baghdad burning

i trust western news media
about as far as i can spit my television set

here is the story from the other side
a girl's blog from baghdad

baghdad burning

"'The Americans won’t be out in less than ten years. ... if you could see the bases they are planning to build- if you could see what already has been built- you’d know that they are going to be here for quite a while.'

The Green Zone is a source of consternation and aggravation for the typical Iraqi. ... It is a provocation because no matter how anyone tries to explain or justify it, it is like a slap in the face. It tells us that while we are citizens in our own country, our comings and goings are restricted because portions of the country no longer belong to its people."

"On the television the talk about ‘terrorists’ being arrested, but there are dozens of people being rounded up for no particular reason. Almost every Iraqi family can give the name of a friend or relative who is in one of the many American prisons for no particular reason. They aren’t allowed to see lawyers or have visitors and stories of torture have become commonplace. Both Sunni and Shia clerics who are in opposition to the occupation are particularly prone to attacks by “Liwa il Theeb” or the special Iraqi forces Wolf Brigade. They are often tortured during interrogation and some of them are found dead."

"In Baghdad there's talk of the latest "Operation Lightning". ... The plan includes 40,000 Iraqi security forces and that is making people a little bit uneasy. Iraqi National Guard are not pleasant or upstanding citizens- to have thousands of them scattered about Baghdad stopping cars and possibly harassing civilians is worrying. We're also very worried about the possibility of raids on homes."