The Command Post - Iraq - Although Umm Qasr 'Secure', Residents Not Completely Safe

March 30, 2003

Although Umm Qasr 'Secure', Residents Not Completely Safe

An Arab News report from Umm Qasr. The reporter encounters British on hunt for snipers, finds Brit camp safer than the city, and is refused entry to Basra. He also interviews some Umm Qasr residents.

I asked several what they thought of the US/UK plan to remove Saddam. They told me: “Now that they have started to remove him, they cannot stop. If they do, then we are all as good as dead. He still has informants in Umm Qasr and he knows who is against him and who isn’t.”

When asked about what they think of this war, most Iraqis said that they were against the loss of innocent life and the destruction of their cities, but they seemed adamant about the removal of Saddam. They were happy about the “liberation” of Umm Qasr but were disappointed in the US/UK for not keeping their promises to provide humanitarian aid.

Salim, 31, told Arab News: “We have not had enough to eat or drink for three days. At the American and British camps there is electricity, just half a kilometer away. Why don’t we have any? The meat we had stored in our homes is now spoiled because there is no refrigeration.”

Posted By cranky at March 30, 2003 06:40 PM | TrackBack

Comments

I've linked to stories from the Arab News a couple of times. For those who aren’t aware I should point out that this paper is based in Saudi Arabia, whose government tightly controls the press.

Posted by: Cranky at March 30, 2003 06:52 PM

" ?We have not had enough to eat or drink for three days. At the American and British camps there is electricity, just half a kilometer away. Why don?t we have any? The meat we had stored in our homes is now spoiled because there is no refrigeration.?"

Um, could it be the fact that the RP is preventing the US/UK forces from bringing it in? And, at least you have meat...the troops are getting by with those awful MREs...

sigh

cheshirecat

Posted by: cheshirecat at March 30, 2003 06:55 PM

"When asked about what they think of this war, most Iraqis said that they were against the loss of innocent life and the destruction of their cities, but they seemed adamant about the removal of Saddam."

We feel the same way.

Posted by: Babaloo at March 30, 2003 07:45 PM

Someone at Arab News should roll up a bunch of copies of this article and put it in a certain orifice of one Fisk.

Not that it would do any good, I am sure he would spin it as "Coalition has electricity and water, why not Basra" without mention that the troops are probably running off generators - or "Coalition refuses to allow food into Basra" without mentioning the daner to citizens a la the shot-in-the-back refugees.

Posted by: John Anderson at March 30, 2003 07:45 PM

Umm, maybe no one noticed the first post informing us that this newspaper is a Saudi propaganda rag. (Remember the Saudis, 9/11, the twin towers, the ones who were the actual hijackers and all?)

Posted by: JAMES at March 30, 2003 08:06 PM

Arab News has been pretty darned even-handed in their reporting, imo.

Posted by: DSmith at March 30, 2003 08:25 PM

Don't take the story the wrong way.

These people are being very brave expressing that kind of viewpoint. In Iraq, criticizing Saddam will get you killed. And if you said the same thing about Iraq that the person was criticizing the US/UK for, he would also be killed.

It is good that they are against Saddam. It is very good. It will make post-liberation Iraq a better place.

Posted by: Bruce at March 30, 2003 10:06 PM