Special Report: "Bridge Wars" - The Division Of Iraq
Good morning.
The recent bombings and destruction targeting bridges in Iraq were pretty much glazed over by American media. The significance of these actions is great, in the eyes of Iraqis. Think about this for a moment: How would we feel if someone blew apart the Golden Gate Bridge. This is what Iraqi's are feeling. A part of their history is now deep beneath the water, while divisions are being carefully crafted. I invite you to read on, to understand the significance of the Iraqi condition:
By Ibon Villelabeitia and Mussab Al-KhairallaBAGHDAD, April 15
(Reuters) - When insurgents blew up the Sarafiya Bridge in Baghdad, a piece of Yaseen Kathim's past was sent forever crashing into the muddy waters of the Tigris River."When I heard it was destroyed, I felt I was hit. It was my bridge. I used it everyday," said Kathim, a 37-year-old doctor, lamenting the destruction last Thursday of the steel span.But the bombing of one of Baghdad's most enduring symbols was not only an attack on the city's infrastructure. Some residents and officials fear it could be part of a more sinister plot by insurgents to split Baghdad, with a Shi'ite east bank and a Sunni west bank.On Saturday, a suicide car bomber blew himself up at a ramp leading to the Jadriyah bridge, causing no structural damage.It is unclear if the two attacks were related, but the U.S. military said insurgents appear to be changing tactics."The constant strategy of the terrorists is to look at ways to divide and create terror and make life difficult for the people of Iraq," Rear Admiral Mark Fox, a spokesman for the U.S. military in Iraq told reporters on Sunday, adding military planners were "studying carefully" the two incidents."The terrorists are planning to split Karkh from Rusafa," said a senior Shi'ite lawmaker, using Baghdad's ancient names for the west bank (Karkh) and the east bank (Rusafa)."This has been the plan by terrorists and their political allies all along to try and drive Shi'ites out of Karkh so they can split Baghdad in half."On the other side of the sectarian divide, parliament speaker Mahmoud Mashhadani, an outspoken Sunni politician, called the destruction of Sarafiya a "conspiracy to isolate the two halves of Baghdad".BAGHDAD'S "BRIDGE WARS"Baghdad, a city of 7 million, has been religiously mixed for most of its history since it was founded some 1,200 years ago on the banks of the Tigris River by Abbasid Caliph al Mansour.Its dozen bridges linking the east side with the west side were once a symbol of Baghdad's diversity, where Shi'ites, Sunni Arabs, ethnic Kurds and Christians lived together.But since the bombing of a Shi'ite shrine in Samarra in February 2006, a wave of communal violence has reshaped the city's fabric, carving out sectarian fiefdoms. Sunnis now mainly live on the west side of the river and Shi'ites on the east.Some talk gloomily of Baghdad's "bridge wars". Although the Sarafiya Bridge was built in the 1940s by the British, its destruction prompted eulogies in local newspapers, as if it was a repeat of the shelling of the fabled Mostar bridge, which became a worldwide symbol of Bosnia's 1992-95 civil war.Saad Eskander, director of Iraq's National Library and a historian, said blowing up Baghdad's bridges has been a military strategy to conquer and defend the city since ancient times.Medieval rulers burnt Baghdad's bridges, then wooden planks laid over boats roped together, to stop invading Mongols from sacking the city. The U.S. military, in its wars against Saddam Hussein, destroyed bridges in Baghdad to hinder troop movements."Destroying the Sarafiya bridge is an attempt to break Iraq's unity and to polarise our society," Eskander said."It is a message that Baghdad will soon become two Baghdads -- one for the Shi'ites and one for the Sunnis."But for those who share childhood memories of swimming under the 453 metre (l1,485 feet) long span as trains chugged along its railway tracks above, Baghdad bridges will never be severed."If they think they can split Karkh from Rusafa they are dreaming," said Saadi Ahmed, who runs a money exchange store."The terrorists are trying to destroy Baghdad's landmarks to erase our proud history of civilisation." (Additional reporting by Wathiq Ibrahim)
The recent bombings and destruction targeting bridges in Iraq were pretty much glazed over by American media. The significance of these actions is great, in the eyes of Iraqis. Think about this for a moment: How would we feel if someone blew apart the Golden Gate Bridge. This is what Iraqi's are feeling. A part of their history is now deep beneath the water, while divisions are being carefully crafted. I invite you to read on, to understand the significance of the Iraqi condition:
Iraqis fear "bridge wars" is plot to divide Baghdad
Sun 15 Apr 2007 9:49 AM ET
Sun 15 Apr 2007 9:49 AM ET
By Ibon Villelabeitia and Mussab Al-KhairallaBAGHDAD, April 15
(Reuters) - When insurgents blew up the Sarafiya Bridge in Baghdad, a piece of Yaseen Kathim's past was sent forever crashing into the muddy waters of the Tigris River."When I heard it was destroyed, I felt I was hit. It was my bridge. I used it everyday," said Kathim, a 37-year-old doctor, lamenting the destruction last Thursday of the steel span.But the bombing of one of Baghdad's most enduring symbols was not only an attack on the city's infrastructure. Some residents and officials fear it could be part of a more sinister plot by insurgents to split Baghdad, with a Shi'ite east bank and a Sunni west bank.On Saturday, a suicide car bomber blew himself up at a ramp leading to the Jadriyah bridge, causing no structural damage.It is unclear if the two attacks were related, but the U.S. military said insurgents appear to be changing tactics."The constant strategy of the terrorists is to look at ways to divide and create terror and make life difficult for the people of Iraq," Rear Admiral Mark Fox, a spokesman for the U.S. military in Iraq told reporters on Sunday, adding military planners were "studying carefully" the two incidents."The terrorists are planning to split Karkh from Rusafa," said a senior Shi'ite lawmaker, using Baghdad's ancient names for the west bank (Karkh) and the east bank (Rusafa)."This has been the plan by terrorists and their political allies all along to try and drive Shi'ites out of Karkh so they can split Baghdad in half."On the other side of the sectarian divide, parliament speaker Mahmoud Mashhadani, an outspoken Sunni politician, called the destruction of Sarafiya a "conspiracy to isolate the two halves of Baghdad".BAGHDAD'S "BRIDGE WARS"Baghdad, a city of 7 million, has been religiously mixed for most of its history since it was founded some 1,200 years ago on the banks of the Tigris River by Abbasid Caliph al Mansour.Its dozen bridges linking the east side with the west side were once a symbol of Baghdad's diversity, where Shi'ites, Sunni Arabs, ethnic Kurds and Christians lived together.But since the bombing of a Shi'ite shrine in Samarra in February 2006, a wave of communal violence has reshaped the city's fabric, carving out sectarian fiefdoms. Sunnis now mainly live on the west side of the river and Shi'ites on the east.Some talk gloomily of Baghdad's "bridge wars". Although the Sarafiya Bridge was built in the 1940s by the British, its destruction prompted eulogies in local newspapers, as if it was a repeat of the shelling of the fabled Mostar bridge, which became a worldwide symbol of Bosnia's 1992-95 civil war.Saad Eskander, director of Iraq's National Library and a historian, said blowing up Baghdad's bridges has been a military strategy to conquer and defend the city since ancient times.Medieval rulers burnt Baghdad's bridges, then wooden planks laid over boats roped together, to stop invading Mongols from sacking the city. The U.S. military, in its wars against Saddam Hussein, destroyed bridges in Baghdad to hinder troop movements."Destroying the Sarafiya bridge is an attempt to break Iraq's unity and to polarise our society," Eskander said."It is a message that Baghdad will soon become two Baghdads -- one for the Shi'ites and one for the Sunnis."But for those who share childhood memories of swimming under the 453 metre (l1,485 feet) long span as trains chugged along its railway tracks above, Baghdad bridges will never be severed."If they think they can split Karkh from Rusafa they are dreaming," said Saadi Ahmed, who runs a money exchange store."The terrorists are trying to destroy Baghdad's landmarks to erase our proud history of civilisation." (Additional reporting by Wathiq Ibrahim)
END
Here is an article which talks about the personal loss felt by so many Iraqis:
I
Iraqis Mourn Loss of Storied Baghdad Bridge.
People who grew up near the Sarafiya span feel as if a loved one has died.
By Suhail Ahmad and Tina Susman, Times Staff WritersApril 14, 2007
By Suhail Ahmad and Tina Susman, Times Staff WritersApril 14, 2007
BAGHDAD — An elderly man sat on a chair in front of his house, lamenting the loss of yet another piece of his past. A short distance away, the skeletal remains of the Sarafiya Bridge dangled over the Tigris River.Focus on the steel-frame bridge, where a truck bomber killed at least 10 people early Thursday, was quickly diverted by the lunch-time attack at the heavily guarded parliament building. That's not unusual in Iraq, where brutal mornings often give way to uglier afternoons.
But to those who lived near the fallen bridge, the loss was as heartbreaking as a death in the family. Not only did the structure serve as a symbol of better times, when children frolicked in the water below and trains chugged along its railway tracks.It was an icon that had endured in a place where many have perished.Since the U.S.-led invasion in March 2003, Iraqis have watched their historical treasures fall to the ensuing chaos. The capital's National Museum was beset by looters as Saddam Hussein fled, and ancient treasures were lost. Archeological sites have been picked over by robbers looking to profit from sales of antiquities. Mosques have been bombed. The storied Mutanabi Street book market in Baghdad was ripped apart by a bomb last month, one of several famous bazaars that have been targeted.The Sarafiya Bridge fell into the Tigris River shortly after 7 a.m. Thursday when a truck loaded with explosives blew up. The frame cracked, and huge chunks fell away. Vehicles tumbled 30 feet into the water below. Some people swam to safety, but at least 10 died. The bridge was left a mangled wreck."Last year I lost my elder brother," said the man sitting in front of his house, Sahib Abdul-Razzaq, 67. "Believe me, I feel today as if my other elder brother has died."Asad Ibrahim, 41, grew up near the bridge and remembered when people in fancy clothes used to stay out until dawn in the casinos and restaurants lining both sides of the river."How many times we swam under this bridge since our childhood!" Ibrahim, an engineer, said. "When we were kids, we would watch the train passing over it. It is a heritage site."At a mini-market on a street that served as an approach, Maytham Hameed, 31, said his family's house would rattle and shake each time a train crossed. "We all have many memories related to the Sarafiya Bridge," he said.British forces commissioned the crossing in the late 1940s and their use of concrete and steel was a first for the city.
At a time when other bridges in Baghdad were little more than floats, residents saw the Sarafiya Bridge as a marvel of modern design. Its seven sections spanned 1,485 feet across the water and linked the train station in eastern Baghdad to the one on the western side of the city.Designed for the railroad, it was converted for vehicular and pedestrian use in 1989. It has been known variously as the Sarafiya Bridge, the Steel Bridge, the Train Bridge, and the New Bridge and was one of the 10 connecting east and west Baghdad. Now, there are nine.On Friday, Iraqi families, women in black abayas, and young men came to take a closer look at the ruins. Blood stains were visible on the gnarled steel. Boys waded in the water, amid the wreckage, looking for souvenirs.Some worried about the practical implications of the bridge's loss.
They said traffic, already dreadful because of military checkpoints, would become far worse.Many cited the bombing as the latest example of the failure of U.S. and Iraqi security forces to control insurgents.Saleem Jaboori said the attack on the bridge, which linked the Shiite-dominated neighborhood of Atifiya to Sunni-majority Waziriya, was symptomatic of Iraq's ills.Most, though, just mourned the loss of simple pleasures the bridge had offered."Women here cried bitterly when they saw it in this condition," said Mustafa Hazim, 22, who sat alone, smoking a cigarette and listening to music through an earphone.Hazim, who lives a few hundred feet up the river in Atifiya, was awakened by the blast and ran toward the smoke. When he saw what had happened, he raced back to his neighborhood to break the news to others.
Many of the women wept, he said. Amina Hameed Salman, 37, was one of them. She and her brother, Alaa, reminisced about the bridge as they stood at the gate of their house on the main road leading to the crumbled remains."We were raised with it," said Alaa, who raced to the scene after hearing the blast. "I was stunned, and I kept saying 'Why?' ""I cried bitterly when I saw the bridge," Amina said. "It's as if an elderly relative has died."
Have a nice day.
posted by Wink @ 11:03 AM
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