Hi,

One of the most awesome and mystical phenomena in existence is how truth always finds a way to assert and vindicate itself despite all odds, fog and confusion. They said that no valid elections could be held “under occupation”; and when 8 millions went to the polls last time, they dismissed that with the pretext that the other 6 or 7 millions did not, that there was fraud, that the "Shiaas" and "Kurds" were taking advantages etc. etc.; and therefore the thing had no validity. What about it now? Now that the Sunnis had the slightest chance and a little respite from intimidation, we saw them march to the polling stations in their millions. How about that! If the Americans were rigging and faking things and organizing "shows", why would all these people risk their lives and turnout in this fashion, even as many of them may be harboring negative feelings and resentments? Would it not be more logical and appropriate to continue boycotting and shunning such infernal theatricals staged by the wicked Americans and their allies, such “infidel satanic wedding parties” as our eloquent friend Zarqawi called it recently? Does that not demonstrate in the most striking way that everybody in Iraq has come to realize that this is a genuine and real process in which it is worthwhile to risk one’s life to participate? Indeed the Sunnis have suffered the most in murders, assassinations and intimidation in the days leading up to the elections as a result of their active campaigning and electioneering efforts. Even the most extreme and resentful opponents of the new order had to concede and step aside; for instance the extremist Sunni “Council of Muslim Scholars” had to say that although it maintained its position of not recognizing the political process “under occupation”, “people were free to exercise their choices”. Yes, they had to bend in the face of the overwhelming wishes of the Sunni masses.

Today was a tremendous moment of our history, a turning point and a real milestone. Say what you like; things are not perfect; there are countless problems; the “insurgency” is not going to disappear; the reconstruction effort is in shambles; there is corruption and thieving everywhere; errors and mistakes in everything. Yet despite all that, the political process is proceeding like a dream and the tree of freedom is taking roots, and that tree will continue to grow and grow and grow. The Iraqis are again confounding all the "pundits" and "experts". But some just cannot understand the true soul of a people. That this most profound revolution initiated by an act of liberation, by the daring praxis of the Americans, driven by some mysterious hand of the Providence, has touched the innermost womb of a nation, and that the present agonies of this nation are those of giving birth and new life. Oh no, that they cannot understand. Well then, let them witness surprise after nasty surprise that will confound their logic and demolish their arguments. But the word mongers will always find something to say, as wild dogs are always wont to bark all the more hysterically as they are irked.

The word of truth has a life of its own; it seems to perpetuate itself and spread in the consciousness and subconscious of peoples and generations like some incurable virus, that may remain dormant for a while but will manifest itself in the most dramatic way sooner or later.

BAPTISM OF BLOOD

Hi,

The historical elections are upon us. And again the Iraqis are showing their incredible courage. Candidates are being assassinated on daily basis. Even poster workers are being shot and targeted by the dozens. Car bombings and suicide bombings have become almost routine occurrences. Death and intimidation all over the place; but does that stop anybody? Not in the least. The lists of alliances and parties are bewildering. For myself I am still undecided on whom to vote for. I only know the ones that I definitely cannot elect. I don’t think though, that we are going to see any big surprises. The United alliance ( shiaa religious parties) will still get a large vote, though not as large as before. The new thing this time is the change in electoral rules, particularly the reserved seats for provinces which will insure representation for the Sunni parties. I must say that the electoral system is quite interesting, for apart from reserved seats for the provinces there is a considerable number (about 40 seats) reserved for the so-called excess votes which will provide a chance for many smaller groups.

Although I am a religious man, but all religiously based groups are completely out of consideration as far as I am concerned. That leaves the choice between “seculars” such as Allawi, Chalabi, Alusi & etc. There are people I like in many slates and the choice is hard. I know that this is the position of many people like me. My favorites such as Ayad Jamaludin, Mithal Al-Alusi, Laith Kubba and some others are scattered in competing slates. The problem with Allawi is that he is too soft with the ex-baathists and it is feared that he may bring back too many of them to infiltrate security and military organs, which can be very risky. Although he has many good people with him, I don’t think he will fare too well. I think the Iraqi Congress Party slate (Chalabi) will probably do better than most people expect. So whom to vote for? It is really puzzling. Probably I will end up electing Mithaal Al-Alusi, not so much because I think he can do much, but as a salute to a truly honorable man who has sacrificed his two sons and is still up and fighting. A man who is truly free from sectarian prejudice and any other kind of prejudice (being himself a most genuine Sunni from the heart of Anbar province, yet that does not influence him in the least from being fair and just towards everybody). Yes indeed it seems to me that this is the man worthy of my vote.

Hi,

Long time no see. Your friend Alaa is still alive and well by the grace of God. So many things are happening that I was kind of jammed not knowing what to comment on. The speach by President Bush was great. It should be clear to anyone with even minimum amount of intelligence, that if anybody has the facts it is the President; he does have more that one hundred and fifty thousand men and women on the ground to report to him.

And I am always astonished at people wondering about how the Iraqis feel about the American and allied presence in Iraq. Was not the present Iraqi Goverment elected by 8 million people at the risk of their lives? Are the more that two hundred thousand soldiers and police not Iraqis, or perhaps they came from Mars? The first formally requested that the mandate of the Multi National Forces be extended, and the second are fighting and dying side by side with Allied forces. The President spelled out very clearly who is the enemy.

As long as the Americans remain pro-Iraqi, the Iraqis will remain pro-American, not matter what is said and no matter what din and noise is made. And as the famous arab proverb goes: "The caravan marches on and heeds not the barking of stray dogs".

Salaam

ARAB MEDIA

Hi,

End of Ramadan and Eid greetings to all the Muslim peoples of the world, I pray to God that he may bless them and inspire thoughts of peace and humanity in their minds and give them a true understanding of the tolerant and charitable essence of religion..

As I have said before, the War on Terror should take into account that perhaps the main arena of the struggle is the Media and Information fields. This terrorist phenomenon combines primitive urges and ideologies with the use of the modern technologies of satellite T.V. the internet etc. In fact, the Al Qaeda and Al Qaeda-like people design their operations with the prime objective of attracting maximum media attention. Thus Media attention is a weapon in itself, and the main one from the view point of these terrorist groups, and this subject should be a matter of primary consideration to strategists and planners of the War.

In this respect I would like to shed some light on the situation of the Arab Media, who are playing an important and direct role, especially in influencing the peoples and events in the region including those most directly involved, namely in Iraq.

Actually the most important event in the recent history of Arab journalism was the advent of satellite T.V. and the establishment of Al-Jazeera Network some years ago, financed and controlled by the Qatar Sheikdom government. That was the first time that the traditional style of direct soviet style crude propaganda customary in the whole of the Arab world was replaced with a western style that uses indirect and more subtle methods with a guise of objectivity and factual reporting. We must give it to Al Jazeera that it was a pioneer in this respect in the Arab world. This started a kind of revolution with other media outlets of similar style rapidly springing up and also the conversion of many of the more traditional ones to this new way with varying degrees of consistency. The other most important development was the spread and the expanding availability of the Internet, a great innovation which brought beside great benefits also great dangers. Thus the internet is the perfect medium for clandestine groups enabling them to keep their anonymity while giving them the means of disseminating their ideas and communicating throughout the world. In this way this communication revolution with was developed, originated and continues to be maintained and run by the West, has also provided lethal and effective weapons to its enemies.

Objectivity, which is the main pretended feature of this new style, is only a guise as far as Arab media are concerned in the vast majority of cases. Wherever you have regimes in firm control of their constituencies, you can be sure that true independence and impartiality of the press is pure sham. I could say that today only in Iraq, Lebanon and to some extent Egypt the press is more decentralized and may represent more diversity of positions.

Let us for example concentrate on two of the most important and well financed groups, namely, the MBC (Middle East Broadcasting Corporation), which includes Al-Arabia Station; and the Al-Jazeera Network. Both of these stations are dedicated to news in the style of CNN. The first of these is owned and financed by the Saudis. During the course of events that followed the fall of the Saddam regime, one could trace a definite evolution in the tone and leaning of this station directly related to the development of the official Saudi Arabian attitudes. Initially, this station competed with Al-Jazeera in negative and inciting reporting. However as the Kingdom of S.A. became engaged in a real struggle with Al-Qaeda elements, the station quickly moderated its tone and became less seditious, which clearly illustrates my point that these media are basically controlled despite all semblances of impartiality. This change of tone earned the Arabia a car bomb and several assassinations of its staff in Baghdad.

Al-Jazeera, however, continues to maintain its intransigent and highly pro-terrorist attitude, without even much attempt at disguise anymore, but always in the same style of speaking through so-called experts and invited guests and specially engineered programs with maximum dramatic impact. It has almost become the mouthpiece of terrorists in Iraq and elsewhere, widely publicizing Internet Claims, terrorist videos, Al-Qaeda tapes of Al-Dhawahiri et al., discussion programs featuring the most extreme people from Iraq and elsewhere, heaping crude abuse on the Americans, the Iraqi government, the political process and all. For Iraqis it has become almost impossible to watch this station for even a short duration without having their blood pressure seriously rising. As far as anti-American propaganda goes it is actually more superior and effective than any that North Korea can dream of. What is paradoxical, is that the regime behind this outlet claims to be the most faithful ally and friend of the U.S. to whom it owes its prosperity and security especially in the face of historical claims by Saudi Arabia, and often makes very friendly gestures towards Israel, and where the biggest American military base is located housing the command of American forces in the entire region (Siliya, Qatar). To western people who do not understand the M.E. this may sound very strange. The answer however is very simple: Sectarian prejudice, i.e. the pathological hatred of the Shiaa sect, which is the majority in only one Arab country which is Iraq. Indeed, the only Sunnis who are inclined to be more tolerant towards the Shiaa’s are the Iraqi Sunnis, especially in cities, having lived side by side for many centuries. Thus the fury of the Arabs and other Moslems against the Americans is not because they invaded and occupied Iraq, but because as a result of this action and the fall of the Saddam regime, the Shiaas have become liberated and acquired a louder voice. This by the way is also the main factor fanning the “insurrection” and terrorism in Iraq, a fact which is publicly proclaimed by people like Zarqawi. Thus the development of representative democracy with the Iraqi Sunnis taking their rightful place is the real antidote to these stupid prejudices. This is the hope of all patriotic Iraqis of all sects and the final happy outcome that we are all praying and working for.

Hi,

Ziad - http://healingiraq.blogspot.com/ has spoken again, very briefly. The Iraqi blogosphere has missed his voice for a long time. To Ziad: Your voice is more needed now than ever. It doesn't matter what you want to say, we all know that whatever you say is sincere conviction. I join my voice to the multitude of your fans to return to blogging and illuminate us with your informative and enjoyable writing. And I am very happy to know that your are still there safe and sound.

WINDS OF CHANGE

Hi,

Rather, Hurricane force “Winds of Change”; that is what we are experiencing. Do you realize the significance of the results of the constitution referendum? To start with you have the percentages and figures. Of registered voters about 63% turned out to vote. Of these voters 78% voted "Yes" and 22% voted "No". Most of those who voted No were Sunnis. Some of the Sunnis have voted in favor, especially in Mosul. Therefore the percentages really reflect the percentage of Sunnis in Iraq. It is interesting that in Baghdad, roughly the same proportions of Yes & No’s as the overall figures, which goes to show that Baghdad has a sectarian mix almost representative of the whole country.

Not all those who voted No are terrorist sympathizers. The terrorists would rather have people boycott the referendum. For instance you could see the confusion in the ranks of the “Nay” people, in the vague statements from the Council of Muslim Scholars (representing the extreme Sunni position), regarding participation or boycott of the referendum.

In any case the results dealt a painful blow to the enemy. Most people in Iraq sighed with relief. At last the “transitional phase” will be over and we shall have a regular government and a permanent constitution. The losers however are not known for their sporting spirit and are feeling very sour, as witnessed by their hysterical statements and ridiculous and lying claims, which of course will translate into the kind of crimes against the people that have become so customary. This is not resistance to occupation (an occupation that does not exist), as some like to call it, nor is it an “insurgency” with any clear objective except some vague and false slogans; it is essentially racist and sectarian hate crimes. That’s what it is without doubt. But you see, with the success of this referendum and balloting, things are moving forward fine, really fine. The Sunnis have only two alternatives politically: One is to participate strongly in the coming elections and therefore to start being seriously involved in the political process, an option that should be highly encouraged and there are indications that many of the Sunnis are leaning that way. Another course is to continue in an attitude of apathy, sulkiness and submission to the intimidation of the terrorist and extremist elements, and the propaganda of the hate mongers of the MSM lead by pople like Al Jazeera; in which case their representation in the coming parliament will be as poor as it is at the moment which is not in their interest. In other words the progress of the political process has placed the disgruntled Sunnis in a check mate situation.

But the progress towards democracy is unstoppable and inexorable and total victory is in sight. The enemy is now counting on one and only one forlorn hope, and that is to wear down the resolve of the American and western people, with the help of the MSM, which explains the latest explosions near the Meridien/Palestine hotel, a show staged entirely for the benefit of the MSM cameras that obliged and did their part admirably. The terrorist game is at least 90% TV and Internet phenomenon, deprive them of these and you will deal them a blow far more fatal than any kind of military action. The terrorists know very well that the Iraqi people are not going to give up or submit; therefore their hopes are pinned on influencing the peoples of the free world, encouraged by reports in the MSM. In any case it is becoming clear that their senseless crimes are not going to help them achieve anything, and it seems that they don’t even have any clear ideas or objectives to speak of apart from destruction and hate.

The American and Iraqi military campaigns have achieved considerable success, and it is more essential than ever to persevere and stand firm at these critical times, I mean from now until the coming elections in December, at least. Firmness must be accompanied by no less determined efforts to draw in the reasonable elements from the Sunnis to the political process and full participation in the coming elections. This includes reinforcing and helping the local leaders and tribal communities who wish to maintain the peace in their areas and combat the extremists and terrorists, and there are quite a number of these, from my own personal knowledge.

Both Iraqi, American and allied sacrifices have been painful and costly. The blood of those falling in the cause of freedom must not be in vain. Some people in America ask the question: “what’s in it for us?” I think it would be more appropriate for the question to be: “What will be the consequences of retreat and defeat?” Yet the fruits of success and victory are shiningly apparent too, and we should have no need to explain these.

As has been frequently said “defeat and retreat is no option”; and this is truer now than ever with victory in sight, and with a bit of good planning it should not take long, Gods Willing. Personally I haven’t the slightest doubt about it and I am one in the midst of events and one who should know.

Salaam

Hi,

Today a particularly heinous crime has been committed. I am referring to the slaying of building laborers slain near the accursed village of Jurf Al Sakhar, south of Baghdad. 12 men mostly belonging to same two families were slain for no reason other than pure sectarian and racist hate. These poor laborers were slain as they were toiling for their daily bread. This abominable village mentioned above has been the source of many of such acts and is inhabited by certain well known murderous and callous Sunni tribes. These are thieves and criminals by tradition and a place from which many of the actual thugs and torturers of Saddam torture chambers used to be recruited.

May God forgive me for saying this, but if ever a case for collective punishment can be made it is for this kind of zombies and animals. And quite frankly I just cannot understand why this particular village has been allowed to continue its genocidal atrocities for so long. It is not a large place, and it seems to me absolutely clear that the perpetrators can be found amongst the miserable peasants living there. And moreover the identity of these criminals is sure to be known to every villager in the location. And yet nothing seems to have been done, and no response and no action of any sort to find the culprits. This is the tragedy, and until we have security forces that would not allow things like this and can take immediate action, we are far from achieving our goals.

Hi everybody,

I am very touched by the fine sentiments expressed by many of my friends, but I must say that

it is the kind of response that I expected which reinforces my belief in the goodness of heart of

my friends.

Rick wrote:

"Alaa,

Any comment on the above survey? Would you say this is true?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/ 20051...iraq_britain_dc

The link

Rick"

My response to this survey is simply that it cannot be accurate. And why believe this kind of poll when you have the results of the referendum and elections to go by.

A simple fact: Regardless of what you think of the new constitution and regardless of what those voting in the referendum think concerning this document, it is a fact that each person voting is opting for the political process rather than any form of violent action. This is especially true for those voting yes. Now, out of 15 million registered voters approximately 10 million turned out to vote. This is despite the threats and intimidation. This turnout is very respectable by any standard and is more so owing to the security situation and the intimidation.

The enemy has done everthing in his power to discourage people, and you must have heard of the relentless violence and killings that preceded the referendum. Nevertheless, the Iraqi people have demonstrated again that they will not be intimidated and that they are prepared to risk their lives to go to the polling stations.

What the "insurgents" have always insisted is that everybody boycot any form of political and even civic participation, and in that they have been repeatedly rebuffed and repudiated by the people. How can you reconcile all these facts on the ground with contentions such as those which this poll is trying to suggest?

Regards

IN THE NAME OF GOD THE COMPASSIONATE THE MERCIFUL

Hi,

Hearty greetings to all my friends – actually I have been away for a few days. Guess where? To the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia! That was to perform Al Umra, a religious tradition which is less demanding than Hajj, which I had been fortunate enough to perform a couple of years back, Wa Alhamdu lillah (Praise be to God). It is quite an interesting subject, as a ritual, which I might talk to you about sometime.

Now I know that some of my friends may not be particularly fond of Islamic rituals nor especially well inclined towards the Islamic religion itself. You must know that personally, I don't blame them at all and find their attitude perfectly understandable in view of the great damage done to the reputation of our religion by the Takfiris and the terrorists and the like. We ourselves are extremely dismayed by the actions and attitudes of many of our fellow Muslims, so how can we blame others for quite rightful indignation in the face of the atrocities and abominations of the so-called "islamist" extremists and "fundamentalists". Yet I have a very difficult request which I would like to submit to my friends; and that is for them to try to overcome their just anger and look at the thing from a broader perspective and understand that the present day phenomena are but ephemeral aberrations, and that years away from now they will only be remembered as historical curiosities. But the great religions will still be there, the Islamic faith, the Christian faith and the Jewish and other great religions of humanity. Each one of these great faiths is valid and is a particular way to communicate with the same eternal truth. That is my view and it is a big subject that requires much more explanation, perhaps in future posts.

But what I wanted to tell you today is that facing the holy Kaaba, which to us is being in the direct presence of God, I remembered my friends on this blog and prayed for them too. I prayed that you may be blessed with happiness and prosperity and spared from evil. Honest to God I did. I just wanted you to know.

Salaam

Hi,

It is about half an hour to Iftar time. This is the most difficult part of the day. I don't know about others but I tend to get very irritated and easily provoked about this time. So I have these difficult minutes to kill, so I thought I kill them with you.

So here is my nasty thought of the day (So much for Ramadan bringing you tranquility and peace of mind; and may God forgive me for saying this): Here we have the U.S.A. and Great Britain and their smaller friends, an alliance that has defeated Nazi Germany and the mighty Reich, and have had the stomach to obliterate Japanese cities with atomic bombs. Here we have the Americans, the descendants of those who wrested a whole continent by shear obstinacy and fought for every inch of land with blood and sweat. Here we have nations that have waded through rivers of blood and mud and marched through entire continents to become symbols of human perseverance and enterprise. Yes all this history and yet we have some who think that our miserable "Sunni Triangle" poses an insurmountable problem and that one should "cut and run" and "bring home troops immediately" etc. etc.

I salute President Bush who does not care much for this kind of defeatism and treats it with the contempt it deserves.

Salaam

RAMADAN GREETINGS

Hi,

The holy month of Ramadan is upon us again. The rhythm of daily life changes dramatically during this month and one is more prone to contemplation and a general slowing down of the daily materialistic side of life. And of course there is the gastronomic side of the thing, for households compete in preparing the best and showing off their culinary skills at the iftar table (i.e. the dinner feast that is prepared for breaking the fast at sunset time), and happy are those families who can sit in whole number at this table, but alas many in Iraq have lost loved ones, and many may not have the peace and means to do just that. Nevertheless life goes on and there is still happiness and thrill in these times despite the death and misery surrounding us.

So on this occasion I wish to extend best wishes and congratulations to all Moslem people and also strangely enough this year's Ramadan coincides with the Jewish "Rash Al Shanah" ( Ras Al Sannah, in Arabic), so congratulations are also due to the Jewish people and a prayer for peace and reconciliation for the whole of mankind.

Wa Al Salam Alaykum Wa Rahmatu'llahi Wa barakatuh

(Peace be upon you and the mercy of God and his blessings)

Hi,

Thanks Gilliam for finding the link to the english translation of the constitution:


"I think this is what you are looking for:

http://www.iraqigovernment.org/constitution_en.htm

gilliam "

You will find the original comment in the comment sections

Regards

Hi,

Here is the link to the text of the draft constitution in Arabic. I don't suppose it will be of much use to my friends. If I can find an english version I shall post the link.

http://www.nahrain.com/d/news/05/09/17/nhr0917p.html

Regards

Hi,

Michael in Framingham wrote: " My question, have you read the constitution? Do you support it? Do you think the Sunni's will reject or support it en masse? Are you yourself Sunni? (You don't have to answer that last one if you don't want to) "

Michael: My name is not Salaam, this is a form of greeting which means peace.

Regarding the constitution, this is a difficult question. There are certainly many positive principles, and others that are rather questionable. For instance the one particular clause which states that no laws can be legislated that contradict the basic principles of Islam, is an extremely dangerous phrase and is open to all sorts of interpretations. There is a certain ambiguity in several other clauses which should not be there. Regarding the role of religion, although I consider myself a pious and practicing Moslem, I nevertheless share with the secularists the view that a strict separation between politics and civil law on the one hand and religion on the other is absolutely necessary. Meddling of the clergy in politics is probably one of the worst things that are happening and is certainly one of the causes of the mess we have today. Luckily on the Shiaa side we have Al-Sistani whose position basically is that religious authorities should maintain an aloof position and abstain from direct involvement, but only engage in general counsel and advice when things really get bad. Regarding Federalism, there are pros and cons., in the short term it might create a loose form of government which the country is not in need of at the moment; however, in the long term the system may have merits. In general in the referendum I suppose I am going to vote for it mainly from a desire for the political process to go forward and not be set back to square one. I am waiting for the final amended draft which I have not seen yet, and it seems that important amendments were made including those regarding religion.

Am I a Sunni? Well, my father was a Shiite, mother Sunni and my wife is Sunni. Thus, according to the patriarchal system that we have that makes me a Shiite technically but with considerable Sunni connections. But this is an illustration of the kind of mixture we have, especially in the cities, and explains the difficulties facing the Takfirists and the Zarqawis in igniting sectarian war, but they are surely trying very hard and pushing things to the edge.

Will the Sunnis vote for or against the constitution? I think if the Sunnis in the "Triangle" are allowed to vote peacefully they are likely to turn it down and by the rule of two thirds majority in three provinces the National assembly will dissolve and elections for a new one must be held to write again the constitution. However, the terrorists are waging a vicious campaign of intimidation again and this time much more savage than the last time. They are even threatening the people with chemical weapons and God knows what dirty things are in store for us. So, ironically, it may be the terrorists themselves who are going to help the constitution to be voted in, by preventing the Sunnis from voting.

Regards

SOME HISTORY

Hi,

Al Qaeda, may be considered the generic name for all those movements that have in common what we call the Takfiri ideology. We have to explain this term to our friends. Kufr in the Arabic language means disbelief, atheism, or blasphemy. Kafir is the adjective which means somebody who is an infidel, atheist or heathen. Takfir is to attribute this adjective to someone, i.e. castigate people and excommunicate them as Kafirs. This ideology is not a new one, and neither is it exclusive to the Islamic religion. Unfortunately the idea seems to be implicit in the literalist understanding of all religions, especially those of Semitic origin. I do not intend to embark on a historical survey to illustrate this point; suffice it to say that Dante's Inferno and Purgatorio in his Divine Comedy had a place for everyone who was not of the strictest Catholic persuasion, according to the code and precepts of the era. Many scholars, particularly in the Arab world, believe that Dante's masterpiece must have had its original inspiration somehow from the much earlier Islamic story of "Israa and Miirage", i.e. the miraculous ascent by the prophet (PBU) to the seven heavens during his life time, and also the later "Risalat Al Ghufran" (Message of Forgiveness) by the great medieval Arab poet Abu Al- Alaa Al Maari, best remembered for his pessimism and bitterness against life and the human condition. It is established historically that Arabic language and culture were not unknown in the early days of the European Renaissance, especially in Italy. And I suppose this idea of exclusivity is to be found originally in the Jewish tradition of the chosen people; the favored nation, which by the way is acknowledged and celebrated in the Islamic tradition and the Koran as well, where numerous references to the children of Israel can be found. Well, all this is a digression from our subject which I could not resist.

What I wanted to say is that the present day Takfiri movement has historical roots that go very far back in time. Indeed the Khawarij movement which appeared in the first century of the Moslem calendar (i.e. the seventh century A.D.), bears a great resemblance to the modern Al-Qaeda and the other Takfiri groups. The Khawarij also went about committing the most terrible atrocities against foes and innocent folks alike, particularly Moslems, on the basis that these were apostates and Kafirs, citing certain verses and phrases from the Koran as justification. For instance, they would kill and disembowel pregnant Moslem women, based on a verse in the Koran, in which the prophet Noah (of the Arc), asks the Lord to exterminate all the Kafirs, because if they are left on earth they would only beget wicked Kafirs like them (Sura of Noah ). The Khawarij were also quite fanatical and suicidal and fought all their battles to the death. Many of these battles took place during the rule of Imam Ali (PBU), in whose camp, ironically, most of them belonged originally. The Imam (who is the most revered figure by the Shiaa, after the prophet), went to extreme lengths in trying to dissuade and pacify these groups, but to no avail. He was forced to wage very bloody wars against them, which usually ended in completely annihilating all their numbers in battle, since they never surrendered or laid down arms. Despite that, one of their number succeeded in assassinating the Imam while he was praying in the Kufa Mosque in present day Iraq.

Thus those who believe that the present day Takfiri movement is just the outcome of contemporary factors, such as poverty, the political struggle against western policies, nationalism etc. etc., will never arrive at a proper understanding if they do not appreciate the profound complexities of the historical background. Thus I would call these movements and groups the Neo-Khawarij. The renaissance of this Neo-Khawarij in the modern era can certainly be traced to the rise of Wahabism in the 18th century in the Arabian Peninsula, i.e. the present day Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States. This movement started as an extreme stern puritanical doctrine directed mostly against Shirk, which means worshiping other deities besides Allah. But basically it was directed mainly against the Shiaa and Mystic sects who abounded everywhere in the Moslem world then. The Wahabis committed many atrocities particularly against the Iraqi Shiaa, when hordes used to raid Najaf and other Shiaa holy cities frequently and murder thousands of pilgrims and residents, and that was long before any western powers appeared in the region. The Al-Saud family had a very special relationship with this movement. They used them originally to gain power and ascendancy in the Arabian Peninsula, but when they were firmly in power, they often collided with them and suppressed them quite violently. Today Saudi Arabia and many of the Gulf States are officially of the Wahabi sect, but it must be said that it would be inaccurate to consider them as Takfirists and terrorists. It can only be said that the modern terrorist Takfiri movement is a fringe movement originating from this Wahabi background, and that most of its adherents originate from this milieu, or are converts to this way of thinking from other Moslem sects almost invariably Sunni. but note that Wahabism is not properly a Sunni Sect, but is certainly more tolerant of Sunnis than of other Moslem sects, although regarding the four established Sunni schools with some disdain and disapproval.

Well I just wanted to fill in some background information to help my western friends understand better the nature of the enemy we are facing.

Regards

Hi,

Very quick announcement “en passant”; while we are in the middle of incredible carnage – just how low can humans ( or subhumans!) sink, it is mind boggling. Can you imagine the criminality and beastliness of these killers? And it is mostly the poor people who are paying the price. Murdering day laborers and dragging people out of their beds at 4 a.m. to shoot them in cold blood, whose sole fault was that they happened to be of a certain sect, just shows what kind of beasts we are facing. Here is faschism, racism and bigotry par excellence for you. The scenes are horrific and heart rending and would break the most insensitive of hearts.

And how many times have I said and repeated, secure Baghdad, safeguard Baghdad, provide safe haven for the people and soldiers in Baghdad, lock up Baghdad, it is the Battle of Baghdad etc. etc.? In fact I started this blog mainly to emphasize this point. Still vehicles move about freely without serious attempts at identification and control. Still people move in and out of the capital and infiltrators can come and occupy houses and neighborhoods without any serious risk at being found out and apprehended. It does not come as surprise to me in the least that these bastards can perpetrate their abominable atrocities at will since they can come and hide in the capital quite easily.

I am not belittling the importance and usefulness of the many campaigns in the provinces; they are both necessary and effective, but without securing the ground after these operations and without securing the rear and the center (which is the Baghdad area), one is just wasting the fruits of victories. Also the Iraqi and coalition forces have caught many and inflicted heavy damage on the terrorists. But that is simply not enough and very serious rethinking of the whole strategy is required.

I hope to be able to tell you more about my thinking later.

Salaam

CONDOLENCES, AGAIN !

We are shocked and very sad indeed to hear of the catastrophe that has struck the Southern United States. We extend our sincere condolences to the American people. These are terrible times indeed, that we have to witness catastrophe after catastrophe and disaster after disaster. We beg the Lord God his mercy and forgiveness and ask him to deliver us from this evil that is gripping the World these days.

Hi,

As the dialogue between the different political blocks intensify concerning the Constitution and the noticeable shift in the Sunni mood towards the political process; the real enemy: Hard core Saddamists, Foreign Al-Qaeda type terrorists and the criminal local Mafia; are getting really desperate. There are rumors in the air about an impending massive terrorist campaign – massive number of car bomb attacks, mortar attacks, and sabotage of the basic services, water, electricity etc.

This threat of possible escalation must be taken seriously; because in the present situation on the ground it is not difficult to carry out, if the enemy decides to concentrate all his forces for one massive short campaign. Although we don’t like to compare with Vietnam but it is Tet-Offensive style of thinking.

Therefore, urgent pre-emptive and exceptional defensive measures must be urgently considered. These measures must include some of the ideas that I suggested in earlier posts. For instance, controlling vehicles has proved its efficacy in the past, and still this matter is not given sufficient attention. It will not do just to sit and wait for the enemy to strike; therefore a pre-emptive campaign is called for right now to deny him initiative.

This is a warning to whom it may concern.

PAJAMA WAR GAMES

Hi,

Today is the beginning of another working weak in the year of 2005 of our Lord, as a chronicler of old might have said. I am a busy man, yet I cannot help stopping everything to write this, which means that I think it is more important than even the struggle for daily bread.

I do believe that the modern advanced nations, such as the U.S.A. employ people and resources to investigate scenarios on conflicts and wars as part of the effort of Defense and National Security work. So let us try this game in our own humble way and share it with others thanks to this wonderful democratizing invention of the Internet and blogging, the ordinary mans’ medium of expression.

The game that we are going to play is about our situation in Iraq, as you might have expected. But I would like to say that it seems to me that we don’t really need computers and strategy wizards to play this game as the predictions and permutations are really quite limited and mostly quite obvious. Needless to say that it is a game, so the starting positions are hypothetical and may or may not take place in reality.

So here we go:

Day 1: The American and other Multinational forces have almost completed withdrawing hastily, the decision having been taken by the U.S. administration to “cut and run” as it is said.

Day 2: The Anbar province - whole formations of Saddam’s previous organizations emerge from their holes and take control of the streets: Presidential Guards, Mukhabarat, Fedayeen Saddam, General Security, Private Security, Military intelligence, Party Units, etc. etc. ; in addition to Al -Qaida and various assortments of “Isalamists”. The whole of the province falls very quickly even before the last American soldier leaves Baghdad. The takeover takes place without any serious resistance apart from assassinations and murder of all those who are not entirely to the taste of the abovementioned. This takeover takes place over the entire western region right down to Abu Ghraib and Ghazaliya and other suburbs in Baghdad. Some fighting takes place in certain areas of Al-Anbar, but those tribes who were considered insufficiently hostile to the Americans and their friends, are quickly subdued with much bloodshed. In short the regime that is going to take over the country quickly takes shape in this region.

Other Parts of the Sunni Triangle: Similar situation develops in other areas such as Mosul, Tikrit, Sammara etc. in the North but with varying degrees of resistance and bloodshed, however the balance of force is in favor of the “insurgents”.

Diala Province: In the east considerable fighting and sectarian bloodshed, all civil services are disrupted and fighting continues.

South of Iraq: Badr Brigades, the Mahdi Army and various assortments of armed groups take to the streets and considerable fighting takes place near the southern approaches to Baghdad (the triangle of Death Latifya-Usufiya-Mahmodiya etc.) between Shiaa and Sunni groups, without any definite results initially.

Baghdad: All the middle class new neighborhoods start to be taken over by various armed groups with much looting and arson. This will be directly influenced by the speed of the U.S. army withdrawal; in particular the western part of Baghdad starting from Abu Ghraib right down to the up-scale Mansur Area.

The Mahdi Army and other Shiaa militias and tribal armed groups appear in the streets of Sadr City, Kadimiya and other neighborhoods with clear Shiaa majorities. In other mixed areas street fighting, looting ravaging and murder of families in their houses takes place on a large scale under various pretexes..Those who are weak and unarmed suffer most.

The little of electricity, water supply, sewerage and other municipal services, that there is comes to a complete halt. All shops, markets etc are closed and start to be looted.

Day 3:

The well defined main provincial areas, from the sectarian point of view, have quickly come under control of the various sectarian forces, Sunni ones in the Sunni areas and Shiaa in the Shiaa regions, and the most dangerous and destructive civil war in the history of Iraq has formally started, a war that will continue for many years and bring the country to a state worse than what followed the Mongol Invasion of Hollako in the 13th century. Ethnic and sectarian cleansing is going on within these areas with large scale movements of refugees from the various regions in all directions.

Days 4,5,6 etc.; and subsequent weeks, months and years.

It has become clear to everybody that the U.S. and other western powers are not going to come back, therefore the arena is free for all, so to speak. The Kurds withdraw into their mountainous region, and then decide to make a dash on Kirkuk. Fierce fighting erupts in and around Kirkuk, but the Kurds, being better organized and determined; initially succeed in controlling the town. Turkey cannot allow that so the Turkish army pours in from the North and the war starts between the Kurds and the Turks. The Turkish army advances quickly on Kirkuk through Mosul and after very bloody battles wrests control from the Kurds in the city. The Kurds retreat to the Mountains and start a classic guerilla war against the Turks. Turkey in effect occupies most of Northern Iraq.

Meanwhile vicious sectarian battles between Shiaa and Sunnis rage in and around Baghdad with tremendous bloodshed and huge numbers of civilians caught up in the fighting. Due to shut down of water supply the population of Baghdad starts to become desperate, and is under serious threat of thirst, so they leave their houses and flock to rivers, all that in the middle of raging battles in the streets. Organized gangs go around peoples’ homes checking identities and murdering whole families just because they happen to be Shiaa, Christian or Kurd (this is already actually happening, by the way, in a low key way in some areas).

Initially, the Sunni forces score some successes against the less organized and less experienced Shiaa forces in the Baghdad zone and south of it, despite the fierceness and carelessness about death of the latter. Hard pressed and threatened with extinction and having been abandoned by the West, the Shiaa’s have no other alternative but to turn towards the Iranians for protection. Iranian Revolutionary Guards start to pour in tens of thousands across the border to join the fighting. Soon the Iranians will be in virtual control of the entire south of Iraq and many parts of eastern Iraq. Likewise, the Kurds have no option but to turn to the Iranians in the face of the Turkish onslaught. On the other hand the previous trickle of arab terrorists and religious fanatics across the western and southern borders from Syria, Jordan and Saudi Arabia turns into a veritable torrent with tens and hundreds of southands pouring across to join their Sunni brothers. Turks, Iranians, Arabs, Sunni Iraqis, Shiaa Iraqis and Kurds all join in an infernal orgy of fighting destruction and death the like of which has seldom been seen.

All activities connected with oil exports from Iraq come to a complete standstill resulting in a world crisis and the rocketing of oil prices to above $ 100 a barrel at the least. Some oil fields burn and black smoke starts to spread all over the country reaching neighboring countries. The oil supplies in the entire region are jeopardized as fanaticism sweeps the region.

Al Qaeda and its affiliates and sympathizers throughout the world are jubilant, elated and drunk with the euphoria of a resounding victory against the U.S., Crusaders, Zionists, the Kafirs, the Shiaa and all other apstates. They transfer their entire cadres to the Sunni controlled areas of Iraq and establish themselves not as fugitives and underground movement but as an established force on the ground. Ripples are spread throughout the world and cells are preparing themselves to bring the battle to the very heartland of the Crusader Kafirs in The U.S. and Europe.

The U.S.A and her allies are completely discredited, and no one will ever think of putting any trust in them anywhere in the world in the future. In particular all factions involved in the fighting in Iraq will be vehemently anti-American and anti-western, especially erstwhile allies and friends who feel particularly betrayed and treacherously abandoned.

The U.S. and allied nations look on this general conflagration and explosion in the M.E. region with helpless dismay. It would take not 130 000 troops, nor one division or two or three to control such situation. All the resources of U.S., despite their tremendousness, will not suffice. It is then, that the American and Western people realize with shock and belated remorse, that if some considered the War on Iraq to be a mistake; the precipitate withdrawal and retreat is an infinitely worse error.

Well, that was a War game, don’t forget; and heaven forbids that it may come to pass. We would all rather die and be gone long before witnessing any such tale of woe.

Hi,

Greetings to all.

I have been trying to find time to discuss the many very interesting points raised by the contributors to the comments section. Particularly, I find the contributions of Richard very interesting and full of intriguing technical suggestions. Regarding the "Green Belt" idea you raised, Richard, it might interest you to know that this is quite an old project that has been contemplated for a very long time; perhaps not quite in the specific way that you have raised. Unfortunately, Baghdad of some fifty years ago used to be much greener than now. Veritable jungles of palm groves sheltering smaller trees of all sorts of citreous fruits and other cultivation, used to cover most of the present-day built up areas. Even the weather was cooler because of the lush vegetation, and this is something which is within my childhood memories. Indeed the idea of a canal has been implemented partly during the reign of General Kassem by the name of the Army Canal. This indeed resulted in urban development of considerable proportion, but today this area is well within the boundary of the city. So, the idea you raise is very feasible indeed and should be considered quite seriously. Of-course the security aspect of the thing was not of particular interest in the old happy days; it is now, evidently.

Regarding my idea of securing Baghdad, I should really explain more fully this vital subject, which I firmly believe to be pivotal for any strategy to end this war quickly. Also through dialogue with my friends the plan can take more definite and convincing shape. But you know, there seems to be quite noticeably increased efforts by the authorities towards controlling the capital these last few days.

Regards to all.