A Family in Baghdad

Wednesday, June 16th. 2004

Good morning…
The weather is nice in the morning, but hot at noon, reaching more than 40 degrees C.
The schools and universities exams are over in Iraq. The summer holidays will begin, when many Iraqis will travel abroad, for the holidays are long, going all the hot summer months.
The students will spend most of their times at the Internet café's or at sports clubs, if they belonged to wealthy families, or work to help support their families, if they were poor, until the next school year.
I wish for all the best to all of them….
I wish the coming days and months would be better than those that went by… Amen.
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I bought some new books…for I am very busy reading these days…
This is the best hobby to fill the time.
I read books about the modern history of Iraq, the British occupation period, after the fall of the Ottoman Empire, by the end of World War 1.
Today is very much like yesterday … as the old byword says. I smile, and shake my head in astonishment…
The Iraqi tribes and their relation with the British...Most tribe leaders were against the British occupation, and so were the religious leaders in Iraq, Sunni and Shia'at. Briton was trying to establish good relations with them, to gain their consent, so they would use their influence on the people, to persuade them about the British' good intentions, that they have come to give liberty and democracy to the Iraqis, and to rid them of the injustice and backwardness of the Ottomans…
Don't these words look very familiar these days?
From 1920 to 2004 … how many years and generations have gone by?
The same words, the same political and media speech…
And the West is still thinking by the same mentality, and we, the Arabs and Muslims, are still trying to explain our point, so they would understand, but, in vain.
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They are thinking by the mind of the White Man, who would liberate the Back-ward nations, and we are among these, as they think.
We see that they have come to attain their interests in this land…
The gap is always big, and there is no way to fill it.
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We have our own morals and principles, in religion and other matters, we are nations that do not put up with the rule of foreigners … taking it as a disgrace that the nation's leadership is foreign, or an Arab who takes orders from a foreigner.
These are inherited and prevailing traits in this nation, since the days of the holly prophet… Muhammad (the prayers and blessings of God be upon Him), and even before that.




The Arab, or the Bedouin who changed into a Muslim, has a rebellious nature, very proud, and values his pride above all else. He is very difficult to rule, because he sticks to his view point, and sees that backing away from it is a weakness, and surrender…especially if his opponent was foreign.
I always say that the miracles of Muhammad (the prayers and blessings of God are upon Him) were not only the Holly Koran and His teachings, but gathering all those rebellious Bedouins, and uniting their word. It is a miracle in its own.
So, how would the occupation think that (he) can persuade the Arabs and Muslims that he is right, wants goodness for them, and he would dictate the coming program of their lives?
The occupation will spend extremely difficult years, and will not reap the fruits he desires…
The most important fruit being he would be believed, and followed as he leads.
Well, that is a far cry…
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In the history I am reading, there were a few of the tribe leaders who supported the British occupation, and had good friendships with the British, but dare not make all that known in public, or recommend the British to the Iraqi people, for fear of raising their indignance and anger …they would inform the British military leaders that they support them, but denounce them in public, because of fear…
It is really a great fun to read history… for what was behind closed doors, is very exposed today.
All this makes me laugh, and be sure there are always traitors to the will of people, who look only for their benefits, but at the end, they fall… and that there will always be honest men who stand up and defy injustice, and all the people will rally around them, revolting against injustice, and wrongdoings. So that injustice will break, and justice would rule.
It is as if I see the grandchildren of the former and the latter, each repeating the same role.
The honest knows his path, and holds on to it, and the traitor would follow the lead of his masters…. And each will be repaid.
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There are a lot of foreign friends… we correspond by mail, discussing many topics. I fully realize that our discussions are worthy, but have a limited influence. How many Americans, British, or European would get into the web site of Iraqi writers who live in Baghdad, maintain an Internet site, and dispatch the true daily life picture?
And how many Americans and Europeans take news from sources other than governmental and officially financed sources … ten thousand? Twenty thousand? Fifty? What is their percentage to their people?? What is the percentage of a few thousands who read, argue, and learn, then see a different face of the truth other than what their government and media shows them?
The United States population is around 300 million people.




Which means that the majority are either busy and do not care, or listens to the official media which doesn't speak the truth.
But the few foresighted that seek the truth, are only a minority who's presence no body feels, and needs great efforts and a long time to establish a well-heard voice in public.
And I wonder to my self: we are now at the age of Mobiles and Internet, yet such ignorance reigns between people, so what was it like at the 20's of the last century? When Great Britain used to rule the world and its nations, as America is doing now?
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Miss Bell, who was the deputy or the adviser of the Military Governor then, said in her diaries: (We are trying to convince the people that the British rule of the Iraqis is better than their rule of themselves, because our country is the symbol of justice and fairness in the world…).
Oh, God, these are old-new sentences, I don't know whether to laugh or cry?
It is the same mentality with which the occupation leaders in Iraq are talking…
Just look at the media and newspapers these days… and our image in them… Iraqis, dead or wounded, as a result of explosions … or, gangs that fight to rob and steal, … monsters… monsters… monsters.
This is our image in the media there.
And the people there feel sorry, and wonder: why do you reject the help of our governments to save you and improve your lives?
And we open our mouths in astonishment… That who is distorting our image, is the same one playing the role of the savior?? How can we believe him? What is the benefit he gains by distorting the image, making up false stories that do us wrong?
I think the answer has become clear now: to give a strong reason to the meaning of his presence here… for we are monsters who fight among ourselves, and the foreign forces are doing their humanitarian task in teaching us the Alpha-beats of civilization and correct life… but we do not listen…we fight, blow, and destroy what the occupation forces are building of infrastructure…
Who believes?
All the people there believe….some feel sorry for us, and some despise us. Yes, such is the picture now…
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On my way to work today, I was thinking with my self…
Britain entered Iraq after the fall of the Ottomans to liberate it and give it democracy… such was the cover for that occupation…. But what benefits Britain reaped from Iraq???
They dominated the oil and its production for tens of years, helped establish the state of Israel, and wrecked the ranks of the Iraqi people for long years, … many successive Iraqi governments, and more Iraqi governments, demonstrations and martyrs, treaties, and leaders who appear independent, but




Secretly implement the policies of Great Briton.
Until the independence occurred in 1958, and the first national Iraqi rule was established, by the people themselves…
But, the hatred and conspiracies against Iraq and the Iraqis didn't stop…their fingers kept weaving invisible webs, like the spider's, until Baghdad fell in 2003 under occupation again…but this time, Briton was in coalition with America…
That was our history and memories with an occupation force that went, and an occupation force that came… Today is very much like yesterday.
As if…as if history does repeat itself here, and laughs again, scornfully….
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Thursday, June 17th., 2004

Good morning again…
A morning of bombings…
The explosion of a trapped car in Baghdad, near an enlisting center of the new Iraqi Army …
This is the second or third time this center is targeted within months… but what were the security precautions taken to prevent the repetition of such bombings??? Nothing, of course…
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And who is the hero who would claim responsibility for these bombings?? Al-Zarqawi? The forces of darkness? Or Saddam Hussein???
Hah, silly jokes no body believes any more…
The blood of Iraqis is spilt on the streets day and night, … civilians, policemen, or army men.
And always, the numbers of Iraqi casualties is a lot higher than the coalition casualties, … several times more… always.
To whom we direct our anger??? To the coalition forces, or the mysterious forces of darkness??
Who opened the door for them to enter Iraq and make a nest here???
Weren't they the coalition forces who came to rescue and liberate us???
We thank them day and night… after every bomb, and before every bomb, … for Iraq has become the land of blood, desolation, destruction, and trapped cars, instead of becoming the land of liberty and democracy, as they claimed…
When will peace come back to Baghdad, the homeland of peace?
When these ominous forces get out of our country… those who came with new bonds, such as we never knew before, but merely heard of happening in some other cities in the world…trapped cars, explosions every time and place, dead people, wounded people, … , and, the prisoners of Abu-Gareab.
These are the new vocabulary in our new life after the occupation.





And there are still some fools who would defend the occupation forces, and regard them as the saviors of Iraq…
What a silly joke!!!
Actually, our whole life here became a meaningless silly joke…
I will not tolerate reading any letter from any American, who is still trying to convince me with the humanity of his government, and its great campaign to liberate Iraq and the Iraqis…
Get out of our country…this would be the greatest humanitarian deed you could give us now…
And after you get out, swear to us that you would never mess with our lives again, nor send more criminals and felons to rake havoc in our country…
I personally do not think America or Britain could sleep peacefully if ever we were happy, and in peace. Never. For their happiness always rises from destroying us, and ruining our lives. They are now in the best of conditions…
Here they are, doing to us what they have always dreamed of doing, for tens of years…
But God says : ( these are the days which turn around among people…), Meaning… there will come a day in which their lives will break up and be destroyed…just like they did to us…
We await that day, hoping they would understand , then, the pain in which we live… every day…every hour.
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translated by May/Baghdad