Edgar J. Steele
Apocalypse Now, Right Now, in Iraq...
Sun Apr 11, 2004 17:08
63.228.145.202

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Apocalypse Now, Right Now, in Iraq...
Date: Sun, 11 Apr 2004 12:51:31 -0700
From: Edgar J. Steele steele@plainlawtalk.com

This is important. Pass it along...

America's controlled media would have you believe there is some small-scale
skirmishing going on in Iraq right now, nothing more, with very few American
casualties and not a lot of Iraqis dying. Nothing could be further from the
truth.

Those four guys they killed, burned and dragged through the streets the
other day, the ones we were told were merely "civilians?" Turns out they
were military mercenary assassins who had been killing scores of Iraqis,
including women and children.

As usual, you have to go to the Internet and, usually, outside the country,
to get anything accurate.

Today, America is indiscriminately killing children and other noncombatants
in a campaign against several cities which includes B52 carpet bombing.

Troops are shooting unarmed civilians in the back as they attempt to flee to
a less certain death in the open desert.

Two days ago, we fired a cruise missile into a mosque during full services,
if you can believe it.

Atrocities like this are taking place RIGHT NOW!!!

To babies, for God's sake.

While I have believed we would lose this "war," even before it began, I
never imagined we would descend to the depths of savagery we now have
reached. There no longer is any hope for any foreigner who remains in Iraq,
so long as even a single Arab remains alive. We have gone so far off the
reservation that there is no return.

How in God's name could we have allowed it to come to this? How do we stop
it, with our government now totally out of control and in thrall to Israel?

The America that I have loved so much is gone for good. As did the Brando
character in "Apocalypse Now," we have lost our soul. Words fail me in
expressing my grief over what now is being done in our name, not to mention
what we have become.

-ed


(Below are two very recent posts to a British Internet board, "War Without
End," from on-site observers in Iraq ---
http://www.itszone.co.uk/zone0/viewtopic.php?t=14389&postdays=0&postorder=as
c&start=50)

======================================================================

Posted: Sat Apr 10, 2004 1:51 pm
Kate Holcombe
Trident Ploughshares.

Urgent information and appeal from Ewa Jasiewicz, who worked with Voices in
the Wilderness and Occupation Watch in Iraq, lived there for 8 months (Basra
and Baghdad) and in Palestine, mainly Jenin camp for 6 months, speaks
Arabic, and who got back from Iraq 2 months ago. She is in regular contact
with her friends in Basra and Baghdad.

I just spoke to friends in Baghdad - Paola Gaspiroli, Italian, from
Occupation watch and Bridges to Baghdad, Journalist Leigh Gordon, England,
(NUJ, Tribune, Mail on Sunday) and a Palestinian friend with family in
Falluja and friends in the Iraqi Islamic Party. Both he and Leigh have been
ferrying out the injured from Falluja to Baghdad for the past three days.
Ambulances have been barred from entry into the blood-drenched city.

Here is their news, which they told me over the telephone tonight (Friday)


Paola:

There has been a massacre in Falluga. Falluga is under siege. 470 people
have been killed, and 1700 injured. There has been no ceasefire. They
(Americans) told people to leave, said they have 8 hours to leave and people
began to leave but they’re trapped in the Desert. The Americans have been
bombing with B52s (Confirmed also by Leigh in an email three days ago).
Bridges to Baghdad are pulling out. We have flights booked out of Amman.
Tomorow a team will go to Sadr City to deliver medicines. 50 people have
been killed there. ?? (Forgotten name) the 'elastic' shiekh in Sadr City (I’
ve met him, young, brilliant guy, describes himself as 'elastic' because he
is so flexible when it comes to his interpretations of Islam and moral
conduct definitions etc, he's pretty liberal) he has told me I should leave.
He says that even he can't control his people. Foreigners are going to be
targeted. 6 new foreigners have been taken hostage. Four of them are Italian
security firm employees - they were
kidnapped from their car, which was found to be full of weapons, and there
were black uniforms. Baghdad was quiet today except for Abu Ghraib (West
Baghdad, where a vast prison is located and is bursting at the seams with
12,000 prisoners) an American convoy was attacked there and 9 soldiers were
injured and 27 were kidnapped. That’s right 27. None of the newswires are
reporting it though. And I heard this from (*name best not to supply without
permission). Its really really bad. They (Americans) have been firing on
Ambulances, snipers are following the ambulances, they cannot get in.

Falluga, there are people in the Desert, they've left Falluga but they're
not being allowed into Baghdad, they're trapped in the Dessert, they're like
refugees, its terrible but the people, Iraqi people are giving all they can;
they’re bringing supplies, everybody is giving all their help and support to
Falluga.

I want to stay but I have to go, if I want to come back and be useful, you
know I think its best to leave, Bridges to Baghdad has decided this. It’s
getting really dangerous for Italians. We feel like we’re being targeted
now. (Italy has a 2500+ force including Carabinieri occupying Nassiriyah
which has been subject to a number of resistance attacks including the
devastating attack on the Police station which claimed the lives of 4
soldiers, one civilian, one documentary film maker, 12 Carabinieri police
and 8 Iraqis).

(…) and Leigh have been great. They’ve been driving into Falluga and
bringing out people, going back and forth. They know what’s going on, really
they have been great. They want more people to help them but we couldn’t
from here. It’s getting much much worse.

ends


My friend who’s been in Falluga today and for the past few days:

We’ve been seeing it with our own eyes. People were told to leave Falluga
and now there are thousands trapped in the Desert. There is a 13 km long
convoy of people trying to reach Baghdad. The Americans are firing bombs,
everything, everything they have on them. They are firing on Families! They
are all children, old men and women in the dessert. Other Iraqi people are
trying to help them. In Falluga they (Americans) have been bombing
hospitals. Children are being evacuated to Baghdad. There is a child now, a
baby, he had 25 members of his family killed, he’s in the hospital and
someone needs to be with him, why isn’t anyone there to stay with him, he
just lost 25 from his family!??? The Americans are dropping cluster bombs
and new mortars, which jump 3-4 metres. They are bombing from the air. There
are people lying dead in the streets. They said there’d be a ceasefire and
then they flew in, I saw them, and they began to bomb. They are fighting
back and they are fighting well in Falluga. But we are expecting the big
attack in 24-48 hours. It will be the main attack. They will be taking the
town street by street and searching and attacking. They did this already in
a village near-by, I forget the name, but they will be doing this in
Falluja. Please get help, get people to protest, get them to go to the
Embassies, get them out, get them to do something. There is a massacre. And
we need foreigners, the foreigners can do something. We are having a
protest, Jo (Jo Wilding www.wildfirejo.org.uk) and the others from her group
are coming to the American checkpoint tomorrow. We haven’t slept in 3 or 4
days. We need attention. I have photos, film, we’ve given it to Al jazeera,
Al Arabiya but get it out too. Do everything you can. We are going back in
tomorrow.


Leigh Gordon:

It’s kicking off. Come by all means but me and (..) probably won’t be
around. I mean they’re going to crazy. (…) is saying for foreigners to come
but its not safe. Sheikh …. from Falluga said he couldn’t guarantee my
safety. I mean its going to go crazy, I think foreigners will start getting
killed soon – I mean people are going to start getting desperate, when they’
ve seen their mother father, house, cat, dog, everything bombed they’re
going to start to attack. They (Americans) have said this operations only go
ing to last 5 days’ it’s drawing to an end. They need to free up troops on
other fronts breaking out all over the country. They’re going to go in for
the kill. There’s no way of guaranteeing anybody’s safety. I think you can
be useful but its not like you can just not tell your mum and think you’ll
be back in a week. We’re probably going to get killed tomorrow. Come, but we
might not be here.

=======================================================
Posted: Sun Apr 11, 2004 9:44 am

Highway to hell: The road to Falluja
By Odai Sirri in Garma
Aljazeera

Sunday 11 April 2004, 1:29 Makka Time, 22:29 GMT

As we drive through the back roads on the way to Falluja, US jets are
pounding the area around the tiny village of Garma.

The sight of US reinforcements flying into the area and the continuous sound
of explosions and gunfire proves too much for my driver. He pulls into the
village, unwilling to go any further.

Half way between Baghdad and Falluja, Garma is well placed to witness the US
bombardment of the latter, where the steadily rising toll of dead Iraqis
from the past week's fighting has passed 400. At least 1000 have been
reported wounded.

With the main routes into the town blocked or too dangerous, Garma – just 15
minutes from Falluja – has become a stepping stone for resistance fighters
on their way to help their besieged compatriots.

Witnesses report seeing scores of fighters passing through Garma daily.

A lorry of what appear to be 15 tribesmen stops next to us. But the
tribesmen – each man's face covered by an aqal (the Iraqi headscarf) – are
from Baghdad.

Stopping to rest at a tea shop before entering the besieged town, Ahmad, a
25-year-old with the worn face of a battle-hardened warrior, tells me of his
intentions.

“We're going to assist our brothers in Falluja and try to prevent the
massacre of Iraqis.”

But Ahmad and his colleagues will have their work cut out for them. Breaking
news from Aljazeera on a nearby television shows fresh images from Falluja:
scores of dead, including many children. The town has turned into a
bloodbath.

The images prove too much for Ahmad; he drops his face into his hands and
breaks down. As he walks away, I call an Aljazeera cameraman in Falluja to
check on his safety.


My colleague's voice is panic-stricken as he describes the scene, echoing
the pictures that have shocked Ahmad.

“There are images we can’t show because it’s just too gruesome. I have never
seen anything like this before,” he says.

“There are bodies everywhere, and people can’t go out to retrieve them
because they’re too afraid of being blown away themselves.

“I can’t believe the number of children here, we were at the hospital and it
’s full of dead and wounded kids.

“The ones that aren’t dead have lost limbs and are wailing in pain, begging
for their parents. What parents?” he screams. “I don’t have the heart to
tell them that their parents are in pieces.

“Back at our office the Americans are shooting at us. I walk out of the
bathroom and a laser is pointed at my chest,” he says, referring to US
sharpshooters in the area.

“We 'd just bought cigarettes from a store across the street; no more than
ten minutes later it was bombed.”

Ahmad returns and orders another cup of tea. But our conversation shifts
focus as he asks about my life growing up in Canada. He looks at me
curiously and asks my age.

“You see? We’re the same age, but look at my face, I look many years older
than you,” he says, his voice quivering with emotion.


“We Iraqis are tired of all this fighting, why doesn’t the US just leave us
alone? What did we ever do to them?”

“You know what the funny thing about this entire mess is? If Saddam were to
come back right now, all this fighting would stop in two hours, isn’t that
right Ali?”

Ahmad and his companion begin laughing.The laughter ends as more images of
the Falluja scene appear on TV.

“The US will never leave Iraq,” he says more soberly. “You know what I want
to see happen in Iraq? I want to see a federal Iraq where everyone from
north to south, and east to west is fairly represented. We Arabs, Sunni,
Shia, and Christian; the Kurds, the Turkmen – we are all Iraqis.”

But his hopes and desires seem far away as the sound of bombs and mortar
shells reverberate through our café. A few minutes later the driver of his
lorry sounds the horn. Ahmad takes a final sip of his tea and says goodbye.

If the mounting toll is any indication, Ahmad will probably not make it out
of Falluja alive.

================

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