Destroying Iraq to defeat the US

"We are fighting these terrorists with our military in Afghanistan and Iraq and beyond so we do not have to face them in the streets of our own cities," Bush said in 2004. If the strategy was to use the war in Iraq as flypaper to attract terrorists, it seems to have worked well. Hardcore jihadis from all over the wide Arab "watan" (nation) left their countries, flying right over occupied Palestine, or in some cases leaving their home towns that were just miles from occupied Palestine, ostensibly to fight the American infidel invaders in Iraq. Unfortunately Iraqi civilians have suffered the brunt of this war. Suicide bombers, about half of them Saudi, have murdered many more Iraqi civilians than American soldiers. As an Arab, I am saddened that so many Arabs have murdered Iraqis. I have learned to swallow the bitter truth and realized some time in 2004 that Arab nationalists and fundamentalists seem more interested in defeating America than helping Iraqis. Some of them would murder 34 Iraqi children just to kill one American soldier.

To add insult to injury, many "anti-war" activists blame these murders of innocent Iraqis directly on Americans. "Anti-war" journalists like Dahr Jamail apparently had no problems with the wars Saddam Hussein waged before 2003. They said nothing of Saddam's Killing Fields. They would have liked to see Iraq continue to be held hostage by Saddam's regime.

Two nights ago I spoke to a cousin who worked as an economic advisor in Iraq. He told me that Iraq is surrounded by enemies, and for this reason, the long-term presence of US troops in Iraq is ultimately beneficial to Iraqis. Amazingly, my cousin echoed the words of a terrorist recently interviewed by Arab media and said that it is in the interest of Iraq’s neighbors, including Iran, to cause havoc in Iraq.

Iran has also fought a proxy war in Iraq, supporting Shia militias, supplying them with arms that have been used to kill and maim American soldiers. Some have claimed that the Iranian regime is "fearful of a strong, independent, Arab Shia community emerging in Iraq." The Badr Brigades have been accused of rounding up innocent Sunni Arab men and torturing them to death. Just this morning I heard an NPR report about Iranian influence in Najaf, which worries many Iraqis. Secular Shia like me do not want to see the Shia version of the Taliban in control of Iraq. One thing is clear: the Iranian regime seems to hate America. The photo below illustrates this hatred in a funny way.



So what should America do in Iraq after Al Qaeda is defeated? Should we withdraw all troops? Can Iraq defend itself on its own? Would Iran take over completely?

PS: The question, which nobody has been able to answer, remains: have "Safavids" ever blown up a marketplace?

Have "Safavids" ever blown up a marketplace?

Thanks to David All, I watched the HBO documentary Baghdad Hospital: Inside the Red Zone last night. It was filmed in the summer of 2006 at Yarmouk Hospital and was later covered by the BBC - I have a link to the BBC article in my side bar under "Sites to Ponder". It is an amazing documentary, a must see. After watching it I wondered again if Iraqi Shia have ever blown up a marketplace.

Konfused

Konfused Kid has recently published a post in which he basically says that much of my blog is filled with half truths.

Kid writes Iraqi Mojo says he has no homicidal hatred of Sunnis, as he says when he met Sunni Arabs, the way you would speak when you explore a new species in the Amazons: "I have met Sunni Arabs and they are really nice." That's quite lovely of him, but even though Mojo occasionally talks about Muqtada al-Sadr's antics or his lack of love for Shia theocracy, they don't seem to be much of his concern, he rarely posts about them, if at all. For the curious American bystander who is curious to learn about how to get the hell out of Iraq, Iraq's problem, viewed through his blog is one long wail against the solitary horrors and evils of al-Qaeda, Wahhabiya, Saudi Arabia, the Arab Jarab (a term he often uses) and just about everything else you would expect a self-respecting Shia to hate, either intentionally or not, and all of which are, incidentally, the evil creations of the same very nice Sunni Arabs brothers.

I thought I defended myself pretty well in his comments section, and in one comment I wrote "I disagree that the horrors and evils of Al Qaeda are the evil creations of the same Sunni Arab brothers that I've met and befriended. No, actually, my Sunni Arab friends hate what Al Qaeda has done. I think that a majority of Sunni Arabs hate Al Qaeda. I remember an incident I read about in Ramadi, in which Al Qaeda wanted to expel and/or murder Shia residents of the town. The Sunni Arab tribal leaders of Ramadi organized a posse to defend their Shia neighbors against the impending evils of the Wahhabi scum."

In the comments of IBC's latest post, Kid addressed my responses: but please read your blog and see how many posts have you made about the "filthy Wahhabi scum", "the Baathists", and the "Arab Jarab" So would you feel comfortable with a blog that is bascially one long rant against the "Saffavid Scum", "The Fire-Worshipping Iranians" and the "Sons of Mut3a" with an occasional one or two posts praising Shiite seculars like Iyad Jamal al-Din? The truth is terrible.

I guess it depends in what context one would use "Saffavid Scum". Can Saffavids even be compared to Wahhabis? Do Iranians actually worship fire? Do any Iraqi Shia worship fire?? Are all Shia males sons of Mut3a (temporary marriage)? Are ANY Shia males sons of temporary marriage, and if so, is this a bad thing? I responded with the following comment:

'OK, I searched for "Wahhabi scum" and this is what I found:

Wahhabi scum: Two posts that I will never apologize for. In the first post I said "Iraq is being terrorized by the people who LOVED Saddam and the Al Qaeda scum buckets who seek to destroy any hope for democracy in Iraq. Saddam was a piece of shit, and so are the people who love(d) him. So are the Wahhabi scum of earth who believe that Shi'a are infidels and deserve to be murdered." Do I blame all Sunni Arabs? No. Do all Sunni ARabs love(d) Saddam? I don't think so. Please correct me if you believe I'm wrong.

In the second post I wrote "The people who murder Shi'a just for being Shi'a must be the Wahhabi scum from outside Iraq - I cannot imagine that even Ba'thists would commit these kinds of crimes." Hmmm, seems that once again I'm not blaming all Sunni Arabs, and in fact I stated that I cannot imagine that even Ba3thists would commit these kinds of crimes.

I also searched for jarab - it gives just one post in which I wrote "Today my uncle referred to the 'Arab Jarab' (jarab means 'scab'), which reminded me of a recent post by Baghdad Treasure, in which he laments the treatment of Iraqis by Arab countries like Jordan and Syria. Konfused Kid has also reported that undercover Jordanian security forces have been questioning Iraqis to find out if they are staying in Jordan longer than their visas allow."

I admit that I've used (maybe abused) the term "jarab" in my comments section and the comments section of Angry Arab, usually in heated debate, but I have also distinguished between good Arabs and jarab. There IS a difference. I wish I saved a comment I left on Angry Arab a couple weeks ago in which I gave a bunch of examples of jarab, including Zarqawi, Usama bin Ladin, Yusuf al Qaradawi, and even Muqtada al Sadr. Again, most Arabs are not jarab.

I also searched for "Baathists" and nearly crashed my computer, but I don't understand why the use of this term would be offensive. My father is a former Baathist - he had to be in order to work in the Oil Ministry. The hardcore Baathists who still express their love for Saddam can stay in Amman and Damascus forever. That would be nice:)'

It seems that Konfused Kid really is confused! Do I blame all Sunni Arabs? I don't think so. Do you think so? Are all Sunni Arabs Wahhabi scum? Are all Sunni Arabs Baathists? Are all Arabs jarab? My family and I are Arab, after all.

PS: if there is such a thing as "Safavid scum", have they ever blown up a market place?

Iraqi Tribal Chief Slams Al Qaeda

This guy is awesome.  You will not see this on Al Jazeera or Al Arabiya. Thanks dad for sending me this. Update: MEMRI's clip is longer than the one below.

Following are excerpts from a public address delivered by Iraqi tribal Chief Sheik Th'aban Al-Bazoun, which aired on Al-Fayhaa TV on December 4, 2007:

Sheik Th'aban Al-Bazoun: [We say] to the terrorists, the supporters of takfir, to Al-Qaeda: If you want Iraq to be as Islamic state so badly, shouldn't you make your own countries Islamic first? What, they come from Morocco to establish an Islamic state in Iraq?! Why don't they turn Morocco into an Islamic state? They come from Saudi Arabia to turn Iraq into an Islamic state. They cross the border and blow themselves up - why don't they blow themselves up in Saudi Arabia? After all, the Americans are present in Saudi Arabia, as well as in the UAE, in Bahrain, in Egypt, and in all the Arab countries. They have bases there. Go blow yourself up there. Instead of blowing up Iraqi children in schools, universities, and markets, go blow yourself up there. Go establish an Islamic state in Morocco, Tunisia, and Sudan. But one cannot establish an Islamic state by blowing up children, women, schools, or universities, or by means of terrorism and murder. We've become victims of people who come here from across the borders in order to kill Iraqi citizens, because they want to establish an Islamic state in Iraq. They want to force women to wear the veil. In their own countries women do not wear the veil. They want to force Iraqi Christian women to wear Islamic gowns. Christian women here do not wear these gowns. In their own countries, people wear pants and cowboy jeans. In your country, Saudi Arabia, people smoke marijuana on the beach, yet you come to Iraq to establish an Islamic state?!

Holocaust denial among Arabs and Muslims

I have never met in person an Arab who claimed that the Holocaust did not happen, or that 6 million Jews were not murdered during World War II, but unfortunately I have met them online.  I am saddened and embarrassed that Holocaust denial has apparently become so prominent among Arabs and Muslims that Israel's Holocaust memorial feels the need to launch an Arabic version of its web site in order to combat Holocaust denial among Arabs, but at the same time I'm glad that the site is availabe for Arabs to learn from.  Every Arab and Muslim should also read Night, an autobiographical account of Elie Wiesel's experiences as a teenager in Sighet, Romania and Auschwitz.

 

Holocaust museum starts Arabic Web site

 

By ARON HELLER, Associated Press Writer

JERUSALEM - Israel's Holocaust memorial launched an Arabic version of its Web site Thursday, including vivid photos of Nazi atrocities and video of survivors' testimony, to combat Holocaust denial in the Arab and Muslim world.

Among those featured on the Yad Vashem site is Dina Beitler, a survivor of the Nazi genocide that killed 6 million Jews in World War II. Beitler, who was shot and left for dead in a pit of bodies in 1941, recalls her story on the site, with Arabic subtitles.

continued

Suicide bomber attacks high school

I wonder what percentage of Iraqis would agree that attacking a school is a barbaric and cowardly tactic.

Suicide bomber attacks Iraqi school

By CHRISTOPHER CHESTER, Associated Press Writer
Tue Jan 22, 11:37 AM ET

BAGHDAD - A suicide bomber pushing an electric heater on top of a cart packed with explosives attacked a high school north of Baghdad on Tuesday, killing a bystander and injuring 21 people — mainly youngsters and teachers.

The school attack and other recent bombings against funerals and social gatherings raised the possibility that al-Qaida in Iraq has shifted tactics to focus on so-called soft targets and undermine public confidence that security is improving in Iraq.

The bombing at a gate in front of the two-story schoolhouse came at about 8:30 a.m., half an hour after classes began. The blast, which left a crater in the road, killed a 25-year-old man and injured 12 students, eight teachers and one policeman, a doctor at Baqouba General Hospital said.

continued

Dad sends son on suicide mission

How horribly sad and SICK.

Probe: Iraqi teen bomber sent by family

By KIM GAMEL, Associated Press Writer
Mon Jan 21, 4:18 PM ET

BAGHDAD - His father was a senior member of al-Qaida in Iraq. His mother promised him they would meet again in paradise.

Details emerging in the investigation into a teenage suicide bombing near Fallujah on Sunday suggest the boy was dispatched by his family on the mission and took advantage of tribal ties to pass through tight security — raising concerns about infiltration within Sunni groups now allied with U.S. forces against extremists.

continued