sulaymaniya. The two minorities in the city, the Arabs and the Turkmen, wish to keep Kirkuk as part of the Governorate of Ta'mim, which is not part of Iraqi Kurdistan. Some key Iraqi political forces, as well as three neighboring countries with Kurdish minorities - mainly Turkey but also, to a lesser extent, Iran and Syria - favor the exclusion of Kirkuk from Kurdish control. The controversy surrounding Kirkuk is well summarized in a statement by the London daily Al-Hayat: "Kirkuk is the jewel in the Kurdish throne and a powder keg with respect to the unity of Iraq."(1)


Recent History of Iraqi Kurdistan

The two principal Kurdish parties, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan under Jalal Talabani and the Kurdistan Democratic Party under Mas'oud Barzani ran a joint list of candidates in the recent Iraqi elections, held on January 30, 2005. The joint list received a little over 25 percent of the votes, which translated into 75 seats in the 275 seat National Assembly. The Kurdish group emerged as the second largest in the new National Assembly, second only to the Shi'ite United Iraqi Alliance, which gained 140 seats.

The two Kurdish parties have not always been on good terms. In fact, in 1994 the two camps battled one another for control of the Kurdish region. In August 1996, Barzani sought the help of Saddam Hussein, who readily sent an army of 30,000 in support of Barzani's camp. Then, under pressure from the United States, which had been providing air cover under the no-fly zone policy in northern Iraq since the defeat of the Saddam military in Kuwait in 1991, the two Kurdish parties signed an agreement in Washington in 1998 to end the civil war. Under the agreement Kurdistan was divided into two zones: a western zone, with its capital at Irbil, came under the control of Barzani, and an eastern zone, with its capital at Sulaymania, came under the control of Talabani. Each zone had its own government, prime minister and democratically elected parliament. Eventually a joint parliament emerged whose members were also democratically elected. By all accounts, the two Kurdish zones have prospered economically under democratically elected governments. Kurdistan also remains the sole area in Iraq that has been able to shield itself, almost completely, against acts of terrorism. Kurdistan remains a popular vacation spot for many Baghdadis seeking to escape the debilitating heat of the summer months in their city.


The Arabization of Kirkuk

Traditionally Kurdish, the city of Kirkuk began to undergo a process of Arabization in the mid-1930s when the discovery of oil in the city generated a flow of Arabs and Turkmen into the burgeoning oil industry. The process of Arabization, namely the settling of Iraqi Arabs in the city to change its demographic structure, continued throughout the reign of the Hashemite monarchy, but was greatly accelerated under the Ba'thist regime of Saddam Hussein with the introduction of new and extreme measures to destroy Kurdish villages and to force deportation of their people to other parts of Iraq under the "Anfal" operation in the 1990s.(2)

At the height of the Anfal operation, Saddam expelled as many as 150,000 (some say 250,000) Kurds and Turkmen to the southern regions of Iraq and replaced them with Iraqi Arabs. Those who resisted the relocation were dealt with harshly, as evidenced by the mass graves discovered following the collapse of the regime.

As a result of the Arabization policy, hundred of thousands of Kurds and Turkomen have been forced to live in tents for several years and many of them, to this day, living in poor conditions waiting to be restored to their old homes. For the Kurds, this is human rights issue.

The Kurds insist that the consequences of Arabization must be reversed by resettling the Arabs in their provinces of origin, primarily in southern Iraq; this would restore to the Kurds their historical demographic weight. In the words of Mahmoud Othman, a Kurdish member of the former Iraqi Governing Council, the annexation of Kirkuk into a Kurdish region is not meant to "Kurdicize" the city but to remove the relics of its Arabization. According to Othman, the 1959 census had shown a majority of Kurds in Kirkuk and that majority should be the sole criterion in determining its future.(3) By contrast, the Turkmen, working closely with the Arabs, argue that Kirkuk is a predominantly Turkmen city and should remain part of a unified Iraq. Turkey supports their claims and has threatened to use force to frustrate Kurdish claims to Kirkuk.


Kirkuk's Symbolic Importance

In a statement carried by the Iraqi weekly Al-Shahid Al-Mustaqill ("The Independent Witness") Talabani argued that Kirkuk had "a symbolic importance" because of the ethnic cleansing policies practiced by the previous regime. "Our struggle for Kirkuk," he asserted, "is a struggle for destiny" to restore all the liberated Kurdish areas, including Kirkuk and its surroundings, "to the bosom of Kurdistan." Emphasizing the newly acquired political weight of the Kurds, bolstered in part by their alliance with the United States, Talabani said "the time of betraying the Kurds has gone forever."(4) A photograph of Talabani displaying to Iraq's Governing Council an early twentieth century-map showing Kirkuk as part of Kurdistan adorns many walls and public buildings in Kurdistan.(5)

Mas'oud Barzani, the other Kurdish leader, has gone even further. In a meeting with members of his party, Barzani has said Kirkuk is "the heart of Kurdistan" and expressed the willingness of the Kurds to go to war "for the sake of protecting this identity and [retaining] the benefits the Kurds have gained since the end of the [2003] war."(6)

In an interview with the London daily Al-Hayat, Barzani stated: "My father sacrificed himself and his revolution in 1974 for the sake of Kirkuk. If we should be forced to fight and lose everything we have accomplished we [still] would not bargain over Kirkuk's identity - the heart of Kurdistan."(7)


The Legal Foundation for Kurdish Demands

Apart from their historical claims for Kirkuk, the Kurds invoke Article 58 of the "Law of Administration for the State of Iraq for the Transitional Period," also known as the State Administrative Law, of March 8, 2004 which is considered the interim constitution of Iraq, approved by the now-dissolved Iraqi Governing Council.

Article 58 states in part: "The Iraqi Transitional Government...shall act expeditiously to take measures to remedy the injustice caused by the previous regime's practices in altering the demographic character of certain regions, including Kirkuk, by deporting and expelling individuals from their places of residence, forcing migration in and out of the region, settling individuals alien to the region, depriving the inhabitants of work, and changing nationality."

The article recommends four specific measures:

* Restore the original residents to their homes and property

* Compensate those who were introduced to specific regions [e.g., Arabs in Kurdistan] and resettle them in or near the district from which they came

* Provide compensation for those who lost their jobs by being forced to emigrate

* Allow individuals to determine their own national identity and ethnic affiliation free from coercion and duress [again, this applies primarily to Kurds who were forced to declare themselves as Arabs for the purpose of population census](8)


The Economic Dimension

There are also practical reasons underlying the Kurdish position with regard to Kirkuk. The city and its surroundings sit on approximately 15-20 percent of Iraq's vast oil reserves estimated at a minimum of 112 billion barrels of oil. The area could produce as much as 800,000 barrels of oil a day and thus generate a significant stream of income for the Kurdish population in northern Iraq. Should the Kurds secede from Iraq they would need the oil revenues to protect and sustain their independence. Without oil revenues of their own (as opposed to oil revenues earmarked for them by the central government) the Kurds' room for maneuver would diminish appreciably. Kurdistan's neighbors - Turkey, Iran and Syria - concerned about the effects of an independent Kurdistan would have on their own Kurdish populations, oppose the Iraqi Kurds having control of these oil revenues. In the eyes of an Iraqi daily, the controversy over Kirkuk has to do with its oil: "Oil alone is the reason for the Kurdish insistence, Arab refusal, Turkmen protests and the regional austerity. If Kirkuk were not an oil city we would not have heard all the historical and geographical arguments from all sides."(9)

While the Kurds could negotiate with the central government an agreement that would guarantee them a reasonable percentage of oil revenues earned by Iraq as a whole and consistent with their size in the population, such an agreement would make them dependent on political forces that could turn against them as the Kurds have often experienced during their affiliation with Iraq.


Appointment of an Independent Committee

The Shi'ite and Kurdish factions in the Iraqi National Assembly have been negotiating a coalition agreement that would establish the form and modalities of the new government and the distribution of its portfolios. Meanwhile, the outgoing government of Prime Minister Ayad Allawi has appointed an independent committee to resolve the issues surrounding the future of Kirkuk. The committee is chaired by the Secretary of the Iraqi Communist Party Hamid Majid Mousa. Mousa recently told the London daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat that his committee had been established "to assure the political forces in Kurdistan that the central Iraqi government is serious and committed to the normalization of the situation in the Kirkuk area in accordance with article 58 of the State Administrative Law." He indicated that the committee will seek to resolve the problems in four steps: eliminating the consequences of Saddam's dictatorship; mending the (results of) ethnic cleansing, drawing the boundaries of the area, and carrying out a population census, "followed by a referendum of the local population" to gauge their political preferences.(10)


Other Kurdish Demands

The issue of Kirkuk should be considered within the context of other Kurdish demands. Central to these demands is the creation of a federal system of government for the Kurdish region within some structure that would essentially guarantee the Kurds sovereignty in everything but name, and would leave them the option of gaining full independence in the future. The Kurds are asking for guarantees that that federalism will be anchored in the new constitution that has yet to be drafted and should not be arbitrarily changed or abrogated.


Regional Federalism vs. Provincial Federalism

While there is a consensus among most Iraqi political groups about the establishment of a federal form of government to be anchored in the new constitution, there is disagreement as to the exact nature of this federal arrangement. Without exception, the non-Kurdish Iraqi majority favors a federalism based on provinces. Iraq is divided into 18 provinces and, according to this view, each province should have some degree of autonomy within a federal framework that leaves much of the power at the center in Baghdad. Since most provinces, especially those in the north, have a mixture of ethnic groups including Arabs, Kurds, Turkmen, Assyrians, and Christians, this scheme would somewhat limit Kurdish control over three provinces - Sulaymaniya, Irbil, and Dahouk - that have enjoyed political autonomy since 1991.(11)

By contrast, the Kurds have insisted on regional or ethnic federalism that would bring into one region, and one political framework, all the provinces with substantial Kurdish populations, including the oil-producing city of Kirkuk. The idea of the federation of provinces is rejected, according to Jalal Talabani because "throughout their history, the Kurdish people have struggled to prevent the separation of the Kurdish provinces from each other and to protect the integrity of the historical Kurdish borders..."(12)


The Integration of the Peshmerga into the Iraqi Army

The Kurds demand the integration of 100,000 Peshmerga (Kurdish militia forces) into the Iraqi army, meaning that their salaries should be paid by the Iraqi treasury while at the same time restricting the entry of the regular Iraqi army into Kurdistan without the regional parliament's prior approval. In the words of the Kurdish leader Barzani, "the Peshmerga is a tree that has borne fruit by the blood and tears of a people. It was not established by the order of a state, a political party or an individual. Without it, the Kurds would have had no existence."(13)


Secular Legislation

The Kurds are also persistent in their demand for a secular rather than an Islamist state. They demand that Islam become one source of legislation but not the only one. Ideally, they would like the separation of state and religion.(14)


The Return of Kurds to Their Cities and Villages

While the discussion about the future of Kirkuk is still ongoing the Kurds have been trying to create a new reality on the ground. By September 2004, 80,000 Iraqi Kurds had returned from Iran and another 30,000 had returned from Turkey.(15) It may be assumed that many more have since relocated in the Kurdish region, and Kirkuk in particular, from others parts of Iraq and from across the border. The Kurdish leaders have continually sought a legal process for the return of the Internally Displaced Peoples - IDPs - for without a legal process some of these peoples may take it upon themselves to restore their lost property with extra-legal measures.


Relations Between the Iraqi Kurds and Neighboring Countries

The Kurds understand the potential danger to themselves that would result from military action undertaken separately or jointly by Turkey, Iran, and Syria. Turkey has repeatedly announced that it is committed to the protection of the large Turkmen minority in Kirkuk and has threatened to intervene militarily if Kirkuk should be annexed to Kurdistan or if Kurdistan should declare independence. Turkish concerns about an independent Kurdistan have been echoed by Iran and Syria. All three countries have Kurdish minorities with varying degrees of separatist aspirations.(16) Recently, however, Turkey has shown a new flexibility in dealing with the Kirkuk issue.

A delegation representing both the Turkish foreign ministry and the military high command and headed by Ambassador Othman Kurtuk visited Sulaymaniya in northern Iraq for talks with Jalal Talabani, who was seen at the time as the emerging consensus candidate for the post of president of Iraq. Talabani urged Turkey to refrain from turning its concern about the future of Kirkuk into threats to intervene in Iraq and reminded the Turkish delegation that the Turkmen are Iraqi, not Turkish citizens. On its part, the Turkish delegation agreed with its Kurdish interlocutors about the need to establish a secular regime in Iraq supported by the Kurds and by other important politicians such as Ayad Allawi and the Sunni political leader Adnan al-Pachachi. The two parties have also agreed to try to smooth over their differences.(17)

There are at least three reasons for Turkey to behave with restraint with regard to Iraqi Kurdistan. First, Turkey will have to weigh the consequences of any military action in northern Iraq against the damage this would do to its hopes of obtaining membership in the European Union. Second, at a time of severe pressure on oil supply, oil from Kirkuk could provide Turkey with a reliable source of supply. Third, the Kurds with their well-armed and battle-hardened Peshmerga could provide problems even for the large Turkish military. In the words of the 19th century German General Helmut von Moltke: "It is impossible to triumph over the Kurds when they are united."(18)

As for Syria, it is in no position, at least for now, to undertake any adventure outside its borders. Iran for its part will probably choose to influence the policies of a Shi'ite government in Iraq through subversion and other non-military means. In short, the threats of foreign military action against an independent Kurdistan in the end may prove to be hollow.

*Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli is Senior Analyst of MEMRI's Middle East Economic Studies Program.

Endnotes:
(1) Al-Hayat (London), February 4, 2004.
(2) Nouri Talabani, "The Arabization of Kirkuk," Uppsala (Sweden), 2001, pp.20-38.
(3) Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), January 12, 2004.
(4) Al-Shahid Al-Mustaqill (Baghdad), October 30, 2004.
(5) Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), February 23, 2005.
(6) Al-Hayat (London), September 9, 2004.
(7) Al-Hayat (London), October 20, 2004.
(8) Saddam Hussein’s government issued an order on September 6, 2001 allowing the change of nationality from non-Arab to Arab in an effort to change the demographic structure of Kirkuk. Al-Zaman (Baghdad), October 24, 2004.
(9) Al-Shiraa (Baghdad). January 10, 2004.
(10) Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), March 14, 2005.
(11) Al-Zaman (Baghdad), January 9, 2004.
(12) Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), December 21, 2003.
(13) Al-Hayat (London), March 16, 2005.
(14) Al-Zaman (Baghdad), February 16, 2005.
(15) Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), September 21, 2004
(16) Al-Furat (Baghdad), November 30, 2004.
(17) Al-Hayat (London), February 25, 2005.
(18) Al-Hayat (London), October 14, 2002.

President Mam Jalal

Baghdad, April 7 -- Hooray for…Hollywood! They're celebrating in Kurdistan – and in most of Iraqi Arabistan, too – and Iraq-land beyond. Assembly speaker Hachim al-Hasani, after the vote count was completed, Wednesday morning, said, "This is the new Iraq. Where a Kurdish citizen is becoming president. Where one of the vice presidents, was the president. What else does the world want?"

Watching TV along with me, was Saddam Husayn, as well as 11 of his top aides. We weren't watching together, but we were all, watching -- he better have been watching. This, according to the minister of human rights, Bakhtiyar Ameen, better known as Mr. Saffiyeh Suhayl, who said that the leaders of the past regime would be watching the proceedings of the fourth assembly session on television, from their prison cells. We didn't see pictures, on our TV screens, of Saddam watching the national assembly, on his TV. I imagined him, sneering at the spectacle, or trying to muffle his ears.

The vote for the members of the presidential troika was very pro forma. The members didn't have much choice. One from column A,…or nothing. There was one list nominated – Talabani for president and Ghazi il-Yawer and Adil abdil-Mehdi, for the two vice presidencies. Yawer, a Sunni Arab, is the current president of the republic. Mehdi, the current finance minister, is a top aide to Abdil-Aziz al-Hakim, the leader of the Shi'a party Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq. I've heard two sets of figures for the final tally – 227 votes for, and three abstentions; and 228 votes for, with four abstentions. Quite a few assembly members were missing, again, foremost among them, interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi, who must be in Jordan, still.

Mam Jalal, as he's commonly known – "Uncle," in Kurdish -- was greeted, after the vote, by members of the assembly -- getting kissed by the men, or shaking hands, close-up, while women shook his hand, at arms' length. Hurra TV's studio host, Mhammad Ali il-Haydari, reflected that despite the greater powers of the national assembly, President Talabani, because of his personality and history, could surpass the head of the assembly on the political and world stages. Talabani will apparently have the budget to do so. According to a few commentators, the presidential council's budget is as much as 100 times that of the national assembly's leadership.

Hasani announced that Talabani's oath of office would be "celebrated tomorrow. All the members of the national assembly are invited, and will be informed of the location." I guess we can't crash that party. (Assembly deputy president Hsayn Shahristani had said, at a pre-session press conference, that the oath of office would take place, Thursday, after 3 in the afternoon.) Hasani then said, "We'll permit members of the presidential council to speak to the Iraqi people. So, please, Mr. President."

Talabani headed to the lectern, to the right of the head table. The lectern was on the floor, while the table was on a low ad-hoc stage. Talabani thanked God, and then the members of the assembly, for "granting me your trust." He heaped praise on the people of "our dear Iraq," for their courage, resolve and steadfastness, which he said was embodied by the assembly members. Big applause.

The Iraqi republic's seventh president vowed to the public that "we will work seriously towards the withdrawal of foreign forces as early as possible," thanking the forces for freeing Iraq from "the worst regime in the history of the land," a regime, he said, that emerged from "the fascist vision" of Michel Aflaq. Talabani passed through a laundry list of economic goals and public services. He also made assurances to the region that Iraq would maintain "its Islamic identity," stay in solidarity with the Arab and Islamic countries, and strive to help the Palestinian people achieve their rights. He also said Iraq aspired to be "an example of democracy for the East."

During his 15-minute speech, Talabani dwelt on the issue of "black terrorism," which, "using the pretense of resistance," was carrying out "a genocidal war against our people," a term he repeated. He called on the countries surrounding Iraq to stop assisting the terrorists, "through the media, by moral support, by arms or financially." He asked, instead, for "kind dealings" with Iraqis. "We'll befriend whoever befriends us, and we'll be hostile to whoever is hostile to us." [Actually, he used the active verb form of "enemy."] Applause. He warned the neighboring countries, "to stop interfering in our affairs," or else, "the wheels will turn." A round of applause.

In Talabani's home region, people took to the streets, to celebrate the first Kurdish king – you know what I mean. In Slaymanee, Iraqi Kurdistan's largest city, and the capital of Talabani country, people on foot and from their cars, waved pictures of their leader, the Kurdish flag and the green banner of Mam Jalal's Patriotic Union of Kurdistan. There was music and dancing, while schools and offices shut down for the day. A young female poet said, "My happiness has no limits." My uncle, watching with me, gushed to the celebrants, "I congratulate you. I congratulate you." An older man in traditional Kurdish dress said, "It's a great joy. Everybody's content. We got rid of the Saddam dictatorship." Another man said, "I'm proud of this day." Hurra reported that celebrations also took place in Kerkook and Baghdad, the country's biggest Kurdish city.

In Baghdad, Arabs interviewed on the street were pleased, too. One man described it as "the epitome of true democracy – a Kurd being elected president. There's no comparison to it in the world." A bespectacled senior viewed the choice as "reinforcing national unity." A young vendor dissented, "They don't represent me, they don't represent the citizenry. We didn't vote for them. Those guys picked them."

Long live Falluja. Falluja, a thorn in the eye of the resentful.

-- graffito sighted on wall in Baghdad’s A’dhamiyyeh district,
April 8, 2005

Bad news and good news

Subject: FROM SANDY W. such terrible news
Sent: Mon, 28 Feb 2005 15:13:34 -0500

Ayad,
The news of today's suicide bombing is all over the media and on Internet in full color. What a horrible tragedy.

How can such insanity be stopped? Such acts do not carry any real message; they bring no solutions. Only escalating fear and anger - and of course boiling hot emotions will not work to bring stability in Iraq.

I hope you are safe and sound. Please reply or post to your blog soon so that we can be assured of that, okay?

Best,
Sandy

* * *

Sent: Sunday, March 27, 2005 7:57 PM
Subject: Re: FROM SANDY W. such terrible news

Hi, Sandy,

Thanks for writing. I just saw your e-mail, from four weeks ago, after that massacre in Hilla. I'm sorry -- I've had computer troubles, and have not always been on top of e-mail.

Thanks for writing, and for your concern. It's destruction, for destruction's sake -- an attempt to instigate a civil war and to create as much mayhem as they can, so the former rulers have a chance to come back.

All the best,

* * *

Sent: Tue, 29 Mar 2005 05:06:12 -0500
Subject: RE: FROM SANDY W. such terrible news

Good to hear from you.
I saw a clip on t.v. about the art school for girls. Their work was very good. Sorry, I don't remember which network aired it.
Sandy

* * *

Sent: Wednesday, March 30, 2005 10:06 PM
Subject: Re: FROM SANDY W. such terrible news

Hi, Sandy,

Do you mean, a school in Iraq? That's great, that a TV station in America, did that.

Thanks for telling me.

See ya.

* * *

Subject: refreshing to see good news
Date: Thu, 31 Mar 2005 05:40:19 -0500

Yes. Showed the paintings (beautiful!) and interviewed the teacher and the young artists. Sorry, don't know the t.v. channel, but it was one of the major broadcast networks (not CNN). I do not watch t.v. hardly at all (no time) so I don't know how many positive messages are being aired. It was refreshing to see good news!

Picnic Is No Party In the New Basra
Uproar Over Armed Attack on Student Event Redraws Debate on Islam's Role and Reach

By Anthony Shadid
Washington Post Foreign Service
Tuesday, March 29, 2005; Page A09

BASRA, Iraq, March 28 -- Celia Garabet thought students were roughhousing. Sinan Saeed was sure a fight had erupted. Within a few minutes, on a sunny day at a riverside park, they realized something different was afoot. A group of Shiite Muslim militiamen with rifles, pistols, thick wire cables and sticks had charged into crowds of hundreds at a college picnic. They fired shots, beat students and hauled some of them away in pickup trucks. The transgressions: men dancing and singing, music playing and couples mixing.

That melee on March 15 and its fallout have redrawn the debate that has shadowed Iraq's second-largest city since the U.S. invasion in 2003: What is the role of Islam in daily life? In once-libertine Basra, a battered port in southern Iraq near the Persian Gulf, the question dominates everything these days, from the political parties in power to the style of dress in the streets.

In the days that followed the melee, hundreds of students, angry about the injuries and arrests, marched on the school administration building and then the governor's office, demanding an apology and, more important, the dissolution of the dreaded campus morality police. The militiamen who attacked the picnickers at first boasted of stamping out debauchery, even distributing videos of the event. But, gauging the popular revulsion, they later admitted to what they termed mistakes. The governor, himself an Islamic activist, urged dialogue to calm a roiled city and deemed the case closed, even as students insisted they remained unsatisfied.

To many in Basra the students managed what no local party or politician had yet done: They interrupted, if briefly, a tide of religious conservatism that has shuttered liquor stores in a city that once had dozens, meted out arbitrary justice and encouraged women to wear a veil and dress in a way considered modest.

"The students broke through the barriers of fear," said Ali Abbas Khafif, a 55-year-old writer and union organizer jailed for 23 years under former president Saddam Hussein. "This was the first mass response to religious power."

The victory may be fleeting in a city where Islamic activism and guns often go hand in hand. Even in their moment of triumph, many secular students acknowledge they are fighting a losing battle; some suggest it is already lost.

"We have felt both our weakness and our strength," said Saif Emad, 24.

The day began with eight yellow school buses lined up by 10 a.m. at one of the two campuses of Basra University, a sprawling expanse where pink bougainvillea interrupts a dreary landscape. Hundreds of students from the university's engineering college piled into the buses. They were joined at Andalus Park by hundreds more on foot and in their own cars. By 10:30 a.m., there were from 500 to 750 students and guests at a picnic the university had approved.

Young men started playing soccer. Others went to buy ice cream. The more boisterous began dancing to a song, "He Went to Basra and Forgot Me," by Ali Hatem, an Iraqi singer. A few grew exuberant, thrusting tape players along with red-and-white scarves into the air. Most of the women were veiled, although a handful, including some Christians, went bareheaded.

"All of a sudden, students started running," recalled Garabet, 21, a civil engineering student.

At that moment, from 20 to 40 militiamen loyal to the militant young Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr and his Mahdi Army charged into the two-acre park of overgrown grass, concrete picnic tables and paths of colored tiles. Some of them wore checkered headscarves over their faces, others black balaclavas. They carried sticks, cable, pistols and rifles, a few with a weapon in each hand. They were accompanied by two clerics in robes and turbans: Abdullah Menshadawi and Abdullah Zaydi.

Garabet, an unveiled woman from an Armenian Christian family, never saw her assailant. He struck her twice in the back of the head with his fist. "I was afraid to turn around," she said.

She stumbled, then headed with others toward the black steel gate. Militiamen were shouting "Infidels!"

"It was chaos," she said. "Everyone was yelling."

As she walked out the gate, a second blow to the back of her head almost knocked her unconscious. Two weeks later, she is still wearing a neck brace, and her vision is blurred. She has numbness in one hand and suffers severe headaches.

At about that time, students said, a militiamen struck an unveiled 21-year-old, Zeinab Faruq, with a stick. Another accosted a couple, they recalled. The militiaman fired two shots at the legs of 22-year-old Muhsin Walid; another shot grazed Walid's hand.

Sinan Saeed, 24, a husky mechanical engineering student, described seeing one girl run toward the exit, then seeing a man stumble over her. Both were beaten with sticks and cables as they lay on the ground. Some surged through the gate; others tried to clamber over the chain-link fence, Saeed said. At the exit, militiamen slapped students with one hand, gripping their pistols in the other.

Students accused the men of stealing cell phones, cameras, gold jewelry and tape players as the students left.

"They focused on the women," said Saeed's friend, Osama Adnan. "They were beating them viciously."

"Without any discrimination," Saeed added.

Within half an hour, the fracas had ended. University officials said 15 students were seriously injured. The militiamen detained about 10 students, who were taken to the local office of the Sadr movement before being released that evening. By all accounts, police were present in force but did not intervene. The students insist that the police were cowed by Menshadawi, one of the two clerics.

One student, who spoke on condition of anonymity, recalled Menshadawi shouting, "There is no secular government! There is only the government of the Mahdi Army!" as he stood on some park steps brandishing a stick and a pistol.

In the Sadr movement's office, Heidar Jabari acknowledged excesses but defended the action. "There was a mistake in our execution, but we had the right to intervene," he said.

Tall, with a friendly demeanor, Jabari said he had warned students two days before the incident that the picnic was inappropriate. Shiites were still observing the sacred month of Muharram, he said, and a suicide bomb had recently killed 125 people in the southern city of Hilla. "The blood from there was still fresh," he said. "No one listened to us."

Jabari conceded that students were hurt and the beatings "went beyond what was legitimate." But, he added, "They say freedom means they can do what they want. This is not freedom. Freedom does not mean you can transgress traditions." He spoke calmly but with clerical sternness. "There are traditions and rules in an Eastern society that are different from a Western society. Every Iraqi has a right to act against these transgressions."

To bolster their case, the movement, one of Basra's most powerful, released a video of footage it had gathered of the picnic. It distributed it to local stores, which in turn sold it for about $1.

The images were relatively tame, even by Basra's conservative standards. Men are shown dancing. In the most exuberant moment, one dancer ties a scarf around his waist and swivels his hips. A man pushes a woman on a swing.

"At a wedding party, they do a lot more than that," said Saleh Najim, the dean of the engineering college.

The night of the confrontation, word of a protest went out, and the following morning about 150 students gathered at the engineering college, itself divided between secular and religious students. Their numbers swelling as they went, they made their way to the president's office and issued their demands: no work for the Islamic groups on campus, an official apology, punishment of the militiamen, return of stolen property, disbandment of the much-feared security committees that act as morality police in each university department and their replacement with Iraqi army troops.

Students vowed to remain on strike until the demands were met. Classes were canceled.

The next day, the students convened again. This time, they said, they planned to head to the governor's office. Police tried to block their path, firing shots into the air at the gate, but they managed to leave through another exit in 15 school buses. Once at the governor's office, they found hundreds of students from smaller colleges and a few high schools already gathered. Inside, the governor met with members of the city council and the Sadr movement, student representatives and school officials.

Two hours later, students recalled, Mohammed Abadi, the president of the city council, emerged. The students' demands would be met, he declared. He read a text from a microphone mounted on a police car outside the office, going over each demand.

"We will compensate what was lost," students recalled Abadi saying.

"What was stolen!" someone shouted from the crowd, correcting Abadi.

Following Abadi's statement, city officials and Sadr's movement treated the matter as closed.

"The issue is settled," said Mohammed Musabah, who took over as governor of Basra the day of the melee. He acknowledged that police had not arrested anyone, as students had demanded. But, he said in an interview, "We spoke with them in a stern tone. Both sides wanted to resolve it by way of dialogue."

Few students this week said they were thinking about dialogue. Nor did they seem to believe their demands had been met.

Saeed said that as he passed out leaflets during the protests, a student sympathetic to Moqtada Sadr tapped his shoulder. "Be careful," he said he was told menacingly. On the wall at the campus gate, scrawled in black, graffiti reads, "Basra remains Moqtada's Basra."

"For a moment, we felt the strength of our voices," Saeed said. "We were making up our own minds."

But, he added, "You can see on campus that students are still scared to speak."