Hi everybody,

Just testing. Preparing to post soon.

TILL DEATH SHALL WE ALWAYS REMAIN APART - SERIOUS WARNING

Iraqi Mojo,

You asked me what do I think about the return of the Saddamist Baathists. Perhaps I did not answer you with sufficient clarity. The vast majority of the Iraqi people would rather die and go through hell, and would fight to the death even if that meant total destruction of everthing; rather than see the return of Ssddamists. The Americans and the whole world should not have any doubt about that. The support for the American operatin freedom was entirely for having deposed these Saddamists. If they try to undo their own achievemnt, all the goodwill towards them will disapear and they are not going to get any gratitude from the criminal Saddamists either.

Alaa

EL SID - PART II

Hi Everybody,

A recent encounter left a strong impression on me. It was an acquaintance of mine, a structural engineer like me. We met occasionally for some professional business in one of the Gulf Countries. One day I noticed that he was rather depressed and seemed quite angry. I asked him what the matter was. He told me that he had an argument with some non-Iraqi Arabs about the Iraqi situation and they all set on him like a pack of dogs chiding him that Iraq was an occupied country and all that kind of spiteful talk about the Iraqis that we have become accustomed to from our Arab “brothers”. Well, this guy was not the type who can take things coolly, and he gave them back what they deserve. We have all been in this situation and had to suffer the stupidity and prejudice of outsiders. One sentence that he uttered struck me though. First of all he said that they all had parts of their lands occupied, like the Golan in Syria, and then he said something in Iraqi slang that is difficult to translate. Roughly it may be translated like this: “how happy would they be, had their occupation been like the American occupation”. And then with emotion, he uttered a kind of bitter remark that remains reverberating in my mind – “if the Iraqi people have any friends it’s only America and nobody else”. For anyone outside Iraq, getting his information from the media, this may sound an incredible sentiment, but for many Iraqis it is perfectly understandable. Well, the Americans are not perfect, and they have committed tons of mistakes in Iraq. Some of the soldiers misbehaved and even committed crimes; there was Abu Graib and all that. Yet, yet, let’s face it, what’s a friend? It is someone who is pleased to hear you are doing well, and doesn’t like bad news about you; in short someone who cares about you. And let me ask just this one question – which people in this whole wide world likes to hear good news about Iraq and is dismayed when things go wrong? Need I answer this question? Do we forget that America has rid us of one the most brutal regimes in history? And in spite of all our detractors and envious hypocritical critics, a genuine democracy is coming into being, corruption or no corruption, squabbling between various factions, explosions and political assassinations etc. notwithstanding. At least the parliament is not the sham rubberstamp institution appointed by ruling dictatorships that abound all around us. The intensity and bitterness of the frequent political crises and disputes attest to the genuine nature of the pluralism that has come to characterise the political scene. This is something that is a complete novelty in this region of absolute dictatorships, medieval monarchies and sheikdoms.

And did they not say that America only came for the oil? The auctions for developing the oil fields have recently been held in Baghdad. Some amazing facts became public about the size of the oil reserves in Iraq. The international oil companies submitted their bids in a public televised show and in complete transparency. What was the share of American companies? – Not much as you can easily verify. So that gives the lie to that particular slander. However, even I who knew something about the oil reserves in Iraq was astounded to learn that only the contracts that have been awarded would raise oil production from about 2 m barrels at the present to about 12 millions in only six years if all went well. The contracts themselves were something unprecedented. They were service contracts that ranged from $1.5 to about $2.5 per barrel for the companies and almost half of that taxed. That was incredible, compare with the ancient product sharing contract of the old Iraq Petroleum company that gave the Iraqi side 50% of the production and much less than that initially. How could the companies accept such a low price for their services? It is because these were proven wells ready for production, all they have to do is to erect their drilling rigs and pump out the oil; and because also here was a completely independent and free government that feared no pressures from anyone. Beside these oil fields, there are others that the companies declined to bid for, for security reasons, not to mention some fifty locations that have not yet been explored but that are sure to be promising. In short it appears that after almost one century of production the oil reserves of Iraq have been barely touched. In fact the whole surface area of Iraq is floating on a lake of underground oil. The defunct Saddam once said that “the last barrel of oil produced in this world is going to be Iraqi”; in this he was not wrong. Of course this, too, inflames further the envy, consternation and greed of our kind neighbours. This time, though, I hope “the dirty dogs will get no dinner here”, in the words of an old British judge.

Long ago I painted a scenario that I imagined if there was a precipitate American withdrawal and abandonment. Despite all the gains and progress that have been achieved, nothing has changed fundamentally. Like I said then, an allegory can best describe the situation. As long as the king of the jungle, i.e. the lion is there, the vultures, hyenas, and other predators keep a safe distance and observe intently from the surrounds. They will do as much mischief as they can if the lion looses attention of this spot or that. But as long as El Sid is in the battle, and as long as king Solomon is standing and perceived to be alive, no afreet or Genie dare cross the limit.

In January of this year 2010, the army day was celebrated by a military parade for the first time since 2003. It wasn’t too bad. There was some respectable armour, and the soldiers marched in good order and with pride. But I sighed with pity and sadness, when few single engine training aircraft and some helicopters flew overhead as representing the new air force. I remembered the 3000 Russian fighters, the ground to ground missiles, the thousands of tanks, and the countless other military hardware that Saddam had. I remembered the legions of presidential guards, Fedayeen Saddam, the numerous repressive organisations and party members etc, etc. True all that was of little use in the face of superior western technology, and the antipathy of the majority of the Iraqi people and even some of his own people; nevertheless it was a formidable arsenal in the region. I thought that this new army, though becoming more effective in dealing with terrorism inside Iraq, has no chance in any encounter with any regional power. Iraq is cursed by some very bad neighbours indeed. Absolutely every neighbour has some bone to pick and a special agenda and design against Iraq. I need not elaborate; it will be too much and too painful to talk about. Besides, monsters lurk within the borders of Iraq itself, and the danger of sectarian conflict and strife is hiding just below the surface. If you follow the political scene, you will clearly see that in every crisis, American involvement has been instrumental in resolving the most complicated of situations; the question of the election law is only one of the latest examples. American involvement and presence has become the cement that is keeping together the nascent democracy with its conflicting currents and precarious equilibrium. I don’t deny that Al-Maliki government has been the most effective so far, and I shall probably vote for him if I had the chance to vote; nevertheless I dislike his insistence on American complete withdrawal, although that seems to please many in the U.S. itself. This is pure political hypocrisy, and is shared by all participants in the present political process. But they are not all stupid, and all know the truth. Those who really would like to see the Americans out of the picture are only the ones who want to pounce on the new order and liquidate it completely, for their own selfish aims. The future of Iraq can only be safeguarded by a solid and real strategic pact with the United States. This is not only in the interests of Iraq but also of the American people, and very much so. Not only the present political order, but the very existence of Iraq as country will be doubtful without American protection, not even a Saddamist like dictatorship can survive again. The country will be pounced upon from without and within and torn to pieces before even the last American soldier has left. Take the word of this humble Alaa the Mesopotamian for it. The predators lying in waiting know that once America withdraws it cannot come back and they are trembling in expectation of that day. McCain knew this, President Bush knew this. And what a calamity for the U.S. it will be. Not Afghanistan, not Pakistan, not the Yemen nor any other region can be as disastrous as Iraq if it is dismembered and become a failed state where all manner of terrorist beast is allowed to roam freely. The oil lake underneath and the all the riches and resources of the region will be out of control and can destabilise the whole international, already very precarious, economic and social system. All the might of the U.S. and all the western powers will not then be able to control the situation.

I am not against President Obama. Indeed his election was a kind of moral victory for the American people. He is a charming man no doubt, and above all the first “black” president. Some people questioned his Nobel Prize. They didn’t see that the prize was not for any particular achievement for peace; it was clearly for his achievement of a black man becoming president – no mean achievement indeed in a country where barely fifty years ago blacks couldn’t enter some restaurants and could not go to white colleges, and where apartheid like discrimination was common in many places. His election impressed the whole world, precisely for this reason. It marked a turning point for the American people as a whole and a moral lesson to all nations. Yet the euphoria having subsided, the practical problems of the world impose themselves. Quite frankly, from our own selfish Iraqi point of view the republicans were preferable. They understood the situation and realised the dangers better. Be that as it may, I pray that the Obama administration does not commit the fatal mistake of abandoning the Iraqi front. I am convinced that any such action will bring the downfall not only of Iraq as a country but of the United States as a world power. The long-term consequences can be devastating for the American people themselves. Only people completely devoid of any imagination can fail to see that. Already other powers are rising and can’t wait to take over the role of predominance in the world. The entire present political and economic structure of the U.S. depends on its international status. Take that away and the continent will dwindle into poverty, misery and incalculable social consequences. No, the death of El Sid must not be announced, and King Solomon must remain erect even if in make belief.

EL SID

Hi Everybody,

I remember an old Hollywood movie called "El Sid". It was based on a legend from the days when the Christians were fighting to expel the Moslems from Spain in the middle ages. You have all probably heard of the splendid era in Spain that lasted for several centuries, when an Islamic Umayyad western empire founded by Abd-ar-Rahman I (later titled Al-Dakhel) ;http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Andalus.

The legend goes like this: One of the leaders of the Christian armies was a great worrier. The Muslims or “moors “or “Saracens” as they are often referred to by ancient writers had a great respect and fear of this man. And as a mark of their awe towards this personage they nicknamed him El Sid, which means in Arabic: the master or the chief. Anyway this fighter was one day injured and died later without the Moslems knowing about it. In order not to lose the psychological advantage of his presence in battle and the fear he inspired in the enemy camp, the Christians hid the fact of his death, dressed the corpse in battle garb, mounted it on its horse and propped it up and had it accompany them in battle producing the desired effect and winning the battle. A similar tale is told in our religious lore about King Solomon http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Solomon , who is considered a prophet by the Muslims. He was according to Muslim tradition, master of all creatures, jinn’s and all manner of land, sea and air afreets, not to mention all animals. All feared and obeyed him and he could speak to them all and order them to do whatever he desired. So the legend goes that when he died he remained standing leaning on his walking stick for more than a whole year. All that time all the creatures at his command went about fearing him and behaving themselves, believing that he was alive. Well, you may wonder why on earth I am telling you all these tales! You will see what I am driving at shortly, if you can bear with me a little longer.

Well, the continuing drama of the Iraqi situation beats any soap opera or Hollywood fiction thriller with hands down, provided of course, that one keeps a safe distance; which luckily is the case for me right now. Being inside there, I doubt that entertainment would be the predominant sentiment for anyone. Hardly a day goes by without some exciting new development. Now we have entered the eighth year A.L. (After Liberation; one day Iraqi history may be dated thus); so how does the scene look like and what are the prospects for the near and distant futures? I would like to share with you some of my thoughts about it.

When considering the situation in Iraq, one must always keep in mind the developments of the past seven years and even the years preceding the fall of Saddam. After the 1st real election of 2005, the insurrection really escalated and we are all guilty of understating and under- reporting the true gravity of the situation. A terrible civil war was raging but nobody wanted to admit that openly. The horrors of that war are too painful to recall. I was personally witness of incidents that will continue to haunt me to the end of my days. The insurgency was essentially a sectarian uprising of the Sunnis against what they saw as Shiite takeover of power as a result of the American operation. Several militias were formed in the Sunni camp including Baathists and other groups. Al-Qaeda and its affiliates found an ideal and fertile ground to establish themselves with some support from the population of the Sunni provinces, or at least tolerance and indifference initially, largely due to sectarian passion and distaste for the new order that was coming into being. Thousands of foreigners were recruited and sent to Iraq through extremely porous borders, not to mention those already imported by Saddam just before his downfall, and Al-Zarqawi and other Al-Qaeda leaders rightly considered Iraq as the main front in the fight against their western and local enemies; and it was indeed the most sizable battle that they ever waged. The testament of Zarqawi remains to this day the best document summing up the position of these groups and their analysis of the Iraqi scene and their strategy at that epoch. On the other hand the anarchist poor Shiites were suddenly liberated from all fetters and free to indulge in an orgy of violence and vandalism under the banner of the so called Sadrist Current. The serious battles of Falluja, followed by the Sadrist rebellion and the siege of Najaf, are still fresh in memory during the 1st post-Bremer government of Prime Minister Ayad Allawi. These were considerable battles in which the American forces played the primary role. After the elections of 2005, there were signs that the populations in Sunni areas primarily in the main stronghold of Al-Anbar were experiencing the harsh rule of Al-Qaeda, who established an intolerable rule of terror, murder and ridiculous oppression on the people. This situation prevailed in all Sunni controlled areas, in the provinces as well as in the Capital, Baghdad. Most importantly the Jihadists started to wage war against the traditional tribal sheiks and dignitaries, seeing in the traditional structures and loyalties a threat to their hegemony and control. Then the confrontation between the tribes of Al-Anbar started and developed into full scale war that ended in the expulsion of Al-Qaeda from their main stronghold in Al-Anbar. I was one of the first to realise the importance of this development and those who followed my blog at that time will remember my enthusiasm for this “Sahwa (awakening)” movement, and my urgent recommendation to support and take advantage of it; an advice which seems to have been heeded with far reaching results.

After the troubles in Al-Anbar, Al-Qaeda cadres were forced to relocate elsewhere in the Sunni areas, such as Diala province where Al-Zarqawi was discovered and killed by American bombing, as I am sure you all remember. However the killing of Al-Zarqawi did not end the rebellion and open sectarian war was declared the day the Al-Askaria shrine was exploded in 2006. I don’t think that the world really realised the full extent and the horror of that sectarian war. The country was divided into strictly segregated cantons where on both sides all those of the wrong sect were expelled from their homes and some murdered. People were murdered for no other crime than having the wrong name in the wrong place. Baghdad itself was divided into sectarian zones where anybody risked execution and torture if he ventured into the wrong neighbourhood. A childhood friend of my boys who lived few houses away from ours had been just married; he was a Sunni with a kind of neutral name. He was caught by a Sunni militia few hundred meters from my own house. The militia could not ascertain whether he was Shiite or Sunni, so they took his cell phone and phoned his wife asking her about it. The poor girl thought that he was caught by a Shiite Militia, and she told them that he was Shiite; he was promptly executed. To this day she cannot forgive herself and has become a psychiatric case. In January 2007, my own oldest cousin was shot by American soldiers mistaking him for a terrorist. He was buried ceremoniously by an Al-Qaeda crowd as a martyr. His son, a Sunni, however, was a police officer; he made the fatal mistake of showing his identity card in the cemetery. A month later he was pulled from his car in front of his wife and children, taken away and dumped two days later near his house with his body terribly mutilated by torture. He was murdered by the very same people who attended his fathers’ funeral. These were just couple of incidents that I personally witnessed amongst hundreds if not thousands of others. The years 2006, 2007 were the worst. Baghdad was a city of death and many parts of the city were like ghost towns where people feared to venture out of their front doors even for the most basic needs. Scores of corpses were found every morning littering the pavements and side streets and were collected and taken away by pickup trucks. These trucks laden with corpses piled on top of each other were a familiar sight in Baghdad. It was horror beyond imagination. The tragedies that took place are too painful to recall, some of which I witnessed personally. Baghdad had nearly fallen under the very nose of the American forces and the highly inefficient Iraqi security forces that they were trying to form.

Then came the counterattack. The credit must be shared between the troop surge decided by President Bush under the wise leadership of General Petraeus, the establishment of a unified Baghdad command by Al-Maliki’s government and the valiant efforts of the Anbar tribes and the Sahwa movement. The Iraqi security forces began to be developed in good earnest. The Maliki Government deserve to be credited for its determined and largely successful campaigns against Militias in the South primarily and the rather less successful ones in Mosul and Diyala. Towards the end of 2008 and in 2009 the insurgent tide had been more or less reversed. The war is not over and there is still much to be done, to be sure; but at least overt Militia control of entire provinces and neighbourhoods has ended and they were forced underground again. People can go about their business and shops are open; and even some neighbourhoods are becoming mixed again. In the shiaa areas calm has more or less been restored. Sectarian killings have almost stopped. However the scars of battle and the debris of destruction can still be seen all over the place, and underneath the surface animosities and sectarian hatred are still smouldering which is not surprising considering the atrocities inflicted by parties against each other. But the Iraqis are not a stupid people and everybody has realised that the violence did not serve anybody and that all sides stand to lose if it continues.

To be continued.

WAKE UP CALL

Hi,

Every time I sit to write about the Iraqi situation, something grave comes up that requires attention. It is now this abortive attempt to explode an American airplane by this Nigerian young man who apparently claims that he was doing it on the orders of Al-Qaida in Yemen. Now this is serious and therefore I would like to address this post directly to all Moslems in North America, i.e. both the United States and Canada.

Fellow Moslems, as I see it, your original nationality and even religion are accidents of birth. You had no choice in that. But a country that you choose of your own free will, and that accepts you and welcomes you without any obligation to do that; that seems to me more precious and worthy of allegiance. Either you have already sworn allegiance or you hope to do that sometime in the future. You are therefore bound by your oath.

This is your country and your father land now. It is your duty to defend it and protect your fellow countrymen. Your livelihood and interests are inextricably linked to those of your new country and its inhabitants. When Al-Qaeda and its likes launch this kind of aggression, they don’t really care about your position and reputation in your chosen land. In fact, this kind of attack is far mare damaging to you than it is to the American people in general, no matter how tragic the consequences may be if these crimes succeed, heavens forbid. These lunatics care even less about you than the thousands of victims that fall all the time in Islamic countries, with their bombs and their attacks. In fact they resent and hate you, for having chosen these lands to settle. I came very hard on OutlawMike in my previous post, but to tell you the truth, deep down in my heart, I could understand his rage; it’s just that his solution angered me. In fact if any of you has the slightest ambiguity about his feeling towards these criminals, you are indeed not worthy to stay here It is time that you rise to defend you honor and your real “country”, which is the one in which you are living and raising your families now. It is not sufficient to sit in your homes and just deprecate these crimes, you have to make your voices heard, and loudly. I know that the vast majority of you are outraged as much as everybody else, but your fellow countrymen must hear you loud and clear. It is a blemish on your reputation and you must do everything in your power to dissociate yourselves from these enemies, your enemies primarily.

The question is how to do that. Of-course the answer lies in organized action. I am thinking of an Islamic Antiterrorist Alliance of North Americans. I am now pondering the founding manifesto of such an alliance, and I hope some of you might think with me to come up with a comprehensive set of principles. This alliance would be open for all patriotic North Americans of any other faith and conviction. Its objectives would be specifically to protect the homeland of North America, and would not be concerned with any issues outside of this land. It would strive to achieve that by peaceful means, including education, public campaigns, the internet etc. It would not hesitate to cooperate with anti-terrorist governmental agencies in any way that is lawful and not prejudicial to the principles of democracy and civil liberties that the U.S and Canada stand for. I shall not elaborate further now and consider this an initial wake up call, and I hope others more capable and articulate than me might take up the cause.


Alaa

MERRY CHRISMAS

To all christians, and especially Iraqi Christians.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Alaa

THE PLAN

OutlawMike,

You are forcing me to digress again form the main subject of this blog. Never mind, though, I can persevere for one more post especially for you, see how much I care for you.

What you say is indeed quite alarming, I mean Moslems overrunning Molenbeek, Kuregem, Anderlecht and many other funny names like that is something truly affreux; more scandalous still, some of them actually going so far as wanting to perform prayers !! What horror!! And how about this phallic symbol of a minaret, my god, the thought of one going up your ----, if you will pardon the simile! Church spires are at least conical in shape and they can’t go all the way, so to speak. No wonder the Swiss banned them, though mind you, that does show a little lack of erotic imagination on their part. But then, Swiss peasants were never known for being particularly sexy. It’s probably too much cheese, you know.

Besides, all this pent up emotion and suppressed hatred is not good for your health, especially if you are getting on in years, are you still young? You can try drinking a lot of green tea and there are other recipes quite good to calm ones’ nerves, but I hardly think that will solve your problem entirely

No No No, something more drastic must be done; especially since I dont think stupid governments will accept you plans of mass deportation. So I have been thinking hard of a plan of action on your behalf; something that only a diabolical Moslem mind like mine can hatch. If you are man enough to match action to words, you may consider it; you don’t want Bin Laden types to put you to shame for being prepared to follow words with deeds. And here is the plan in brief:

You start by growing a thick beard. Next find some shabby clothes and try them on. Try to venture into one of these Moslem enclaves, perhaps Molenbeek (the 78% one). Make some acquaintances who look particularly the practicing Moslem types. Pretend that you are interested in Islam and ask them to take you to mosques to learn more about the religion. Little by little you will gain their trust and start frequenting their places. This plan needs patience and perseverance my friend, remember how Al Qaeda operatives plan and work for years for their exploits. Be inspired by that. Someday you will get to know some real hardcore Jihadi-Salafists and pretend to be influenced by them. You will convert and utter the Shahada, and become one of them. But be careful not to be really converted, I suspect you have the temperament for it. Finally confide to them that you have decided to become a suicide martyr and they might send you to Afghanistan or Somalia or some other hell for training. Once you have had your training and got your suicide belt packed with freshly made C4 in Syria, Iran or God knows where, tell them that you have a desire to meet their leaders before going to paradise. Who knows, luck might smile to you and you get to meet the great one himself. They will be thrilled to have such a convert, I am sure. The final act will be for you to try to smuggle your suicide belt during this audience, and boom, good riddance to a lot of terrorists, not to mention your good self too. It would be wonderful if you could recruit some like minded friends of yours and all do the thing simultaneously in true Al-Qaeda style. Don’t you think it is a wonderful plan?

Don’t forget to post a martyrdom video tape message on the internet, or better still send it to me. We shall be famous, man. It’s all about publicity and the television.

Salam

Alaa

WHAT TO DO WITH THE MOSLEMS

Hi everybody:

First of all I wish to convey greetings and best wishes to all my old friends and readers of this blog.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everybody.

Actually, I intended to discuss the Iraqi situation and my forebodings regarding the future in the light of the planned American withdrawal. However, the irksome discussions in the comments section about Islam and the Muslims force me to this digression.

Actually, I could have dismissed the ideas of OutlawMike (an old visitor to this blog) as being too extreme and outlandish and of no particular importance. However, unfortunately, I think this kind of prejudice is spreading alarmingly, especially in French speaking European countries, and even some non-French ones too. Although I am sure that it is still a minority that would go as far as our friend OutlawMike. So I would like to make few remarks apropos.

1- The slogan – “Get out of our countries”, evokes a painful recent memory of mine. In the ethnic cleansing campaign that took place in Iraq mainly in the years of 2006-2007-2008, the most common way of expelling Shiaa’s in Sunni areas and Sunnis in Shiaa neighborhoods was to slip a note on a piece of paper under the front door of the targeted family with almost precisely these words “Get out of our land” and of course accompanied with threats etc. The horrors that befell those who didn’t comply with the threats for any reason even if it was incapacity, old age or whatsoever are too painful to recount. Christian and other minorities, of-course, also suffered in these events; but mainly it was between Sunnis and Shiaas. Eventually everybody discovered that the process only brought ruin and destruction to everybody including the fact that “their lands” became worthless in commercial value.

Needless to say, this is an ancient slogan – Jews (Judens) Get out of the land of the Aryans – Bosnians Get out of the land of Serbs – Armenians in east turkey etc. etc.; the examples are countless. I advice my friend OutlawMike to drop this idea completely, and assure him that it is an extremely evil and in particular unchristian thought if he is Christian.

2- Another argument rings a familiar bell. OutlawMike, says that he knows there are some good Muslims, but since these will be included in the mass deportation that he is proposing, they should understand that it is in a good cause, and therefore accept it in a sporting spirit, as it were.

This is very similar to one argument of terrorists of Al-Qaeda et al. type. When they are told that terrorist acts kill innocent people, including some good Muslims (i.e. good as per wahabi-salafi specifications, so to speak), their retort is ready: There is no problem, since Allah (God) will make sure that they are recompensed in the afterlife and they will “understand that it was in good cause”. This argument I have heard with my own ears several times.

Another real anecdote comes to mind in this respect. A horrible massacre on grand scale of presumed “communists” took place in Indonesia after the fall of Sukarno way back in the sixties or early seventies, I don’t quite remember. It was estimated that some three million souls perished in this atrocity. These unfortunate humans were often hung from trees and hacked to death. The mobs were instigated by some clergy (the precursors of Bin Laden, I suppose), and thought that it was a good religious act because these “communists” were atheists (Kafirs). However, during the course of the massacres a problem arose. Some of these unfortunates while being hung to be butchered uttered the “Shahada” (i.e. the Muslim expression of faith: I witness that there is no God but Allah and that Muhammad is his messenger). It is said that the massacres stopped for three days while the clergy or “Muftis” were pondering this theological problem- since these men pronounced the “Shahada” they could no longer be considered as atheists, and hence would it be lawful to kill them? Finally the following Fatwa (religious edict) was pronounced by these venerable Ulama. The Fatwa was something like this: “The uttering of Shahada by these communists was either sincere or fake to save their skins. If it was false, then they deserve their punishment. But if it was genuine, then by killing them they are dispatched to God, and God will reward their sincerity and they will understand that it was for a good cause.” The massacre was resumed with renewed vigor with the conscience of the mob put at ease.

I think your proposal Mr. OutlawMike, might face a similar problem. What if some of these Europeans of Moslem descent, to be deported, were actually atheists or not particularly religious? How would you solve this problem? I would like to know your Fatwa in this regard.

3- The main attribute of Fascism is not socialism – It is racism - the concept of genocide and mass punishment of whole groups of a particular race or religion. Therefore your assertion that since you hate socialism, you cannot be accused of this ideology is not valid. You, my friend are a fascist par excellence .

Finally, if you think you are Christian, you are forgetting one of the greatest principles of Jesus (PBU), nay, one of the greatest concepts of all – “Love Your Enemy”. This principle is not a kind of excessive kindness or exaggerated charity. It is a very profound religious, political and social program. I have always pondered this particular slogan. But I think this question cannot be dealt with here. Volumes can be written in exploring this fathomless idea with far reaching implications.

According to recently published U.N. estimate, 25% of the world population is of the “Islamic Faith”. In mathematical language if you divide the number of extremists by the total number of Muslims, you will get a figure which is practically equal to zero in the engineering sense, i.e. negligible. Of course not all those who are born to Moslem parents are religious or practicing. The world has become one big village, and ideas such as yours Mr. OutlawMike, are not only immoral, but they are completely anachronistic and impractical.

But In any case, I hope I have not offended you and assure you that your comments are always read by me and considered carefully.

Best regards to you and all my old friends.

Alaa

HI, ITS ME AGAIN

Dear friends,

It has been a long time since I posted. Many things have happened meanwhile. So many thoughts and reflections I felt like conveying to you. Well, for those who have known this blog for a long time will remeber that it was originally created for a purpose. The purpose was WARNING. Warning of danger. Of grave danger to Iraq as well as to the West and the U.S. in particular. Nowadays, I have this premonition of danger. I am compelled to spell out my fears. I am just posting to signal to my friends that I am trying to collect my thoughts to express this new warning and that I hope to resume posting at least about this soon.

Wishing everybody a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Your friend Alaa

THE AMERICAN-IRAQI AGREEMENT

Hi,

Today another important milestone in the post Saddam era has been established. I was one of those who felt quite uncomfortable and impatient at the painful protracted negotiations and bargaining for concluding the so called “security agreement” between the U.S.A. and Iraq. Yet as things turned out, perhaps there are positive aspects about the way that it was done. The fact that the overwhelming majority that voted for the agreement included important factions across sectarian and factional lines is a positive development. Another important condition that was established as a condition for ratifying the agreement was that a general referendum is to be held in the middle of next year to give the people a chance to have their say. If the result of this referendum is rejection, then the government is obliged to use the clause that actually exists in the agreement concerning termination. Some may not like this, yet in the event of approval through a general referendum, this would be quite a resounding vindication of the American action in Iraq, and a slap in the face of all the slanderers and detractors. What will say all those who whined and raised that deafening noise about the unjust and cruel violation of Iraq’s sovereignty and the invasion etc. etc., when the Iraqi people through a general referendum say yes to what is essentially an approval of a strategic alliance and continued American presence, whether military or in other forms. That would indeed be a verdict that could only be disputed by someone far gone in delusion, prejudice and error. That would be the final judgment and justification for the liberating act carried out by the Americans and the real final “thank you" of the Iraqi people, even more remarkable considering all the pain, blood, mayhem and sufferings.

And you know what? I have one of those gut feelings about the outcome of such a referendum; so do all those M.P.’s who voted for the agreement. So indeed, now, I feel that this was a courageous and right decision by the parliament. The enemies are going to try their best to sabotage and disrupt during the coming months; primarily to avoid such a result. It is important to ensure the success of the transition, and above all the transparency and integrity of the proposed referendum and all electoral events.

And if you remember, I was one of those who believed in the wisdom of withdrawing the American forces to secure and safe bases outside population centers; to take the American foot soldier out of the streets and alleyways. Someone called it withdrawing inside. It must be understood clearly by everyone, that American presence in Iraq is indispensible and that it is the main safeguard against fragmentation and descent into chaos. On the other hand, things are indeed moving forward and Mesopotamia has a natural tendency towards civilized life, believe it or not. You only have to study the history of this land to realize this. Only, the midwife who helped deliver this enfant democracy must remain nearby to safeguard the newborn until it is strong enough. This withdrawal from the streets is a main feature of the agreement and it is to be accomplished by July 2009. This is correct in my opinion and will place the responsibility squarely on the Iraqi government and security forces to finally establish their full control in cities and everywhere without relying on direct American support. Meanwhile the American forces will be near enough in case something goes terribly wrong. I do not underestimate the dangers and difficulties; however I feel the general directions of the agreement are in line with my own thinking. All those who have been following my blog in previous years could see that.

Today was a good day, and I hope and pray for the poor old country that the sufferings and sacrifices of both the American and Iraqi people might eventually bear fruit and that the “project” that excited us so will succeed in the end.

THE GHOST

Hi everybody,

You know, it is a fact that intense suffering and being in a situation where right and wrong are clearly defined seem to be an incentive for self expression and creative thought. For example Russian literature reached its pinnacle during the 19th century under the regime of the Tsars, when tyranny was coupled with certain freedoms for thinkers and writers. Although the Tsars were despotic they did not try to sponsor the kind of cheap propagandist culture that characterized the situation under the Soviet regime. In a kind of a way, something of this nature happened after the fall of Saddam.

Now that my situation has changed dramatically, I find the urge to write much weakened. The urgency and desperation of yesterday, living under mortal danger and terrible insecurity, have given way to the cares and problems of western existence, and the insecurity has become of quite different nature. One is not afraid anymore of being bombed, kidnapped, tortured etc., however there is instead another kind of insecurity, connected with the financial situation and the requirements for leading a decent life. Ironically, this was not really a major concern in my previous existence. Indeed my previous savings and resources in the M.E. continue to support my present existence and that of the family, though this is just starting to change slightly and hopefully our ability to earn our keep in Canada will improve with time. Of course my principle of trying to avoid any kind of assistance from the state makes it a little difficult, but it is something that is very profound in my way of thinking. So the most I have allowed the members of the family is to seek and accept student loans. It is an emotional notion of mine to repay the Canadian state for the honor that they have bestowed on me by accepting my candidacy for citizenship, which is really a high honor that a state can bestow on a stranger. If I cannot contribute much, at least I hope my children will do. Well, they are each talented each one in his own way, and it is my dream to see one or more of them rending really distinguished service. Even the wife is now studying and working everyday of the week trying to finally settle into a decent kind of productive life. Although I loath touching personal subjects, I just wanted to explain to my faithful friends, who have been following this blog the reason for drying up all this time.

I prepared some posts about the financial crisis, but then I myself did not find them very convincing, so they were not posted. I must admit that I did have one of these premonitions that something awful was going to happen and have alluded to that in my last post months ago. Unfortunately my fears may have been too alarmist and I actually refrained from publishing them eventually. There are some nagging doubts about the very fundamental nature of the capitalist system that really bother me. The old Marxists did predict the inherent instability of the system and cyclic nature of crises of increasing severity that seem to be a structural characteristic of this system. But you know, it is always easier to criticize and analyze something real and existing, but it is quite another matter to find solutions. And of-course the experiments of socialism and communism that plagued the previous century were all dismal failures and ended with monumental failure and collapse. Socialism through state control and the weapon of prohibitions and restrictions was thoroughly defeated by human nature itself; stifled all individual initiative and ended by spreading misery, deprivation, and all kind of nefarious influences in societies. Central planning proved to be disastrous and deprived society of the most basic necessities, besides producing commodities of low quality, due to lack of competition and incentive.

Despite that, unfortunately, all the “socialist” experiments purporting to be application of Marxism have not been really and strictly Marxist according the precepts of Marx himself, that old Jewish German academician and bookworm who spent the best part of his life poring over volumes in the British Museum. Now, this guy whether you hate him or otherwise, cannot be dismissed easily. One aspect of his theory and analysis of the capitalist system especially in regard to recurrent crises has been proven very vividly from the 19th century to the present time. Many terms were invented to avoid the brutal Marxist terminology regarding these cyclic crises; depression, recession, then the delicate business cycle etc.

When communism and the soviet block collapsed, some put forth the notion of the “end of history”, and the final triumph of the capitalist western system. Indeed everybody began eagerly embracing Market Economy (another of these genteel expressions to replace the brutal term: Capitalism). Now almost all important countries have gone that way and Russia and China, the two most important erstwhile communist powers have become more or less embroiled in the Globalized international market system; and this was considered the end of history and the final triumph of capitalism. Surely things should run smoothly now, it was thought, and the ideological struggle has come to a triumphant conclusion for one side. But in fact, this was the beginning of real trouble for the system rather than otherwise. And you know, Marx actually always considered socialism as a phase that would come when capitalism has reached its fullest development. And in fact, many Marxists knew that the revolutions in the underdeveloped countries contradicted real Marxist theory, and hence such terminology as “continuous revolution”, “permanent revolution” and the Leninist Dictatorship of the Proletariat were all attempts to circumvent the obvious contradiction and departure from true Marxist thinking.

Now I am not an economist and would not presume to understand the complexities of capitalism nor the Marxist critique of the system. However, in my ordinary man’s thinking I believe I understand the process in very simple terms. I could state it in simple ways. The essence of the analysis is that capital accumulation which tends to increase independently of the productive forces that actually produce the wealth produces a situation that capital seeks to grow through investment that would in turn increase the capital. For this to work, there must always be growth. But growth, by its very nature cannot go on indefinitely. That is almost a physical universal law. A man can grow to manhood and then declines, a tree will not grow indefinitely, the resources of the earth themselves are finite and cannot be exploited without limit. So there comes a time when the ability of the people to consume products reaches a limit. The consumers are given credit in order to be able to consume, but this credit is with interest and things work fine as long there is again growth that could repay the credit with profit. Although, as I said I am no economist, but it seems to me amply clear that this process has to come to a crisis when the general consumer is no longer able to repay his loans and the whole complex financial structure comes to this moment of truth. It is logical, overproduction, through the impulse to invest with diminishing purchasing power of the consumer. In short an economic system based on constant growth rather than equilibrium, is inherently unstable.

What is the solution though? Certainly, not through the kind of state control and restrictions imposed on individual initiative, freedom and enterprise that we have seen in the horrors of “socialist” experiments in the 20th century. I do not have the answer, but perhaps some creative new “synthesis” might emerge ironically in accordance to the classical Marxist-Hegelian dialectical logic.

Wa Al-Salam Alaykum, or should I say now Have a nice day.

P.S. It is election night and it seems that Obama is going to win. I think poor McCain has been really unlucky, with the financial crisis coming at this particular time. I personally believe that this crisis has nothing to do with the policies of any american administration but as I tried to explain above is inherent in the system and will happen cyclically regadless of what goverments do. Goverment action may delay, cushion or inluence in some limited way these events but they will never be able to prevent them.

Hi everybody,

It's been long since I blogged the last time. It is time I said hello to my friends again. Standby for a post that will follow.

Best wishes to all

NEW NOTES

Hi,

I was watching the Interrogation of General David Petraeus and the ambassador. What struck me most was the attitude and words from some of the Democratic senators. It seemed as though the enemy for these ladies and gentlemen was not Al-Qaeda, the terrorists or people like that. All the venom and harsh words were directed against the Iraqi government and poor Al-Maliki, these seemed to be the more hated foes for them. Not long ago we used to hear complaints that the Iraqi government was Shiite dominated and unwilling to take action against Shiite Militias and such groups as the Mahdi Army. Well when Al-Maliki at last moved decisively against such groups, it seems that the move did not please much these critics. Although in Iraq itself almost all the political blocks excluding the so called Sadrist Current, expressed their total support for the move against the outlaws, and indeed a marked improvement of the political atmosphere between the factions has clearly taken place. Indeed the position of these Democrats strangely sounded almost similar to that of the usual chorus of America-haters who habitually bark out their prejudices and deliberate falsifications in various quarters in the Middle East in such media outlets as Al-Jazeera and the like.

One cannot but side with the actions of the Iraqi Government, although quite frankly, I think personally, that the genuine Sadrists should not be completely routed out. This would upset the "ecological balance" so to speak. I mean we must not forget that there are other beasts in the jungle that would probably create more dangerous threats if their natural enemies were totally annihilated. Nevertheless, the situation in Basrah was unbearable, and nobody can deny that. The city was overrun by a motley collection of all sorts of criminal gangs. Oil smuggling on an alarming scale, kidnappings, killings of prominent people – doctors, university lectures, lawyers etc., not to mention the horrific murders and mutilations of women sometimes with their children; all these horrors had become the sad reality of daily life in the unfortunate city. The government was bitterly blamed for not doing much to rescue this vital and only port city in Iraq. Indeed the action by Al-Maliki was long overdue and urgently needed. And in fact the Iraqi security forces did well and acted firmly and managed to restore some control in the city, although the problems have not been completely solved. In fact they achieved more concrete results than anything the British forces had ever managed during their presence in Basra.

The solution of the Iraqi situation cannot be helped by trying to find scapegoats and excuses to run away and escape. The formulae expounded by the Democrats amount to nothing but defeat and escapism. The problem is that this is a situation where defeat is fatal. If anybody thinks that the U.S. can run away this time, and sits safely and happily in tranquil isolation between the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans, is in grave error. Solutions can be found to reduce casualties and expenses, but the strategic involvement of the U.S. in Iraq is a necessary and sufficient condition to avert a disaster the scale of which boggles the mind. A disaster that is infinitely more serious and dangerous than the aftermath of the Vietnam defeat. Because the Vietnamese had a clear objective, i.e. to unify their country and once that this objective had been achieved, they had no more business with the U.S. and the West. In the case of Iraq, the objectives and purposes of the enemy are fundamentally different, as has been expounded “maintes fois” by people of the like of Al-Zawahiri et. al.; so many times have we heard Al-Qaeda leaders affirm that they consider Iraq the central front in their International Jihad campaign, and as being the more appropriate battle ground, being in the heart of the Arab world and so near to the holy lands apropos to which they share the sick visions of certain of their western (and non-western) counterparts of Armageddon’s and Apocalypses and all such kinds of nonsense and legend. And to hear such laughable arguments as transferring the fight to Afghanistan and Pakistan after abandoning Iraq; as though Al-Qaeda et. al. lack transport to come flocking back to the abandoned grounds which they consider infinitely more strategic and interesting from their point of view.

Well, as colorful and aesthetically interesting as Mr. Obama and Mrs. Clinton may be, it is highly risky to experiment with one of the most important and highly sensitive political positions in the world as that of the Presidency of the United States of America, at this particular juncture in history. Only it is clear that greater attention must be paid to the problems of the American people. It is scandalous that people are driven out from their homes for lack of means in a country that is the acknowledged sole Super Power and leader of the whole world. There are some real hardships and difficulties for the ordinary people of America that must be addressed. If the political establishment cannot appreciate this situation they are in grave danger. Indeed the huge vote for such improbable candidates (with all due respect) is the kind of message by the people that should ring the danger bells that the American system needs some urgent corrections.

NOTES

Hi,

Perhaps one of the most difficult things in life is to be a kind of stickler for the truth; to have a kind of allergy against the slightest strain or trace of falsehood or inconsistency in any set of beliefs, morals, political movements, or generally in situations that one faces during a lifetime. This makes life difficult and makes it difficult to belong to any particular label, because sadly, during a long life time search, I have yet to discover a creed that is entirely free of inconsistency or falsehood. Besides, it certainly doesn’t help one in making friends.

Although the bitter struggle for survival does not really allow time for such luxuries as blogging, nevertheless it is difficult to remain silent too long. There are so many thoughts in one’s mind that I would love to share with my friends. I would like to talk about subjects other than the situation in Iraq: religion, life in the West, personal reminiscences etc., however events back home are always so pressing, so urgent, so volatile and critical that they force themselves and leave little place for other issues. Then I remembered an old advice that a friend has made way back when I started blogging. Blogging is not about writing treatises or professional articles in MSM style. It is rather spontaneous outpourings of thoughts and ideas that do not have to be polished or elegant, just sincere and straight. So I shall adopt this style and simply jot down some notes and thoughts about a variety of subjects that have been occupying my mind.

- The electoral presidential campaign for the “primaries” in the U.S. has certainly captured the attention of many around the world, myself included. This time the nature of the candidates and the issues have certainly elements of suspense and drama that makes very good soap opera. To add to the suspense, there is the close race between the two democratic candidates, both of whom, besides, are very interesting in themselves for the obvious reasons. I find myself fascinated and following up this story with a kind of interest that would have been unthinkable on previous similar occasions.

Naturally, being an Iraqi, the position of candidates concerning Iraq is the primary factor influencing my preferences and judgment in their regard. On the other hand considering my new situation as a resident in North America and on my way to becoming a citizen thereof, I am beginning to become more aware of the problems of this continent. I don’t suppose that I need to remind my readers that Canadians are also North Americans, and that their values, economic system and general culture are not as different as many people on both sides of the border seem to think. A new arrival from a really different culture, like myself, is probably more able to appreciate this point than older residents.

Well, I must admit that I didn’t take this guy Obama very seriously in the beginning. I regarded him as a kind of curiosity, not just for being considered “black” but also because he was a very special kind of black. To start with, he is not your ordinary Afro-American, i.e. descendant of the black slaves who were brought from Africa to work in the plantations. He is the product of short lived marriage between an African belonging to the elite of an African nation and a liberal white woman. He is thoroughly bourgeois and middle class in birth as well as upbringing. His childhood and upbringing was entirely in a “white” milieu. He had a privileged education and achieved impressive accomplishments both in his academic and subsequent professional career. In short, he never actually experienced any of the hardships and grievances that are so much popularized in the life of ordinary poor Afro-Americans. So why is he considered black, just because the color of his skin, which is by the way a logical blend of pure black and white? In fact, Barack Obama is neither white nor black; he doesn’t really belong to either. When he talks about unity, it is something more than just electoral rhetoric. He is expressing a profound personal psychological necessity. He is seeking internal peace and reconciliation between his own chromosomes and conflicting childhood and subsequent manhood experiences. He seems have spent little time with either his mother or father and so he has something in common with the great orphans in history. Remember, Jesus was an orphan; Mohammad was an orphan as well so many other monumental figures in history. But still my interest in this personality was rather just curiosity until I heard his speech about race. It was a revelation; I was simply spellbound. I finally realized that we have here someone out of the ordinary. It was refreshing to hear a politician talking in this sort or language; eloquent, sensitive, and yes, sincere. The earnestness and sincerity came through. There was not much of the slogan mongering and platitudes so customary in the discourse of politicians. I realized finally that here was a formidable challenge to the political establishment in the U.S.A. both democratic and republican. I don’t know whether Obama is going to get the nomination or the presidency; what I am sure of though, is that he has already made his fame and will remain an important number in U.S. politics in the future; the “Audacity of Hope” indeed. I say all this despite the fact that his position on Iraq is diametrically opposite and contrary to my own, and if he does become president and deals with the problem in the way that he says, it would spell disaster for both the Iraqis and the Americans; yes friends, for the Americans as well. How is that so? Well, that’s a long story that deserves a special post.

- There so much talk about reconciliation and the failure of the Iraqi government and political groups to achieve progress on this front. There is no doubt that this question is of paramount importance for the future of the country, stability, and the cause of democracy. However, there are realities on the ground that are overlooked either deliberately by those who are in the know, or simply through ignorance and shallowness that characterizes much of American political handling of the Iraqi situation especially in certain quarters.

How many of you know that the problems of reconciliation at the present time are not mainly to do with differences between Sunni and Shiite; but are more influenced by rivalries between factions within each camp. For instance there is keen rivalry between the Anbar Awakening Council and the “Islamic Party” the main participant in the “National Accord Front”. This rivalry is quite overt, and has reached such pitch, that the leaders of the Anbar have expressed their hostility in no uncertain terms. It went so far that the Anbaris once said that they were going to treat the Islamic Party in the same way that they dealt with Al-Qaeda, and that this Party and their front did not represent them and had no actual presence on the Ground which is largely a true assessment, especially in regard to the Anbar province. The Accord Front is trying to counterattack through their political connections in Baghdad and is trying to gain maximum concessions as a condition for their return to the government. They are vexed with Al-Maliki mainly because the latter has close relations with the Anbaris, so do the Americans for that matter. They fear that the Government and the Americans might lean towards their rivals at their expense, an apprehension that is quite justified, as the latter are given most of the credit for having driven out Al-Qaeda et. al. from the Anbar. It is this same movement that President Bush has described in his latest speech as the first large scale Arab uprising against AlQaeda.

In the Shiite camp, there is the rivalry between the Sadrists and the other Shiite parties. No wonder that both the Sadrists and the National Accord both boycotted the latest reconciliation conference held in Baghdad.

Well that is all for today.

Regards

BIRDS

Hi,

Another sad day: the Al-Gazle pet market and another pet market have been hit today, see this. This particular place has been attacked several times before and still it happens. It is heartbreaking really. The people who frequent these traditional and very lovable places are usually amongst the poorest and are mostly young animal loving hobbyists. This kind of savagery and brutality defies reason and fills the heart with pain and despondency. But that is exactly the aim of the cruel and inhuman enemy. They want to saw despair and doom and haven’t yet learnt the futility of their crimes; their hatred and lust for blood is only equaled by their stupidity. What can be the justification for killing these most innocent of civilians engaged in these most innocent kinds of activities? Worst still, they say that two mentally retarded women were used in the suicide attack, in which case most likely these poor creatures probably had no idea of what is being done to them. Can anybody imagine such cruelty, it boggles the mind. It is said that Al-Qaeda et al are increasingly using children and women for their dastardly homicidal attacks.

The so-called human rights groups never seem to be unduly perturbed by such things. We seldom read or hear a word from them about such horrors. They are mostly concerned with the rights of imprisoned terrorists and apprehended criminals who perpetrate such acts. Is this unfair to them? I would like to hear from anybody to prove to me otherwise.

And what about the hypocritical Media? Al Jazeera, for instance downplays such incidents, they can no longer insinuate that it is the Americans or the Jews or something like that, so they prefer just to downplay the thing. But you still find those who throw their accusations left and right against anybody but the real culprits whom everybody knows by the way, but it is the culture of lying that has become the very basis of the thinking and feeling of some people. To keep lying and lying to yourself and others until you end up finally by believing your own lies. This reminds me of a folkloric story about the famous “Juha” who himself started a false rumor that something dramatic was happening the other side of the town, then when he saw people rushing towards the place, started himself running with them. Another satellite station called Al-Rafidain that is hosted by the Egyptians in Cairo openly extols the heroic acts of the “Resistance” (the very terrorist acts such as these), although, now and then, they hypocritically issue some denunciation of particularly heinous acts such those of today always trying their best to lay the blame on someone else other than the obvious culprits. This station is run by the so-called “Council of Muslim Ulama” headed by Harith Al-Dhari, who openly supports Al-Qaeda and has always refused to condemn them. This individual and his group are receiving open support and financing from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan and others. This group and this individual have been denunciated even by the Sunnis in Iraq, such as the denouncement of the head of the “Sunni Wakf”, the Anbar Salvation Council and others; yet still they receive support financial and otherwise from Arab regimes who claim to care for the Sunnis in Iraq and to be against terrorism. These are the very regimes, by the way, who are said to be moderates and friends of the U.S. Egypt, for instance, is receiving enormous annual financial aid from the American taxpayer money second only to that given to Israel, yet it has no compunction about hosting an MSM outlet that glorifies the murder of U.S. servicemen day and night, without even so much as a protest from the American government. Perhaps it is this weak-kneed American attitude that has contributed to the aggravation of the terrorist phenomenon.

In any case, such crimes are not going to delay the ignominious and inevitable end of the criminals of Al-Qaeda et al at the hands of the heroic Iraqi people and their friends.

AWAKENING

Hi everybody,

The past year has certainly been extraordinary even by comparison with the action packed years preceding it. During the course of the year there was a remarkable upturn of the situation that I shall attempt to discuss in this post.

The early months of the year saw the country at the nadir point since the overthrow of Saddam when in contrast the “insurgency” seemed to be at the zenith of its strength. It was converging on Baghdad and the city was virtually paralyzed. Sectarian atrocities and killings were taking place in horrifying magnitude. Shops and businesses were closed in many parts of the city. People could not venture out of their houses even for the most basic needs. My oldest cousin was murdered for no other sin than trying to do some shopping in the first day of 2007. It was said that he was shot by a passing U.S. army patrol, or was it some security firm personnel, as he was fumbling with his aging car engine that broke down on the way. I have learnt since to mistrust such claims, as the truth is the first victim in this war. About one month later the eldest son of this same cousin was stopped by some terrorists, dragged out of his car in front of his wife and three children. They found him few days later with his body horribly disfigured and his eyes gouged out. Luckily and by the grace of God my own immediate family escaped unhurt, although we lost materially. However, we suffered uprooting and banishment and had it not been for the kindness of the Canadians I don’t know where we could have found stable refuge. Almost every Iraqi family, especially of the middle classes in the cities and particularly in Baghdad was touched one way or another by such similar atrocities and woes.

Then, President Bush and the Iraqi government announced their plan of counterattack. This was Codenamed “Operation Law Enforcement” by the Iraqis, and the “Surge” by the Americans. And at long last we had an American General with some competence and sense, i.e. General Petraeous. This General realized the importance of the movement that started in the Anbar , this so-called “Awakening Movement” or the “Salvation Council”, and gave some support to this movement while previously the Americans always tried to check and prevent the citizen from acting. The rest is now almost history - It worked. I was not in Baghdad last year, but all the news I hear from our friends and relatives still living there confirm that the situation has changed and that the city has began to recover. It is still, of-course far from being a normal place, but by comparison with the situation at the beginning of 2007 the change is such that not even the enemies can deny.

Al Qaeda et al have not been completely defeated but they were forced to retreat and withdraw from many important places, notably in the Anbar and many parts of Greater Baghdad area. Also they suffered very heavy casualties. Indeed the numbers of their dead and captured attest to the size and seriousness of this phantom terrorist army that has infested our poor Iraq. Some credited this success to the American “Surge”, others to the Iraqi security forces, and many more to the role of the “Awakening Movement” and the actions taken by the many citizen groups that sprang up everywhere following the successes in the Anbar. In my humble opinion though, it is a combination of all these factors and improved coordination between them that produced this encouraging result. In particular, Petraeous has done well and demonstrated ability, experience and above all better sensitivity and understanding of local characteristics. He is by far the best American general we had and it will be a big mistake to take him out of Iraq before we are really out of danger.

But as I said, the war is not yet won. The beast is seriously wounded but is still able to bite and scratch. Nowadays, he is desperately trying to counterattack. While earlier he had reached the point where he actually controlled whole districts, and more dangerously entire neighborhoods of the capital, he is now forced to revert to pure terrorist tactics mainly suicide attacks, assassinations and the like. Even his ability to launch mortars and rockets has been visibly impaired. More damaging though, is that the terrorists have been forced to migrate northwards, and they are now concentrating and infesting Mosul and its environs, the second city in Iraq where they have perpetrated very painful atrocities recently including the crime of blowing up a whole residential block with 20 tons of explosives and the murder of the chief of police as he went to inspect the site of the disaster. The Government has just announced that they are sending forces to Mosul for the “final crucial battle” against Al-Qaeda. It remains to be seen how this battle unfolds and whether; indeed we shall see the end of Al-Qaeda in Iraq as a large organized army.

Thus, the war is still in full swing and the enemy is on the retreat, and everybody realizes that they are working against the clock, i.e. quite frankly before the term of President Bush is over. The situation is full of promise as well as fraught with danger. Proper and wise management has never been more important. The gains and successes are by no means irreversible. The role of the U.S. is still pivotal and it will be a great pity if defeatism and shortsighted selfish politicizing results in withdrawal and retreat just at the moment when there seems to be some real chances and the enemy is on the run.

SEASON GREETINGS

Hi everybody,

I wish all my friends a Merry X-Mass and Happy New Year.

The Mesopotamian is not dead but only hybernating at the moment. Hope to wake up from the stupor in the not too distant future. The scene is really changing back home and Iraq has entered a distinctly new phase. I have so many things to say but I am just brooding and waiting and at a loss which of the million thoughts to write about.

Nevertheless I can't let the new year come without greeting my friends.

Best regards to all.

Hi,

My friends may be disappointed with me for these long periods of silence, but this silence really is a result of discouragement and discontent. In a private letter to one of my friends I have frankly stated some of my misgivings concerning some of the aspects of the Iraqi situation at the present time. I think it is rather important that I make some paragraphs of that letter public and here they are:

"The situation in Iraq is rather complicated at the moment, and I fear that the mechanics of American political life is probably adding to the problems rather than the opposite. For example, the verbal attacks against the Maliki government are having the effect of making the very tasks required of this government more difficult. I don't know if people realize that the withdrawals and walkouts of Sunnis (not really representing all the Sunnis) and the Allawi factions have a direct link to the feeling of these factions that the Americans are turning against Al Maliki and his government. In fact, they only joined originally because of American backing of this government and assertions that it is the only acceptable democratically elected authority.

But the real problem is this - What is the alternative to the Maliki government? If you think hard about this you will find the answer quite difficult. President Bush, who has very acute strategic sense, realizes this, but few others do.

I was trying to find time to write about this in my blog, because I am not very comfortable with the direction that American politics is beginning to take. I fear that another big strategic blunder might be in the making, when in fact the military strategy of the surge and also the uprising of the Sunni tribes against Al Qaeda and its affiliates, has clearly produced tangible results.

It is not a question of taking sides. Clearly the Americans should not take sides in the sectarian strife, but it is rather a question of creating a homogeneous and legitimate front of all parties opposing the terrorists and Al-Qaeda. I was thinking of writing a blog post entitled "Unite and Rule", as opposed to the well known old slogan of Divide and Rule.

One of the American generals put it right in a recent statement: "the crucial matter is to bring this opposition to Al-Qaeda within the legitimate framework of the state". This general has got it right.

I was one of the first to point out the importance of the movement that started in the Anbar: the Anbar Salvation Council. Many were skeptical. However as the real accomplishments of this movement in a short time and with very modest resources, became an undeniable reality, there was a kind of excitement that went too far and lost the necessary caution. The objective is to create a legitimate front against terrorism but not new militias.

Your politicians seem to commit the error of underestimating the real strength of the coalition behind Al-Maliki. This was underlined by the recent meeting and pact between the main Kurdish parties and the main Shiite movements. These still represent a powerful majority. Also the obsession with Iranian influence is complicating things further. I have said in my blog before, that combating Iranian influence is not helped by alienating the Shiaa and Kurdish majorities and making them feel threatened and abandoned. This has precisely the opposite effect of driving them in the wrong direction. Also, alienating and weakening the "moderate" Shiaa factions only helps to strengthen further the influence of the extremists within the Shiites, such as the Sadrist movement."

The basic premises upon which the moral position of the American action in Iraq is founded are the following:

1-The Interests of Western national security by eliminating a dangerous regime.
2-The liberation of the majority of the Iraqi people from the oppression of a despotic regime -

that of the Baath party under Saddam Hussain.
3-The establishment of Democracy and democratic institutions and the protection of this new democracy to allow it to take roots and survive.

Regarding the 2nd and 3rd points above we are hearing strange noises and curious arguments all around.

The National Reconciliation, that some are trying to bring about aims at restoring power to old Baathists and elements closely linked to the terrorists. Some of the political figures supposed to represent the Sunnis only came to the forefront as a result of a period when the insurgency had the upper hand in most Sunni areas and really represent extremists and terrorists. Let someone just ask the real founders of the Anbar Salvation Council what they really think of Adnan Al-Dulaimi, the Islamic Party or the National Accordance Front generally. National Reconciliation is necessary and important, but you could easily find clean and honorable representatives of the Sunnis other that those proposed by the present supposed representatives of that group. One must not have the slightest illusion that the Iraqi people could accept the restoration of the regime that the Americans themselves have ousted. Some of the old baathists can only be rehabilitated and allowed to participate in political life if confidence is established “beyond reasonable doubt”, that they have sincerely changed and reformed. Meanwhile, in the euphoria following the successes of decent Sunnis against the terrorists, the real leaders of this movement must not be forgotten and every "Tom, Dick and Harry" to use English Jargon or "Zaid and Amr" in Arabic, taken aboard with open arms, supplied with weapons, and have their pockets lined with new crisp dollars.

And what is this loud talk about changing the government by some kind of a coup and installing a new government presumable by extra-parliamentary methods, to put it politely? It has got so far that Mr. Allawi is employing a public relations firm to lobby in Washington towards this end. I wonder where Mr. Allawi gets all the money for his lavish campaigns from. Recently the exiled Baath party under the ostensible leadership of Izzat Al-Douri (Saddam's erstwhile deputy), issued a statement from Jordan endorsing Mr. Allawi and expressing public support for him. Well, well, well, if that is the kind of alternative to the present elected government to be brought about by some kind of a coup, what remains of the third moral premise of the American position that we have referred to above.

Is it then difficult to understand my discomfiture and silence as I observe things from far here in North America, but with all the profound understanding and knowledge of someone who was in the middle of the fire?

Regards to all.

Hi,

Although I am mostly occupied in trying to get some employment at the moment, but I couldn't resist telling you that I am encountering great misundersting of the situation in Iraq here in Canada. In a small way and as much as possible, I try to correct the misconceptions of people I happen to encounter, but I feel that a more serious effort is required. Perhaps when I settle down more firmly I can do more serious work to enlighten people about the real facts.

Regards to my friends.

Hi,

Greetings to all my friends, and sorry to be out the radar screen for some time. This is because I am facing the normal problems awaiting all new immigrants and thus being very occupied trying to solve them. Things are moving forward however. I dread the coming winter though and am puzzled at the kind of clothing one aught to start shopping for to suit the winter of Northern Ontario. Any suggestions?

Hope to find time for some more important blogging soon.

Alaa