Iraq, A Cruel Joke

I was in Iraq last week and have to admit that the situation is getting much better these days compared to what I witnessed during my earlier trips. However, there are still bombings all around (Iraqis make excellent shawarma, seems like some of them are learning to make shawarma out of human meat) and another emerging and disturbing trend is the kidnapping of young children. While walking around in Baghdad, I found quiet a few posters on missing children. The kidnappers are usually ex militiamen or ex soldiers of Saddam Hussein; and in many cases when the kidnappers' demands are not met, they usually torture the innocent young victims and kill them. One recent kidnapping involved a 11 year old boy called Muhsin Mohammad (see the attached picture); because his parents were not able to pay the ransom, the kidnappers chopped his hands off and beheaded him. Another instance involved stabbing to death a one year old girl. How can one deliberately kill a charming and valuable resource like a child in the most horrific way? Unfortunately, years of brutal and cruel repression along with different wars in Iraq have created a society devoid of human compassion. Hope the entities that powers Iraq realize the importance of rebuilding various institutions like education, security services etc in Iraq, so that in years to come Iraq and all the events that have unfolded here will not be a synonym for CRUEL JOKE.

Links below highlights the many atrocities against children.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/iraq/article6863774.ece

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=after-years-of-war-iraqis-hit-by-frenzy-of-crime-2009-09-25

http://www.wtop.com/?nid=500&sid=1767492