The situation today is a bit better than yesterday. Mother is doing well, but it's the bad security situation that is bothering us the most. But she is in good health and spirits, thank God.
My father got the daily medical treatment and he will go again on Saturday, because most of Friday (like all Fridays) is a curfew day in Baghdad. Speaking with him, he was in good spirits as well, and even cracked one of his quick-witted jokes; the first time he did that since the July 16 incident.
Hopefully, things would remain improving, and that i see them well, soon.
18 July 2007
Update on the Family Situation in Baghdad, 18 Jul. '07
Today, there have been somewhat good news from my father's side. He went to see the doctor again, and it turned out that the bullet entry wound is starting to heal in a good way, and that the exit wound is slowly following. They all agreed on a check with the doctor every other day.
I unfortunately couldn't get the line through to my mother in the evening, because of the stupid cell phone coverage. Imagine, you could call the end of the world, but you can't call your neighbor if he had another cell phone provider.
But as i spoke with her earlier in the day, she has good morale, despite being alone.
I unfortunately couldn't get the line through to my mother in the evening, because of the stupid cell phone coverage. Imagine, you could call the end of the world, but you can't call your neighbor if he had another cell phone provider.
But as i spoke with her earlier in the day, she has good morale, despite being alone.
17 July 2007
Update on the Family Situation in Baghdad, 17 Jul. '07
My father was taken to the doctor today, who said that the main thing is to heal the wounds caused by the bullet's entry point and exit point. At the same time, they treat the broken bone. The doctor said that the broken bone does not need an operation, and it also doesn't need any internal or external platinum bars.
This would still take at least 2-3 weeks of careful medical treatment, which my father would not be able to receive if he was to stay in our house. This means that he would stay at my cousin's, and that my mother would stay by herself at our house. I am still strongly thinking about going there to stay with her, but the discussions between my parents, cousins and i remain ongoing.
My mother is holding on quite well. I call her 3 to 4 times a day, to keep her company, to check on her, and to give her instructions and how-tos about using the mobile phone, getting better results out of electric equipment, and so on.
I can never describe how i miss kissing her hand, and my father's.
This would still take at least 2-3 weeks of careful medical treatment, which my father would not be able to receive if he was to stay in our house. This means that he would stay at my cousin's, and that my mother would stay by herself at our house. I am still strongly thinking about going there to stay with her, but the discussions between my parents, cousins and i remain ongoing.
My mother is holding on quite well. I call her 3 to 4 times a day, to keep her company, to check on her, and to give her instructions and how-tos about using the mobile phone, getting better results out of electric equipment, and so on.
I can never describe how i miss kissing her hand, and my father's.
16 July 2007
God save my father... God save us all...
First of all, i hope that you will never be put in a situation when your life relies on centimeters (or inches); and that you are not put under the mercy of people that you would think that they would presumably be a protective force, yet they turn their arms against those that they should be protecting.
I am writing those lines, and actually living the same way i lived yesterday, (i.e. not in a very much worse condition, yet still in a worse condition), only because of centimeters' difference.
It was after 5:30pm in a hot afternoon in Amiriya, Baghdad; when my father, who is a couple of years away from his seventies, decided to go out to the state-run clinic in our area, to get the monthly portion of heart medications he receives from that clinic. Since last month, the situation have changed in the area; new posts have been occupied by the army, some areas were declared (or actually self-proclaimed by the army) as no-drive zones, and things like that. My father did not know all of those details.
Now, let's move to a couple of hours later. At about 8:00 pm, i received a phone call from my father. This was a bit unusual, because we usually talk at a much later time, and i usually call him, not the other way round.
I picked up the phone, and this was what he said (after editing out my words):
- "Hi, how are you? Listen, i am going to give you some details, but i don't want you to panic, or be shocked or anything, because it's me who is talking to you... As i was going out to get the medications, i drove somewhere which i found as strangely empty... I've put the car on rear gears, so that i take the way i came from, and then, came a bullet that hit the car window, and hit my right arm between the shoulder and the elbow, entering from the left side and going out from the right side of the arm, thus causing a bone fracture... I am ok, i'm in hospital now, and your cousins are with me, so don't worry... The bullet-riddled car was also retrieved by our neighbors and driven to our house."
Although i was terribly shocked to hear this, but i rememberred that he was actually the one who is talking to me. He asked me to stay strong, and not to change my schedule or exclusively travel because of these developments until things are more clear.
Another hour passed, before i managed to call my mother, who was now alone at our house. I got more details on my father's condition from her, and understood that she went with him to Yarmuk Hospital and returned.
After that, i called my cousin, who was with my father, and took a few details about the condition; then i spoke again with my father, who gave me further details about the attack.
"I can move and feel my fingers and arm under the would area. The blood flows normally back and forth to that area. Tomorrow, we are going to make sure whether the fracture would need a platinum bar or not. The bone is fractured in two, and there is also a small piece by itself. things were returned to position and temporarily orthopedicized as we await seeing a specialist tomorrow."
Asked whether he could tell who shot him, he said:
"It was definitely the military. The Iraqi army. They were in one of the buildings facing that alley. A sniper shot my upper right arm, but i strongly believe that they were after my life. They kept shooting at me as i turned off the car, left it, and started running next to the walls down the alley for about 50 meters (yards), knocking doors that won't answer. They shot about 10-15 bullets at me, and God's miracle was they only reason they couldn't hit me. I turned a corner, and a woman saw me bleeding. She called on some young men, who drove me to a nearby doctor."
This is what happened to my dear father, on this day that could have been his last.
From now on, i will have absolutely no respect to the Iraqi Army! I could find a better name for them alright: Maliki Mules! If there are other proper names for those who aim to kill a 70 years old man, clearly unarmed, running for his life, let me know!
With every single breath i take, i thank God the Most Merciful, for His saving my father's life. The hands of God were undoubtedly there to blur the evil sniper's eyes.
I hereby lower the Iraqi flag from this website. Of course, i love Iraq, and will forever do so, but i refuse to stand under the same flag flown by those who tried to take my father's life.
And for those who would think about blaming me for the next sentence, i only say: "Come stand in my shoes!"
"May God destroy those who kill, harm or terrorize innocent Iraqis".
God save my father. God save us all.
I am writing those lines, and actually living the same way i lived yesterday, (i.e. not in a very much worse condition, yet still in a worse condition), only because of centimeters' difference.
It was after 5:30pm in a hot afternoon in Amiriya, Baghdad; when my father, who is a couple of years away from his seventies, decided to go out to the state-run clinic in our area, to get the monthly portion of heart medications he receives from that clinic. Since last month, the situation have changed in the area; new posts have been occupied by the army, some areas were declared (or actually self-proclaimed by the army) as no-drive zones, and things like that. My father did not know all of those details.
Now, let's move to a couple of hours later. At about 8:00 pm, i received a phone call from my father. This was a bit unusual, because we usually talk at a much later time, and i usually call him, not the other way round.
I picked up the phone, and this was what he said (after editing out my words):
- "Hi, how are you? Listen, i am going to give you some details, but i don't want you to panic, or be shocked or anything, because it's me who is talking to you... As i was going out to get the medications, i drove somewhere which i found as strangely empty... I've put the car on rear gears, so that i take the way i came from, and then, came a bullet that hit the car window, and hit my right arm between the shoulder and the elbow, entering from the left side and going out from the right side of the arm, thus causing a bone fracture... I am ok, i'm in hospital now, and your cousins are with me, so don't worry... The bullet-riddled car was also retrieved by our neighbors and driven to our house."
Although i was terribly shocked to hear this, but i rememberred that he was actually the one who is talking to me. He asked me to stay strong, and not to change my schedule or exclusively travel because of these developments until things are more clear.
Another hour passed, before i managed to call my mother, who was now alone at our house. I got more details on my father's condition from her, and understood that she went with him to Yarmuk Hospital and returned.
After that, i called my cousin, who was with my father, and took a few details about the condition; then i spoke again with my father, who gave me further details about the attack.
"I can move and feel my fingers and arm under the would area. The blood flows normally back and forth to that area. Tomorrow, we are going to make sure whether the fracture would need a platinum bar or not. The bone is fractured in two, and there is also a small piece by itself. things were returned to position and temporarily orthopedicized as we await seeing a specialist tomorrow."
Asked whether he could tell who shot him, he said:
"It was definitely the military. The Iraqi army. They were in one of the buildings facing that alley. A sniper shot my upper right arm, but i strongly believe that they were after my life. They kept shooting at me as i turned off the car, left it, and started running next to the walls down the alley for about 50 meters (yards), knocking doors that won't answer. They shot about 10-15 bullets at me, and God's miracle was they only reason they couldn't hit me. I turned a corner, and a woman saw me bleeding. She called on some young men, who drove me to a nearby doctor."
This is what happened to my dear father, on this day that could have been his last.
From now on, i will have absolutely no respect to the Iraqi Army! I could find a better name for them alright: Maliki Mules! If there are other proper names for those who aim to kill a 70 years old man, clearly unarmed, running for his life, let me know!
With every single breath i take, i thank God the Most Merciful, for His saving my father's life. The hands of God were undoubtedly there to blur the evil sniper's eyes.
I hereby lower the Iraqi flag from this website. Of course, i love Iraq, and will forever do so, but i refuse to stand under the same flag flown by those who tried to take my father's life.
And for those who would think about blaming me for the next sentence, i only say: "Come stand in my shoes!"
"May God destroy those who kill, harm or terrorize innocent Iraqis".
God save my father. God save us all.
14 July 2007
Image from the 10 Jul. 2007 Vigil
I would like to sincerely thank all of those who marked the 10 July 2007 vigil, or who are keeping me in their thoughts and prayers.
God bless you all.
13 July 2007
AFP Article: Iraq nail sorry Australia
by Robert Smith
Australia were booed off the field with their Asian Cup hopes in tatters after a disastrous 3-1 defeat to Iraq Friday.
The Socceroos fell behind after a 22nd-minute goalkeeping clanger by Mark Schwarzer, only to equalise through Mark Viduka but they were badly exposed defensively again for the Iraqis to wrap it up with two more goals.
The bumbling loss heaps further pressure on under-fire coach Graham Arnold, with chants of "Arnold out" from the travelling Australian fans.
Iraq now share the lead in Group A with Thailand, 2-0 winners over Oman Thursday, with the pair favourites to go into the quarter-finals after Monday's final pool games.
The Thais need only a point against Australia, while Iraq also only require a draw against Gulf rivals Oman to move into the last eight.
Australia, who again struggled for any semblance of the form they showed at last year's World Cup, must beat the Thais to stand any chance of going through.
It was another night of humiliation for the one-time tournament favourites who needed a Tim Cahill stoppage-time goal to salvage a draw with Oman last Sunday.
Schwarzer badly misjudged a lofted long-range free kick from midfielder Nashat Akram midway through the opening half with calamitious results.
The Middlesbrough goalkeeper stayed on his line and was deceived by the flight and the close attention of Salih Sadir for the ball to sail past him into the net to give the Iraqis the crucial opening goal in stifling heat.
It was just the spur the Iraqis needed and it was like a hammer blow for the Australians, who spoke before the match of the importance of scoring the first goal.
The Socceroos offered little in attack in the opening 45 minutes with lone striker Viduka held in check and only coming close to scoring with a sizzling free kick in the 31st minute.
Frustrations boiled over in the trying conditions with the Australians receiving three yellow cards -- midfielder Jason Culina, defender Lucas Neill and midfielder Vince Grella in the opening term.
Grella may have been fortunate not to receive a second yellow when he appeared to push Younis Mahmoud to the ground, angered by what he perceived as the Iraqi skipper taking a dive.
Cahill came on for Brett Holman straight after half-time and his presence for a time galvanised the Australians and they equalised two minutes after the break with Brett Emerton's cross nodded home by Viduka for his ninth international goal.
But Iraq caught out the loose Australian defence again with Nashat's precise angled pass finding Hawar Mulla unmarked in the centre and he gave Schwarzer no chance to put his team 2-1 up on the hour.
Arnold brought on strikers Archie Thompson and John Aloisi for the last quarter of the match in a bid to salvage a point.
But substitute Karrar Jassim rubbed salt into Australia's wounds when he seized on Schwarzer's half-save off Mahdi Karim with four minutes left to kill off the Australians.
The final humiliation for Australia came in the dying seconds when West Ham's Neill was sent off for a second yellow card offence.
Australia were booed off the field with their Asian Cup hopes in tatters after a disastrous 3-1 defeat to Iraq Friday.
The Socceroos fell behind after a 22nd-minute goalkeeping clanger by Mark Schwarzer, only to equalise through Mark Viduka but they were badly exposed defensively again for the Iraqis to wrap it up with two more goals.
The bumbling loss heaps further pressure on under-fire coach Graham Arnold, with chants of "Arnold out" from the travelling Australian fans.
Iraq now share the lead in Group A with Thailand, 2-0 winners over Oman Thursday, with the pair favourites to go into the quarter-finals after Monday's final pool games.
The Thais need only a point against Australia, while Iraq also only require a draw against Gulf rivals Oman to move into the last eight.
Australia, who again struggled for any semblance of the form they showed at last year's World Cup, must beat the Thais to stand any chance of going through.
It was another night of humiliation for the one-time tournament favourites who needed a Tim Cahill stoppage-time goal to salvage a draw with Oman last Sunday.
Schwarzer badly misjudged a lofted long-range free kick from midfielder Nashat Akram midway through the opening half with calamitious results.
The Middlesbrough goalkeeper stayed on his line and was deceived by the flight and the close attention of Salih Sadir for the ball to sail past him into the net to give the Iraqis the crucial opening goal in stifling heat.
It was just the spur the Iraqis needed and it was like a hammer blow for the Australians, who spoke before the match of the importance of scoring the first goal.
The Socceroos offered little in attack in the opening 45 minutes with lone striker Viduka held in check and only coming close to scoring with a sizzling free kick in the 31st minute.
Frustrations boiled over in the trying conditions with the Australians receiving three yellow cards -- midfielder Jason Culina, defender Lucas Neill and midfielder Vince Grella in the opening term.
Grella may have been fortunate not to receive a second yellow when he appeared to push Younis Mahmoud to the ground, angered by what he perceived as the Iraqi skipper taking a dive.
Cahill came on for Brett Holman straight after half-time and his presence for a time galvanised the Australians and they equalised two minutes after the break with Brett Emerton's cross nodded home by Viduka for his ninth international goal.
But Iraq caught out the loose Australian defence again with Nashat's precise angled pass finding Hawar Mulla unmarked in the centre and he gave Schwarzer no chance to put his team 2-1 up on the hour.
Arnold brought on strikers Archie Thompson and John Aloisi for the last quarter of the match in a bid to salvage a point.
But substitute Karrar Jassim rubbed salt into Australia's wounds when he seized on Schwarzer's half-save off Mahdi Karim with four minutes left to kill off the Australians.
The final humiliation for Australia came in the dying seconds when West Ham's Neill was sent off for a second yellow card offence.
10 July 2007
Songs You Hear When You Are Away For The 100th Day
Celine Dion (When I Need You)
Husam Al-Rassam (Years of Estrangement)
Muhannad Muhsin (I Miss Baghdad)
Katharine McPhee (Somewhere Over The Rainbow)
Enya (May It Be)
04 July 2007
Norah Jones (On Election Day)
This song fits (( W )) like a glove!
Artist: Norah jones
Song: My Dear Country
Album: Not Too Late
'twas halloween and the ghosts were out,
and everywhere they'd go, they shout,
and though i covered my eyes i knew,
they'd go away.
but fear's the only thing i saw,
and three days later 'twas clear to all,
that nothing is as scary as election day.
but the day after is darker,
and darker and darker it goes,
who knows, maybe the plans will change,
who knows, maybe he's not deranged.
the news men know what they know, but they,
know even less than what they say,
and i don't know who i can trust,
for they come what may.
'cause we believed in our candidate,
but even more it's the one we hate,
i needed someone i could shake,
on election day.
but the day after is darker,
and deeper and deeper we go,
who knows, maybe it's all a dream,
who knows if i'll wake up and scream.
i love the things that you've given me,
i cherish you my dear country,
but sometimes i don't understand,
the way we play.
i love the things that you've given me,
and most of all that i am free,
to have a song that i can sing,
on election day.
03 July 2007
The Vigil
Hello All,
Tuesday 10 July 2007, will mark the 100th day of my being away from home. This will be the longest period of time that one of our family stayed away from home.
On this occasion, i will be holding a one man vigil here in Sulaimaniya. At Tuesday night, i will light candles and dedicate that night for thoughts and prayers; not only for my return home one day to see my family, but prayers for all Iraqis that are away from their homes to return safely there; and to all Iraqis so that God would protect them, help them and give them the strength to carry on; prayers to Iraq that it would be safer, and be the father that would hold all of its sons and daughters together as it always did throughout its glorious history.
If you would like to join, you are most welcome to do that on: Tuesday 10 July 2007, starting from 9 pm your local time.
God bless you all.
Tuesday 10 July 2007, will mark the 100th day of my being away from home. This will be the longest period of time that one of our family stayed away from home.
On this occasion, i will be holding a one man vigil here in Sulaimaniya. At Tuesday night, i will light candles and dedicate that night for thoughts and prayers; not only for my return home one day to see my family, but prayers for all Iraqis that are away from their homes to return safely there; and to all Iraqis so that God would protect them, help them and give them the strength to carry on; prayers to Iraq that it would be safer, and be the father that would hold all of its sons and daughters together as it always did throughout its glorious history.
If you would like to join, you are most welcome to do that on: Tuesday 10 July 2007, starting from 9 pm your local time.
God bless you all.
02 July 2007
This is the Weather Geek Reporting!
This is just to report that an electronic thermometer i have at home in Baghdad had registered a 59.1 C degree sometime last week. This is equivalent to about 137 F.
Now remember that this happens while electricity is not available all the time, neither through the national channel (electricity provided by the State), nor through local area generators which lack fuel sometimes.
Welcome to Iraq!
Now remember that this happens while electricity is not available all the time, neither through the national channel (electricity provided by the State), nor through local area generators which lack fuel sometimes.
Welcome to Iraq!
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