Sunni prisoners deserved mistreatment

Avatar for independentgrrrl
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Sunni prisoners deserved mistreatment
17
Fri, 05-07-2004 - 7:12pm
Yet another POV you will NOT be exposed to via the liberal mainstream media.

**************************

Friday, May 7, 2004

Local Iraqis divided over photos

Some say Sunni prisoners deserved mistreatment

By JOHN IWASAKI

SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

EVERETT -- The abuse of Iraqi prisoners at the hands of U.S. soldiers draws intense reactions from some who left Iraq to find freedom in Washington state, but prolonged outrage isn't one of them.

While some local Iraqis are bothered by the images, others welcome them.

"It's a terrible thing and it adds more wood to the fire," said Hussein Al-Muhanna, who came to the United States in 1993. "(But) to me, it's not the issue I have to worry about. To me, the main issue is Iraq's future."

Imad al-Turfy, another Everett resident, shows no sympathy for the prisoners, saying their treatment paled when compared with the horrors inflicted under Saddam Hussein's regime.

"They raped our women. They killed our kids. So there's hatred between us, the people here, and the people in Iraq," he said, referring to the Shiite Muslims who emigrated and the Sunni Muslims who ruled Iraq under Saddam.

"Anything coming to them would make me happy."

Al-Muhanna and al-Turfy were among about 20 Iraqi men who met last night to talk politics, discuss their jobs and offer opinions on the latest headlines.

Al-Turfy said he could "tell a million stories" about Saddam's abuses: the people who were blown apart by dynamite or thrown off 20-story buildings, or the family that was buried alive in a car in Baghdad.

"You can't imagine," he said. "They killed us like rats. Like anything cheap."

So to view photos of prisoners in humiliating positions -- one month after seeing another chilling image, the charred and mutilated corpses of Americans hanging from a bridge over the Euphrates River -- was "worth it, because they did the same to us," al-Turfy said, a comment echoed by several other Iraqis.

Mosafer Al-Yaseri, a Lynnwood resident, said that the abuse by some soldiers should not taint the overall efforts of the U.S. Army.

"(The Iraqis) feel soldiers come from good families. Over there, there are 135,000 soldiers. Out of that, 10 people are bad," he said.

His cousin, Salam Al-Yaseri, said that the images were "not good for the American government or the American people. ... As you know, we are Muslims. This is a very bad thing in our religion. The people that did this did not (represent) the American people."

Al-Muhanna said the photos of prisoners were "embarrassing for me."

Though at least some of those depicted were loyal to Saddam, "I still do not want the American Army to do that," he said.

"Some of them could be innocent. Innocent people shouldn't be treated like that. They are a human being. It represents something disgusting."

Patience is running thin in Iraq as the United States attempts to bring stability to the country before turning it over to the new Iraqi government on June 30.

"For one year, there's no work, no jobs and corruption everywhere and contractors not doing their job," said Al-Muhanna, recounting telephone conversations with relatives in Iraq. "There's no management. It's not a country, not a government. There's nothing that works even 30 percent efficiently. That's what our family tells us."

Al-Turfy also has received an unsettling update.

"I got a call from my dad," al-Turfy said. "He says, 'It's a horrible thing. We are in big trouble because of looters with guns.' My reaction was, the American soldiers, they'll be on their way to get them liberated. He said, 'I hope so.' "

Riyadh Al-Alaki, also an Everett resident, said that the problems won't cease until there is better security at Iraq's borders.

"The Iraqis know better (than the Americans) if people are from Syria or Iran. Americans see them all the same. As we have heard, these are the ones making trouble," he said.

Mosifer Al-Yaseri said that while the Arab TV network al-Jazeera has repeatedly shown photos of the Iraqi prisoners, it did not report about abuses under Saddam.

"If there's a good story about how Iraq has changed, they never show it," he said. "They never showed a bad thing about Saddam Hussein."

Reyal Sindi, director of Kurdish Human Rights Watch in Kent, questions the U.S. decision to restore some of the Baath Party leaders to positions of authority in Iraq.

"To me and my people, that's the baddest thing," said Sindi, who did not attend last night's meeting in Everett.

"All we saw from (Saddam's regime) was casualties and suffering. It was those people who did it. It was not Saddam alone. He was just one person sitting in the palace."

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/172421_iraqreax07.html

Pages

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-23-2003
Fri, 05-07-2004 - 10:01pm

Yet another POV you will NOT be exposed to via the liberal mainstream media.


ROTFLMAO!


Avatar for independentgrrrl
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Fri, 05-07-2004 - 10:37pm
<>

Definitely not! I have stated so in other threads. I just believe that this POV should be on other news outlets as well.

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-18-2000
Sat, 05-08-2004 - 8:08am

Your headline/title........


"Sunni prisoners deserved mistreatment"


Newspaper's headline..........


"Local Iraqis divided over photos
Some say Sunni prisoners deserved mistreatment"


Do I detect some bias

 


Photobucket&nbs

Avatar for independentgrrrl
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Sat, 05-08-2004 - 10:20am
<>

No and please, allow me to explain. If you read the body of my post, I printed the FULL title. The *new* format on ivillage does not allow for a long subject heading (it's a text miser) and I wanted to grab the attention of posters on this forum by putting what I thought was relevant. If you will recall, the *old* version of ivillage had a text-generous subject line.

<>

Considering that the majority of Iraqis who fled were the ones targeted by such terrorists, I can understand where they're coming from. And if you will remember, their religion is *an eye for an eye* variety so it is in keeping with their culture.

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-05-2004
Sat, 05-08-2004 - 10:56am
...rape were justified? ....

Rape is never justified. If it's a homosexual rape it is even worse. (And Clinton wanted homosexuals in the armed services)




Edited 5/8/2004 10:59 am ET ET by anarchy9999

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-18-2000
Sat, 05-08-2004 - 11:39am

>"The *new* format on ivillage does not allow for a long subject heading (it's a text miser) and I wanted to grab the attention of posters on this forum by putting what I thought was relevant."<


You're quite right. I often have to abbreviate or some other wrangling to make the title fit. Didn't mean to pounce. :)

cl-Libraone~

 


Photobucket&nbs

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-23-2003
Sat, 05-08-2004 - 11:48am

Like I said, I get the PI because they try to provide balanced articles...but if you go to the Op/Ed pages, you'll see that it's really a 'liberal' newspaper....although a 'moderate' one - not extreme.


And if I insulted you with my question, I apologize.


iVillage Member
Registered: 03-23-2003
Sat, 05-08-2004 - 11:54am
...rape were justified? ....

Rape is never justified. If it's a homosexual rape it is even worse. (And Clinton wanted homosexuals in the armed services)


NONE of those actions (torture, humiliation, rape, etc.) are EVER JUSTIFIED by ANYONE.


iVillage Member
Registered: 03-28-2003
Sat, 05-08-2004 - 12:24pm
<>

Torturing prisoners is anti-American and a violation of the Constitution on which this country is based. It is not a liberal versus conservative issue. Anyone who justifies torture or engages in torture attacks my right to freedom from torture as an American citizen. I take this issue quite seriously in light of the universal use of torture in most of the world throughout time.

As soon as torture (or whatever euphamism you wish to use) is justified for prisoners of the American military, we move one step closer to justifying torture for US citizens for the sake of "homeland security" or what have you.

Jiminy. I thought people understood this already. It's scary to see you try to pass the use of torture off as a partisan issue, independentgrrrl.

Avatar for independentgrrrl
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Sat, 05-08-2004 - 12:39pm
<>

I know you didn't :) I felt the need to clarify though.

Pages