-Caveat Lector-

http://truthout.org/docs_03/032603G.shtml
Baghdad Gets Scarier
Nate Thayer
Slate.com

Sunday 23 March 2003

BAGHDAD, Sunday evening—Today, for the first time, the bombs fell and
the missiles struck in daylight. The assault lasted all day. And it came not
only from long-range missiles but from coalition planes that are flying over
our heads and dropping their payloads in the neighborhood of the
Palestine Hotel, where most of the foreign journalists remaining in Baghdad
are staying.

Today is also the first time that I am truly frightened. It is not the
American bombs I am primarily afraid of. What frightens me and Mary—the
name I'll give a photographer with whom I've become inseparable—is the
mood of the people. The city is thick with anger and defiance, and we are
Americans.

Every day since Mary and I arrived by road from Jordan, we have been
threatened with expulsion. This morning, once again, we were ordered
out. "You have two choices—you can be a human shield or you can leave
the country," said my government minder. He offered this without his usual
smarmy smile.

"But what about my visa?" I asked.

"Your visa is now to heaven," he said, forcing a laugh.

I talked my way out of it once again. My minder said we could obtain visa
"extensions" provided we take HIV tests. I brought my own syringes, and I
swabbed Mary's arm and extracted a vial of blood in my room. She did the
same for me. We then went to the so- called HIV center together, with
bombs dropping around us, to submit our blood to the Iraqi government.
Of course, they insisted on taking their own samples. Cruise missiles
launched 900 miles away exploded around us, incinerating government
buildings as we partook in this ridiculous charade.

This absurdity over, we returned to the Palestine, where we are as
prepared as we can be for whatever may come next. We have 300 bottles
of the water and have filled the bathtubs in each of several rooms for
reserve. We've stockpiled enough food for weeks. Should the power fail,
we have a generator and jerry cans filled with petrol purchased on the
black market. If a bomb blows out our window, the duct tape we've
covered it with should protect us from flying glass. All of our
electronics—computers, cameras, communications devices—are wrapped in
aluminum foil against so-called e-bombs that will destroy all the data of
electronic devices.

At 4 p.m. Baghdad time, an American fighter jet dropped its payload so
close that the concussion sucked the air out of our lungs. Mary and I got
in our car and drove toward the site of the explosion.

As we crossed one of the four Tigris bridges, there was an enormous
traffic jam. Hundreds of armed men and civilians were looking down to the
river below. Scores of cars had stopped in the middle of the bridge. We
grabbed our gear and got out.

The rumor was that an allied plane had been shot down. Word spread
through the crowd that two pilots had parachuted from the downed plane
and were floating down the river. One had supposedly already been
captured. Whether there were any pilots in the river, I don't know.

Small boats with heavily armed soldiers searched among the reeds. From
the banks, people took pot shots at objects in the river. Under the
impression that the airman had been captured, thousands of cheering
Iraqis chanted and clapped, shooting AK-47s in the air for joy. People in
both uniform and civilian clothes eyed us with hostility during this
celebration.

"Where are you from?" demanded an armed Iraqi, looking at me.

"Germany," interjected my government guide, abruptly grabbing me by the
arm and yanking me away.

"Do not tell them you are American," he whispered as he rushed me to the
car. "We must leave. It is very dangerous here."

Then we were on the western side of the Tigris, where the coalition
bombardment has struck hardest. The sounds of imams on speakers
reverberated through the streets— calls for the people to kill all the
Americans. We raced through Baghdad's most dangerous area, passing
Saddam's palaces, now piles of burnt rubble. The Foreign Ministry was a
concrete shell with no windows and only sullen soldiers at the entrance.
Apartment buildings recently filled with civilians were charred, burnt,
collapsed, and empty. Hundreds of apartments and no people—where did
they all go? Western medical sources have reported some 300 civilian
injuries in Baghdad but very few killed.

The Iraqi military had now closed all the Tigris River bridges. Mary and I
were stuck. We had to drive north for an hour as bombs continued
dropping around us. "This is the road to Babylon," said our government
minder. It felt like Babylon. We then took another road —the road to
Kuwait, our guide said. We had to drive north of the city, then east, and
then south to enter Baghdad on the east bank of the Tigris and return to
our hotel.

Explosions are rocking my computer as I write. For the first time, small-
arms fire can be heard throughout the city. Anti-aircraft emplacements
are set up around the perimeter of our hotel. It's not a good sign.
Yesterday those 500 meters from us were destroyed, completely
destroyed, by American missiles.

More American Bombs, and More Iraqi Defiance

Tuesday morning, 12:30 a.m.—This morning, hundreds of Iraqis filled the
lobby of the Palestine Hotel to watch the broadcast of Saddam Hussein's
speech. Their mood was defiant. They clapped and cheered as Saddam
rallied them to war. "Americans have bombed civilian areas," Saddam said,
according to my translator. "They are trying to weaken us, but they are
stupid. They will never win."

Iraqi TV rejoiced over yesterday's battles. All day long, it broadcast the
interrogation of the captured American soldiers. Rumors spread through
the capital about two British pilots captured in Baghdad, but they haven't
been seen on TV.

The atmosphere on the street gets more and more menacing every day.
There are groups of people chanting anti-American slogans. The military
presence has increased dramatically. Outposts and bunkers are on every
corner. Roadblocks are set up on all the main streets. The oil trenches
ignited over the weekend continue to burn—casting a literal black cloud
over the city. Iraqis assume that American forces will encircle Baghdad,
and they are preparing for a siege.

Tonight's bombing started just over an hour ago, following another day of
intense raids. We could see fighter planes today. Tomahawk strikes, by
now almost routine, took out city buildings. We also heard that B-52s were
bombing the outskirts of the city.

I'm too distracted to follow tonight's assault very carefully. Iraqi officials
are continuing to harass us. I was just told that we will be expelled first
thing in the morning. They said we will have to drive to Syria—a 20-hour
ride on a highway that we've heard is under bombardment from the
coalition. It's a suicide drive, and I am not going to do it. I have about six
hours to figure out how to get out of it.

(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed
without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving
the included information for research and educational purposes.)
Forwarded for your information.  The text and intent of the article
have to stand on their own merits.
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In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this material
is distributed without charge or profit to those who have
expressed a prior interest in receiving this type of information
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careful observation and analysis, when you find that it agrees with
reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all.
Then accept it and live up to it." The Buddha on Belief,
from the Kalama Sutra

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