African Views Organization
We Can Save Children Foundation
A week before my trip to Iraq I hadn't been sleeping well. Everything was rolling around in my mind and keeping me up at night. I knew full well I was venturing to one of the most dangerous countries on earth. Though certainly no stranger to dangerous countries, I knew that there was a distinct possibility that I could be killed. Either by an IED, car bomb, suicide vest, sniper or worse, kidnapped, tortured and beheaded. All these things were highly possible and it certainly crossed my mind. But a day before I was to leave I simply surrendered myself to it and once I did that it cleared my mind and I never thought of it again. Was I frightened or scared being there and the answer is No! But I never really felt safe either. I mean who would one night laying comfortably on my bed in the hotel and hearing AK47 automatic gunfire outside the window and then seeing Iraqi soldiers running throughout the hotel. I knew this was no picnic. Most everyone thought I was nuts to go, though most who know me were not very surprised. People in Iraq were also quite amazed I had the guts to venture there. I mean Iraq has seen nothing but war and conflict for as long as history can remember. Just look back at the past 80 years and you can see how battle weary it is:
First Arab Israeli War 1948-1949 Mosul Uprising 1959 First Iraq - Kurdish War 1961- 1970 Six Day War 1967 October War 1973 Second Iraq - Kurdish War 1974-1975 Iran - Iraq War 1980-1988 Persian Gulf War 1990-1991 Sha'aban Intifada 1991 Iraq Kurdish Civil War 1995-1996 Bombing of Iraq 1998 Second Sadr Uprising 1999 Iraq War 2003-2011 Iraq Civil War 2014-2017 (Al Qaeda) Kirkuk Crisis 2017 Iraq Insurgency 2017- Present (Daesh - ISIL - ISIS)
And how can we forget Saddam Hussein coming to power on July 16th, 1979 and the terror he inflicted on his own people, especially the Kurds. Most notable is the 10,000 men, women and children he gassed to death in the space of five hours in Halabja on March 16th, 1988. Iraqi's are no stranger to wars, are extremely resilient and a battle-hardened people. It's certainly not a place one can go and say "Mission Accomplished" as “Bush 2” said from the aircraft carrier. Or even a year ago saying ISIL is now defeated inside Iraq according to Trump. This is all propaganda and lies that the government led media appeases the western public with. I can tell you Daesh - in Arabic or ISIL (Islamic State Iraq Levant), which the term former President Obama liked to use, or ISIS, the name given by western journalists - is still very much alive inside Iraq with 15,000 fighters all over the country. They just no longer control strongholds of the country, but are pocketed throughout the landscape. Personally I have learned to gel into Iraqi society. I prayed alongside everyday Iraqis at the mosque and shrines five times a day. I learnt to perform the greetings and recite some prayers in Arabic. There's no way you'll survive otherwise. I choose to be a chameleon and fit in quite easily and I'm good at it. I was never ever questioned. I'm somewhat of a public figure and I would be a great target for publicity for ISIL. There are countless stories to tell but here’s one that certainly raises the bar.
Fariba (my guide) and I; were picked up one morning by a friend of hers. Mr. Emad looked about 50 years old with a strong rugged look that you can tell has seen a lot. He picked us up in a new silver Mercedes Benz S550 but with one special addition. It was fully armored! We were being taken to one of Saddam Hussein's former palaces in the city of Babylon. Well I knew this was going to be informative to say the least. Mr. Emad was formerly in the army in the 80's under Saddam. After doing his two year military duty he moved to Seattle and in 2014 got the call for Fatwah - (Islam) a legal opinion or ruling issued by an Islamic scholar. It was to take up arms against ISIL. He left his family and the comfort and safety of his home in America and went to Iraq. His time fighting ISIL he went underground and infiltrated ISIL strongholds posing as an ISIL fighter. He made many successful incursions behind enemy lines. A real life Iraqi hero and respected throughout the country, he decided to stay in Iraq and bring his family and is now a high ranking government official. The obvious reason for the armored-car, he's a high valued target for assassination by ISIL. Everywhere we went, every checkpoint he got carte blanche and the red sea parted. He knew everyone and if not everyone they certainly knew who he was. Getting to see Saddam's former palace in Babylon was pretty amazing as it’s off limits to the public. Though Saddam had many palaces all over Iraq, this was the one which was always in the news. After Saddam was on the run it was taken over by US troops and used as a base of operations. It was also the one that had jails in the basement where tortures and killings took place by Saddam's soldiers. As the day rolled on Mr. Emad took me to a late lunch and it was then that he was very open in laying out many truths that I had only heard loosely about regarding the US involvement in arming ISIL. Mr. Emad had worked alongside the US troops and with his own eyes he regularly saw US troops arming ISIL with small arms to heavy artillery. I wasn’t at all surprised but still it was alarming knowing that I was sitting next to someone that had witnessed it many times throughout the course of his involvement against the fight against Daesh (ISIL).
This trip to Iraq has been eye opening and I was privy to things and information that certainly was an education that few will ever have the chance to experience. But it also made me upset and angry that the powers that be have caused such turmoil, death and destruction. I visited a number of orphanages, both kindergarten, middle school and high school. Iraq has a population of 38 million with a staggering 5 million orphans. I really don't know what will become of Iraq's future. But with such a rich country because of its oil reserves it can rebuild and there are small signs it is starting to do so. I saw many of the shrines being rebuilt that not only Saddam pulverized with his tanks but also Al Qaeda destroyed and then ISIL as well. Good leadership though is the most important thing for the country to grow again. But with ISIL still lurking only time will tell.
While in Iraq, I was able to attend the lectures of the Imam Sayed Mustafa Qazwini who is the 42nd generation direct descendant to the Prophet through Imam Ali. The Imam Ali, who ruled as the fourth caliph from 656 to 661, is regarded as the rightful immediate successor to the Prophet Muhammad by Shia Muslims, and he said that without "justice in leadership the country will crumble". Look at Libya, Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Venezuela and so many countries throughout Central Africa etc. But take a good look at our own United States of America. And ask yourself is there any justice in our leadership? Signs of crumbling in our country are pretty plain to see. Only time will tell and until that time all we can do is keep breathing and live every moment to it’s fullest.
Which brings us to the US foreign policy in Iraq and throughout the Middle East:
The reasons behind US foreign policy and its war machine in the Middle East is probably one of the most disturbing pieces of modern history to date. Having just returned from both Iraq and Iran, I have been privy to first hand accounts of very disturbing events. The US involvement in Iraq certainly sheds new light on a very grave and dire situation that has been unfolding for decades. To understand the dynamic of the Middle East just go back one thousand years to the time of Richard The Lion Heart and the Crusades. After decades of war and a massive defeat by Saladin, the English capitulated and dragged themselves home in embarrassment. But the conflict never truly ended and clearly continues until the present, what today is called the Thousand Year War. The British carved up the Middle East in the 1950's and what is known as the Emirates was born. I was born in Aden, Yemen, which was then known as Southern Yemen, a British Protectorate and a very beautiful and peaceful place. But not anymore, since Saudi Arabia has desecrated the country with US bought weapons and causing the worst humanitarian catastrophe since WW2.
If we go back just 40 years when Saddam Hussein came into power on July 16, 1979 within one year he invaded Iran with the help and backing of the usual suspects, USA, Britain, and France among others. The US government support for Iraq was not a secret and was frequently discussed in open sessions of the Senate and House of Representatives. On June 9, 1992, Ted Koppel reported on ABC's Nightline that the "Reagan/Bush administrations permitted—and frequently encouraged—the flow of money, agricultural credits, dual-use technology, chemicals, and weapons to Iraq.” Yes, that's right, we gave Saddam chemical and biological weapons including VX nerve agent, Mustard and Sarin gas. Which Saddam willingly used and was given the green light by the US to use on Iranian civilians. It was very effectively used on towns and villages bordering Iraq and Iran - gassing to death hundreds if not thousands of innocent Iranian men, women and children.
The Iran–Iraq War conflict beginning on 22 September 1980, when Iraq invaded Iran, and ending on 20 August 1988, when Iran accepted the UN-brokered ceasefire.
Although Iraq hoped to take advantage of Iran's post-revolutionary chaos, it made limited progress and was quickly repelled; Iran regained virtually all lost territory by June 1982. For the next six years, Iran was on the offensive until near the end of the war. There were a number of proxy forces—most notably the People's Mujahedin of Iran siding with Iraq and the Iraqi Kurdish militias of the KDP and PUK siding with Iran. The United States, Soviet Union, France, and most Arab countries provided support for Iraq, while Iran was largely isolated. After eight years, war-weariness, economic problems, decreased morale, Iranian military failures, recent Iraqi successes, Iraqi use of chemical and biological weapons, lack of international sympathy, and increased U.S.–Iran military tension led to a ceasefire brokered by the United Nations.
The conflict has been compared to World War I in terms of the tactics used, including large-scale trench warfare with barbed wire stretched across fortified defensive lines, manned machine guns, bayonet charges, Iranian human wave attacks, extensive use of chemical weapons by Iraq, and, later, deliberate attacks on civilian targets. An estimated one million Iraqi and Iranian soldiers died, in addition to a smaller number of civilians. The end of the war resulted in neither reparations nor border changes. With all the devastation, at least today both countries are now allies. Inshallah.
Jump forward to the Persian Gulf War of “Bush 1” in 1990-1991, which was an extreme show of the US military might in all its pomp and circumstance. Key players involved were Saddam Hussein, General Norman Schwarzkopf and General Colin Powell. The Gulf War (August 2 1990 – February 28, 1991) codenamed Operation Desert Shield for operations leading to the buildup of troops and defense of Saudi Arabia, and Operation Desert Storm (January 17, 1991 – February 28, 1991) in its combat phase, was a war waged by coalition forces from 35 nations led by the United States against Iraq. It was in response to Iraq’s invasion and annexation of Kuwait arising from oil pricing and production disputes. Saddam quickly capitulated and it was over before it started. But was it?
Ten years hence, September 11, 2001. How can we ever forget that fateful day? But no matter how we feel or whomever we feel was responsible for it, we certainly know it wasn't Saddam Hussein. We do know that without a doubt 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudi and that they studied right here in the US, specifically training for that fateful day. We also know that the day after 9-11 air traffic was completely shut down in and out for 4 days except for the Saudi Royal family. The day after they were safely flown back home. But because Dick Cheney had “Bush 2” wrapped around his pinky the US then decided to invade Iraq yet again. So they lied to the American public telling us that Saddam had WMD's. But at least we knew he had stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons - because the US gave them to him in the first place.
The Iraq war lasted 8 long years from 2003-2011. Pay strict attention to the number 8. (Vietnam lasted 8 years 1965-1973, Iraq-Iran 1980-1988, Iraq war 2003-2011, Syrian War 2011-present, but looks very much like it will be over this year.) But was it over? We all remember “Bush 2” standing on the aircraft carrier with that huge banner "Mission Accomplished". I'd really like to know what was accomplished. Saddam went into hiding and was found in a cave. Yes, he was tried and found guilty, and he was executed on Dec 30, 2006. He certainly got what he deserved, and there’s no doubt he was a monster and an evil tyrant. But he was no more evil than Dick Cheney or Donald Rumsfeld. 4,424 American troops died. 31,952 were wounded in action, and Iraqi civilian deaths amounted to 250,000. So what was gained? Absolutely nothing! But was it over? US troop presence remained and still does to this day - about 5,000 strong. The war continued on, now with a new player, Al Qaeda, causing countless loss of life by IED's, suicide vests, snipers, etc.
This led to the Iraq Civil War 2014-2017. This was an armed conflict that began in January 2014 and ended in December 2017. In 2014, the Iraqi insurgency escalated into a civil war with the conquest of Fallujah, Mosul, Tikrit and the major areas of northern Iraq by the Islamic State Iraq Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS). This resulted in the forced resignation of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, as well as airstrikes by the United States and at least a dozen other countries, the participation of Iranian troops, and military and logistical aid provided to Iraq by Russia. On 9 December 2017, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced victory over ISIL, though others warned that they expected ISIL to fight on as an insurgency and by other means. ISIL switched to guerrilla 'hit and run' tactics in an effort to undermine the Iraqi government's effort to eradicate them.
And yet again we know that the US has been arming ISIL from the very beginning, just like the US armed Saddam Hussein. One year ago Trump once again lied to the American public announcing that ISIL was defeated inside Iraq. Well I can tell you, having just been there, that ISIL is very much alive inside of Iraq.
Everyone knows U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East has more to do with destabilization than diplomacy. Whether arming states like Israel and Saudi Arabia or flattening entire countries like Yemen, Libya, Iraq and now Syria, American intervention is pretty much always a humanitarian disaster. At times, this policy has even included arming ISIL — the very terror group Washington claims to oppose. Trying to piece together the definitive actions of a government so apt at lying and deception is difficult. But what we do know doesn’t paint a good picture of the U.S. in the Middle East. No matter how you spin it, the U.S. and its allies are relentlessly employing terrorists to serve America’s own selfish interests.
Sometimes I wish I lived on a desert island and I was never privy to any of this. But I've made it my mission to extend myself outside my own comfort to help others – to spread first hand knowledge to a digital audience and to search out organizations that are accomplishing positive and successful initiatives. I will continue to talk with as many people and at as many forums as possible to spread understanding. In the end is up to you to decide what you want to believe or not. Inshallah. God Bless. Peace. Please share if it moves you. Thank you.
In Northern Iraq with a Iraqi Military Officer at one of the many checkpoints throughout the country. It took a little conversation to make him finally tweak a smile as we took a few photos together and they were all very serious. He loosened up a bit.
With Imam Sayed Mustafa Qazwini 42nd generation direct descendant to the Prophet Muhammad. I was very fortunate to attend his lectures and spend some quality time with him. Imam is profoundly wise and a spiritual scholar that is extremely well respected among the Shia community throughout the world.
With Mr. Emad a top government official standing in front of the former palace of Saddam Hussein in Babylon, Iraq. His stories were mind-blowing but sadly very disturbing.
With Iraqi child orphans in Karbala, Iraq. There are approximately five million orphans in Iraq. Karbala is the holiest city in Iraq and during the US invasion in 2003 was under intensified heavy bombardment. Today it’s much safer but ISIL has never gone away. Just some months ago the hotel I was staying at was targeted with a car bomb.
In front of the Samarrah Salah ad Din Shrine - It is being rebuilt after first being completely bulldozed by tanks from Saddam's army and then destroyed again in 2007 by Al Qaeda.
