Walling ‘Em In (and Out)
Apparently hoping that good fences make good neighbors, American forces in Baghdad are erecting a concrete wall in Baghdad's turbulent Adhamiya district to separate Sunnis from Shiites -- the first barrier specifically built along sectarian lines. The wall, which will be three miles long and 12 feet high when it is finished later this month, is not a popular project among Iraqis from either side.Apparently hoping that good fences make good neighbors, American forces in Baghdad are erecting a concrete wall in Baghdad’s turbulent Adhamiya district to separate Sunnis from Shiites — the first barrier specifically built along sectarian lines. The wall, which will be three miles long and 12 feet high when it is finished later this month, is not a popular project among Iraqis from either side.
WAIT BEFORE YOU GO...L.A. Times:
Shiite and Sunni Arabs living in the shadow of the barrier were united in their contempt for the imposing new structure.
“Are they trying to divide us into different sectarian cantons?” said a Sunni drugstore owner in Adhamiya, who would identify himself only as Abu Ahmed, 44. “This will deepen the sectarian strife and only serve to abort efforts aimed at reconciliation.”
Some of Ahmed’s customers come from Shiite or mixed neighborhoods that are now cut off by large barriers along a main highway. Customers and others seeking to cross into the Sunni district must park their cars outside Adhamiya, walk through a narrow passage in the wall and take taxis on the other side.
Read more (Registration wall)
This year, the ground feels uncertain — facts are buried and those in power are working to keep them hidden. Now more than ever, independent journalism must go beneath the surface.
At Truthdig, we don’t just report what's happening — we investigate how and why. We follow the threads others leave behind and uncover the forces shaping our future.
Your tax-deductible donation fuels journalism that asks harder questions and digs where others won’t.
Don’t settle for surface-level coverage.
Unearth what matters. Help dig deeper.
Donate now.
The president may not want war with Iran, but he does want to push the regime into submission and tout U.S. military dominance to his base.
Meanwhile, thousands of Iraqi anti-government protesters call on both Iran and America to leave the country.
There's no justification for Qassem Soleimani's assassination, and if we avoid another war in the Middle East, we'll have Tehran to thank.
As a candidate in 2016, he praised war crimes and expressed a desire to commit some of his own. No one can claim surprise or betrayal now.
However Iran chooses to respond to the assassination of Qassem Soleimani, America's influence in the region is guaranteed to deteriorate.
Rocket falls near U.S. Embassy in Iraq hours after funeral for Qassem Soleimani at which crowd chants "Death to America, death to Israel."
You need to be a supporter to comment.
There are currently no responses to this article.
Be the first to respond.