The gates of hell
By Jamal Mudhafar
Azzaman, August 7, 2005
The headline of this article is not a title of a science fiction film. It truthfully translates what is currently taking place in Iraq.
The gates of hell are now wide open – thanks to U.S. invasion – and their fires have enveloped almost everything in our country.
There is no electricity, no water, no fuel, no food rations, no security, no sewage …
There is terror everywhere and there is fear of everything – fear of the present and of what lies ahead in the future.
All indications tell that our future is bleak as there is nothing left in this country that makes you feel secure about your own future and that of your children.
What is happening is not a war, rebellion or insurgency. It is mass killing and annihilation coupled with torture and brutal and barbaric dismembering of innocent people.
Bombing and shelling of towns goes ahead and no one gives a damn for the lives lost and property damaged.
Politicians have not honored any of the promises they made during elections. There is a dangerous decline in the public services and government performance.
The shock we have received since U.S. troops landed in our midst and the new is beyond description.
Fear and terror have gripped the nation. Wherever you are at any time of the day you are liable to be killed by a stray bullet.
Stray bullets are no longer the prerogative of U.S. troops and their tormentors – the insurgents.
Almost everyone in Iraq now use their guns to shoot in order to scare, wound or kill.
If the bodyguards of a senior official want to reach a destination on time and are delayed by traffic jam, they fire in the air to scare other drivers to give way.
If someone is injured or killed as a result it is his or her problem.
Killing by mistake is now perhaps one of the main causes of death in Iraq.
Trust between the people and the government has collapsed. And now we are at the mercy of the stars because neither U.S. troops nor the government have the slightest idea of who is blowing up whom and why?
