Iraq Diaries Iraq Solidarity Action - 27 soldiers were kidnapped

Iraq Solidarity Action

Ewa Jasiewicz , Occupation Watch, 11 April 2004

Ewa Jasiewicz lived in Baghdad and Basra for 8 months while working with Voices in the Wilderness and Occupation Watch. On Friday April 9th, 2004, Ewa spoke to friends and colleagues currently in Iraq. The following contains excerpts from their conversations.

Paola Gaspiroli, Italian, from Occupation watch and Bridges to Baghdad:

Falluja is under siege. 470 people have been killed, and 1700 injured. There has been no ceasefire. They (Americans) told people to leave, and they have 8 hours to do so. People began to leave, but became trapped in the desert. The Americans have been bombing with B52s. Bridges to Baghdad are pulling out. We have flights booked out of Amman. Tomorrow a team will go to Sadr City to deliver medicines. 50 people have been killed there. The sheikh in Sadr City has told me I should leave. He says that even he can't control his people. Foreigners are going to be targeted. 6 new foreigners have been taken hostage. Of the six, four Italian security firm employees were kidnapped from their car. Baghdad was quiet today except for Abu Ghraib (West Baghdad, where a vast prison is located and is bursting at the seams with 12,000 prisoners). An American convoy was attacked there and 9 soldiers were injured and 27 were kidnapped. That’s right 27. None of the newswires are reporting it though.

There are people in the desert. They've left Falluja but they're not being allowed into Baghdad. They're trapped in the dessert, like refugees. It is terrible but the people, Iraqi people, are giving all they can. They’re bringing supplies. Everyone is giving all the help and support they can to Falluja. It is really, really bad. The Americans have been firing on ambulances and snipers are following them. The ambulances cannot get in.

http://electroniciraq.net/news/1451.shtml

is an outstanding website!
www.occupationwatch.org


Iraq Revenue Watch is another interesting site:
http://www.iraqrevenuewatch.org/

From an AP wire ... "Several Iraqis have also been captured. At a warehouse in the industrial area, 27 suspected militants were being held, said Warrant Officer Todd Mathisen, 39, of Reno, Nevada." http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?BRD=1078&dept_id=151021&newsid=11282128&PAG=461&rfi=9

Wondering if reports are getting mixed up ... captured soldiers are referred to as being "prisoners", not "kidnapped" ... don't know if I believe the electroniciraq report - it's quite an extraordinary claim and I would think that any number of reporters or wire services would be happy to pounce on the story if it's accurate.

ElectronicIraq may not be the unbiased middle. Neither is the BushCo party-line.

well this is a for sure


Copyright 2004 Houston Chronicle



Bush makes the pilgrimage to his Central Texas spread every year for Easter, when the wildflowers are in full bloom and the mesquite trees are sprouting fresh, iridescent green leaves.

Last week, the president gave a tour of the ranch to leaders of hunting rights, recreational sports and gun rights groups. He later sat down for an interview with Ladies' Home Journal.

Bush has now made 33 trips to Crawford since becoming president, bringing his total to more than 230 days at the ranch in a little more than three years, according to a tally kept by CBS News.

Add his 78 trips to Camp David and five to his family's compound at Kennebunkport, Maine, and Bush has spent all or part of 500 days -- or about 40 percent of his presidency -- at one of his three retreats.
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/nation/2496305

"Last week, the president gave a tour of the ranch to leaders of hunting rights, recreational sports and gun rights groups." Didn't you get the memo? The tour was for "conservation groups."

Another group of armed Iraqi insurgents, their faces masked, claimed on Saturday to be holding 30 foreigners hostage and threatened to kill them unless the United States halted its offensive in Falluja. In a film that was shown repeatedly on Arabic television, a masked man representing the group said: "We have Japanese, Bulgarian, Israeli, American, Spanish and Korean hostages. Their numbers are 30." He added: "If America doesn't lift its blockade of Falluja, their heads will be cut off."

They're "claiming" ... but ...

The videotape did not show any hostages, however, and it was not possible to confirm that such a group was being held. Bulgaria said its soldiers were accounted for. But several foreigners are known to be missing.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/11/international/11IRAQ.html

All the news stories have been saying an unknown number are missing. 27 missing. No wonder they're afraid to say. Soldiers or mercenaries?

I hate hearing about the refugees being trapped in the desert. There is a terrible story from ancient France. The Romans besieged a city and food ran low. Who to feed? Women, children, old people, or soldiers? The famous commander ordered the women, children, and old people out of the city. The Romans refuse to take them in. They died in the no man's land between the two warring parties in full view of their husbands, sons, brothers, and fathers. Later, the leader was turned over to the Romans by his own soldiers. I've never read an historian who made a connection between the two events. But I don't believe decisions like that can be forgiven.

We've created these refugees. We can't let anything happen to these people. They're OUR responsibility.