Home > Falluja resident tells of trauma
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Mohammad and Ayisha in Britain
Mohammad and Ayisha Saleem arrived in Britain six days ago.
A five-year-old Iraqi girl has arrived in Britain, having been orphaned when a US missile destroyed her family’s home in Falluja.
Ayisha Saleem was brought here six days ago by her uncle, Mohammad, who decided to leave after the 4 October attack.
The US military says it used precision strikes to take out insurgents loyal to Abu Musab al-Zaqawi.
The attack happened before it stepped up its offensive on the city last week.
Mohammad said he was dazed when he first heard of the bombing.
’Such a crime’
"Why would anybody demolish the house of an innocent family?" he asked.
He said that Ayisha has yet to ask about her mother, uncle and grandparents, but "she knows something has happened".
When he went to his sister’s house, he said the experience was traumatic.
US troop in Falluja
US troops have stepped up their campaign to flush out insurgents
"I found her dead with her unborn baby and a three-year-old son.
"I started wrapping her in blankets but I collapsed.
"When I woke up I can’t describe the feelings. I’ll never see such a crime in my life, I don’t think I’ll see such a crime in the future."
He left Falluja shortly after, and said he cannot understand why others have stayed.
"When I left...Falluja I noticed many families still there. I noticed kids playing in the streets so I stopped.
"I asked ’why don’t you leave, don’t you know the Americans are coming?’
’The guy told me ’we’ll never leave Falluja’."
He is highly critical of the American military.
"I think this is mass destruction, a mass punishment for everyone in there.
"I think it’s a crime against humanity."
On Friday, the fifth day of the assault, US commanders said they were trying to trap insurgents in Falluja against the River Euphrates in the southern part of the city.
Death toll
A BBC correspondent in the city centre, embedded with US forces and subject to reporting restrictions, says there is no sign of any civilians and the plight of those trapped by the fighting can only be guessed at.
US forces estimate they have killed about 600 insurgents since the assault began on Monday.
They say 18 Americans have been killed and almost 180 wounded in the battle involving some 10,000 US forces and 2,000 Iraqi troops.
Concerns are growing about the humanitarian situation in and around Falluja.
Red Crescent spokeswoman Firdoos al-Ubadi said Falluja was a "disaster", with doctors unable to reach most Iraqi casualties and medical equipment virtually non-existent.
Residents trapped in the battered city said they could smell the stench of decomposing bodies.
THIS ARTICLE WAS TAKEN FROM BBC NEWS
Forum posts
12 November 2004, 20:15
All I can say is that as an American Citizen, I am horrified and deeply saddened at what is happening in our name. So are many, many millions more of us. We are fighting to regain the soul of our country and hopefully the relief of yours.
14 November 2004, 02:30
These people are getting what they deserve, they should just surrender their weapons and rejoin the world...their false God obviously isn’t helping them so why don’t they just switch sides?
14 November 2004, 16:41
SO MOHAMMEDS THREE YEAR OLD NEPHEW SHOULD HAVE SURRENDERED HIS WEAPON.YOU ARE TRULY,TRULY SICK AND NO GOD WILL SAVE YOUR SOUL.
12 November 2004, 23:43
They’ll get relief once the marines have finished off the insurgents. Ordinary iraquis should have left or hunkered down.
13 November 2004, 05:30
U.S. war machine. Likes to kill civilians. congrats to your newly elected President, once again.
13 November 2004, 16:04
Thank you. And those aren’t civilians, they’re insurgents trying to pretend they are civilians.
13 November 2004, 17:42
WHAT,LIKE MOHAMMEDS DEAD PREGNANT SISTER AND 3 YEAR OLD SON.I POSTED THIS ARTICLE TO TRY AND HELP THE BUSH SUPPORTERS GET SOME PERSPECTIVE BUT YOU ARE ALL EITHER TOTALLY BRAINWASHED OR COMPLETELY WITHOUT COMPASSION.
IF I DIDN’T THINK THAT WAS SO IMPORTANT,I’D GIVE UP TRYING TO TALK TO YOU,BUT IT IS.
WHAT IF IT WAS YOUR CHILDREN.YOU SAY YOU WANT TO PROTECT YOUR CHILDREN,THEN CONDONE THE KILLING OF OTHER PEOPLES USING THE LAME EXCUSE YOU ARE BEING FED AS JUSTIFICATION.
14 November 2004, 16:52
It is because I want to protect my children that I’m glad that the war is being fought over there.
14 November 2004, 16:54
AND FUCK EVERYONE ELSES CHILDREN EH?YOU SAD,SICK HUMAN BEING.YOUR CHILDREN NEED PROTECTING FROM YOU AND YOUR SICK,BRAINWASHED ATTITUDE.
14 November 2004, 17:00
No, I am being honest, you are not.
14 November 2004, 17:09
SO YOU HONESTLY BELIEVE NO IRAQI CHILDREN ARE DYING.
14 November 2004, 17:11
Stop being disingenous, you know what I said.
14 November 2004, 19:22
Thank you. And those aren’t civilians, they’re insurgents trying to pretend they are civilians.
ISNT THIS WHAT YOU SAID.NOT CIVILIANS,INSURGENTS.
14 November 2004, 23:04
Boo hoo, who cares about those rag heads....they are like cockroaches and they need to be terminated it doesn’t matter if they are 3 or 13 or 33 or 83 the point is that they are in our way, they have the wrong God, and we need their oil so I can drive my SUV and if they don’t like it then they need to go talk to Alla about becoming another casuality. The sooner they are eliminated the better. My church will be building churches over in that Godless land soon enough and those heathens that don’t want to join will be eliminated...