The Low Profile: CNN and the New York Times Execute a Denial of History30 Dec 2006“Reading and watching the kind of mainstream coverage provided by CNN and the New York Times during the last 48 hours,” writes John Collins, “one could be forgiven for believing that the relationship between Saddam and the U.S. had always been one of enmity and violence. Yet as Juan Cole and others have tirelessly pointed out, the U.S. government began ‘enabling’ Saddam as early as 1959 when the CIA enlisted his help in undermining the government of Abdul Karim Qasim.”
Execution Begins to Deepen Divisions30 Dec 2006New divisions appear to be opening up between Iraqi political and religious leaders following the execution of Saddam Hussein Saturday. Former president Saddam Hussein was hanged at an army base in the predominantly Shia district of Khadamiya in northern Baghdad outside of Baghdad’s Green Zone just before 6am local time. The execution of the 69-year-old former dictator was witnessed by a representative of Prime Minster Nouri al-Maliki and a Muslim cleric among others. The execution appears already to be generating more sectarianism, which has already claimed tens of thousands of lives in the war-torn country.
Hussein’s Death Leaves Unanswered Questions30 Dec 2006Iraqi-Americans reacted with sadness to the execution of Saddam Hussein Saturday, calling the former Iraqi president’s death by hanging early this morning Baghdad time a missed opportunity for justice. An Iraqi tribunal set up by the U.S. government had convicted Hussein of murder in the killings of 148 Shiite Muslims from the Iraqi town of Dujail, where assassins had tried to kill Hussein in 1982. The crime, while severe, is actually one of his smaller-scale atrocities.
Hanged Almost Without Trial30 Dec 2006Saddam Hussein was convicted and hanged without fair trial, leading human rights groups said after his execution Saturday. “Amnesty International believes the whole process was deeply flawed,” James Dyson from Amnesty told IPS. The Iraqi Appeals Court failed to address the major flaws during the former dictator’s trial before the Supreme Iraqi Criminal Tribunal, Amnesty said in a statement Saturday.
Amnesty International deplores execution of Saddam Hussein30 Dec 2006Amnesty International deplored the execution of Saddam Hussein following the confirmation of his sentence by the Iraqi Appeals Court on 26 December 2006.
The organization, which totally opposes the use of the death penalty, said it was concerned that the Iraqi Appeals Court had failed to address the major flaws during the former dictator’s trial before the Supreme Iraqi Criminal Tribunal which had rendered it unfair.
The Year of Living Dangerously in the Middle East29 Dec 2006Following the execution of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, almost four years after the U.S.-led invasion and occupation of Iraq, the Middle East stands at a crossroads. The execution of Saddam may well create more problems than it could possibly solve. Despite the formation of a permanent national government, Iraq has been reduced to a state of chaos and sectarian violence. The execution is unlikely to bring stability to the country, or credibility to the government. That is after the situation in the country hit an all-time low this year.
Iraqi Bloggers Respond to Hussein Hanging29 Dec 2006Iraqi bloggers have wasted no time in commenting on the hanging of Saddam Hussein. Iraqi blogger Alaa of The Mesopotamian writes, “If the punishment for murder is to be death, then Saddam deserves at least a million or so executions.” Iraqi blogger Khalid Jarrar writes, “The day of the fall of Baghdad was the day that Saddam stopped being important to me, he lost the power and became history.”
Video: Iraqi Television Broadcasts Hussein in the Gallows29 Dec 2006On Friday, December 30, 2005, Saddam Hussein was hanged in Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone. This footage of Hussein being led to the gallows is what Iraqis saw on their television sets (providing the electricity was working). The hanging itself was not broadcast.
Saddam Hussein Put to Death29 Dec 2006On Friday, December 30, 2006, Saddam Hussein was put to death. The hanging was a dramatic and violent ending to a dramatic and violent life. Responding to the hanging, Human Rights Watch commented: “The execution of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein following a deeply flawed trial for crimes against humanity marks a significant step away from respect for human rights and the rule of law in Iraq.”
Saddam Hussein Put to Death29 Dec 2006The execution of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein following a deeply flawed trial for crimes against humanity marks a significant step away from respect for human rights and the rule of law in Iraq, Human Rights Watch said today. Human Rights Watch has for more than 15 years documented the human rights crimes committed by Hussein’s former government, and has campaigned to bring the perpetrators to justice.
End of another year…28 Dec 2006“This last year has been a turning point,” writes Iraqi blogger Riverbend. “Nearly every Iraqi has lost so much. So much. There’s no way to describe the loss we’ve experienced with this war and occupation. There are no words to relay the feelings that come with the knowledge that daily almost 40 corpses are found in different states of decay and mutilation. There is no compensation for the dense, black cloud of fear that hangs over the head of every Iraqi. Fear of things so out of ones hands, it borders on the ridiculous – like whether your name is ‘too Sunni’ or ‘too Shia.’”
Saddam Execution Set to Destabilise Iraq Further28 Dec 2006Former dictator Saddam Hussein is due to be executed next month in a move that could bring more instability in an increasingly violent and chaotic occupation. The execution is to follow a decision by a court of appeal Dec. 26 to uphold the death sentence for Saddam. Under present Iraqi law, execution must be carried out within 30 days of confirmation of the order. Chief judge Aref Shahin said following confirmation of the death sentence: “From tomorrow, any day could be the day of implementation.”
Stress of violence leads to more suicides27 Dec 2006The number of suicides in war-ravaged Iraq is increasing due to psychological stress caused by relentless violence, medical experts said. “We see more cases of suicide each month and all evidence shows that the main reason for the suicides has been the stress and pressure caused by the continuing violence,” said Dr. Muhammad Hamza, a specialist in suicide medical investigation at the Ministry of Health. Hamza said that he found that 70 percent of suicide victims chose to poison themselves using rat and cockroach poison. Others either shot or hanged themselves. “Some of them leave letters to their parents and the most common excuse given for their act is that they can no longer bear the violence,” Hamza said.
Appeals Chamber Should Review Flawed Hussein Verdict26 Dec 2006The Iraqi government should not implement the death sentence against Saddam Hussein, which was imposed after a deeply flawed trial for crimes against humanity, Human Rights Watch said today. The Appeals Chamber of the Iraqi High Tribunal, which was first reported by Iraq’s national security adviser to have upheld the sentence, should have conducted a thorough legal review of the verdict and then announced its findings, Human Rights Watch said.
When Iraqis Gave Up on Government26 Dec 2006The Iraqi government headed by Prime Minister Noori al-Maliki, like earlier governments assigned by U.S. occupation authorities in Iraq, appears to have killed Iraqi dreams of a brighter future. General elections Dec. 15, 2005 brought in a government that was supposed to listen to Iraqis all over the country. It was called a unity government because the cabinet was formed to include ministers from all ethnic and sectarian backgrounds after months of negotiations in the parliament. But opposition leaders blame Maliki for denying them a role within government, undermining his claim that there is indeed a unity government.
A Bad Year for Empire25 Dec 2006For those who believed that the precise and overwhelming demonstration of U.S. military power in Afghanistan and Iran would “shock and awe” the rest of the world—and particularly Washington’s foes and aspiring rivals—into accepting its benevolent hegemony, 2006 was not a good year. Not only has Washington become ever more bogged down—at the current rate of nearly three billion dollars and 20 soldiers’ lives a week—in an increasingly fragmented and violent Iraq whose de facto civil war threatens to draw in its neighbours, but a resurgent Taliban has exposed the fragility of what gains have been made in Afghanistan since the U.S.-led military campaign ousted the group five years ago.
Insecurity and poverty in Iraq put pregnant women in danger25 Dec 2006Dozens of pregnant women with life-threatening conditions are being admitted to Iraq’s hospitals every month. Dr. Mayada Youssif, a gynaecologist at Baghdad’s Kadhimiyah hospital, believes that pregnant women are falling ill due to the insecurity and poverty that Iraqis have to live with as a result of the conflict. “Insecurity has forced women to stay at home during their whole period of pregnancy, and they look for a doctor only when they are feeling really ill or feel, near to delivery time, that conditions have become too dangerous,” Youssif said. The UN children’s agency UNICEF has said that Iraq’s maternal mortality rates have increased dramatically over the last 15 years. In 1989, 117 Iraqi mothers out of 100,000 died during pregnancy or childbirth. That ratio has now increased by 65 per cent.
Corruption hampering Iraq reconstruction25 Dec 2006Hundreds of health, education and infrastructure projects have been delayed because of corruption and the smuggling of oil, according to officials in the Ministry of Reconstruction. Iraq’s vital oil sector has lost US $15 billion due to smuggling, corruption and a deteriorating security situation, an oil ministry official said, adding that the money could have been invested in reconstruction to improve the living condition of millions of Iraqis.
Iraqi Children Pick Their Christmas Toys25 Dec 2006As children in the United States and around the world celebrate Christmas, and prepare to celebrate the New Year, children in Iraq occupy a quite different world, with toys to match. Social researcher Nuha Khalil from the Iraqi Institute for Childhood Development in Baghdad told IPS that young girls are now expressing their repressed sadness often by playing the role of a mother who takes care of her small daughter. Hundreds of thousands of children have faced trauma of some sort. And for others, the lack of a normal life is trauma enough. Just a lack of entertainment is developing into a serious problem. There are only 10 cinemas in Baghdad, and two dilapidated public parks. These are no longer safe for children.
Refugees Run From Violence to Deprivation25 Dec 2006Although much of the violence in present Iraq is sectarian, a good deal of violence comes from gangs and organised crime bands. Under the impact of this violence from all sides, the wave of refugees has risen, particularly following the February 2006 attacks on the holy Shia mosques of Samarra, 125 km north of Baghdad. Kurdistan, in the northern part of the country, is now home to more than 50,000 internally displaced persons from volatile regions of the country. According to the Arbil branch of the Iraqi Red Crescent Society (IRCS), 439 families escaped to Arbil only during the first three weeks of this month.
“This will be the last polio campaign of my life”21 Dec 2006I am a 32-year-old Iraqi widow with three children. Seven years ago I started working with UNICEF [the UN Children’s Agency], giving anti-polio vaccines to thousands of children. But my life has changed drastically in the past two years as my work has become dangerous because now I get threats at least once every two months. I need to work to help support my family, so now I have to move from place to place. Whenever I feel that my life is threatened in a particular district, I move to another. Many times I have thought of leaving my job but when a child opens his or her mouth to receive the polio drops and I know that it will save his or her life, I change my mind because as a mother I know how important it is to give children polio vaccines.
“I never made so many coffins a day”20 Dec 2006My name is Muhammad Abdel Kader. I am 36 years old and live in the Ejidida neighbourhood of Baghdad with my parents, wife and only son. I have lived in Baghdad all my life. I have been making coffins since I was 24 to help with the family income. I work non-stop, 12 hours a day, six days a week. I have never made so many coffins a day in my life. I have to make as many coffins as I can to meet demand in al-Qarah Cemetery. Before the war, we were making about two or maximum three coffins a day for people who had died from diseases or car accidents. But today we make at least 20 a day for victims of the violence.
More executions “no remedy” for worsening security20 Dec 2006Amnesty International is greatly concerned by a new surge in executions in Iraq, despite calls by the international community for Iraq to abolish the death penalty. On 19 December, the Iraqi Prime Minister’s office announced that a further 13 prisoners had been executed, making 2006 the year with the highest number of executions since Iraq reinstated the death penalty in 2004. At least 60 people have been executed in Iraq since the authorities resumed executions in September 2005, with some 53 reported to have been executed since the beginning of this year.
Who Will Pay For Haditha?20 Dec 2006With charges expected to be filed Thursday against five to eight Marines accused of killing 24 Iraqi civilians in Haditha, Iraq on Nov. 19, 2005, it now appears that at least one senior officer will also be charged in the case. According to the group Human Rights First, no civilian official or officer above the rank of major responsible for interrogation and detention practices has ever been charged in connection with the torture or abuse-related death of a detainee in U.S. custody. The Haditha case is somewhat different as it involves an alleged massacre of families in their own homes, but experts say it shares similar themes of accountability.
Electronic Iraq