Basra farmers receive tractors, generators

Basra farmers associations received 40 tractors and four generators in Ad Dayr at Camp Sa'ad.
The ceremony, which benefitted the Al Qurna, Al Medina, Shatt Al Arab and Abu Al Khaseeb farmers associations, represents one of 10 projects funded by U.S. commander's emergency response program money for the Basra province agricultural program.

The total cost for the projects is $10 million.

"It used to cost us 75,000 dinars per day for one of these tractors, but after today it should only cost us for the fuel and the driver. I would like to thank (Multi-National Force) for that," said Abd Al Rahman Khalid, a Basra farmer, through an interpreter.

Other agricultural projects that are part of this program reach as far south as Safwan and as far north as Al Qurna and include green houses, irrigation systems and other necessary equipment to support the agricultural redevelopment in Basra.

Sheik Abu Qasay, the head of Basrah Province farmers association, Sayad Galy Muttar, Basrah Provincial Reconstruction Council Chairman and British Maj. Gen. Andy Salmon, the General Officer in Command of Multi-National Division Southeast all spoke at the ceremony.

"This is a wonderful example of a truly joint project where we work together as partners, listen to peoples needs and come together for the people of Iraq and your agricultural associations," said Salmon.

Farming is a traditional industry for southern Iraq and at one time employed up to 50 percent of Basra province residents. Many of the area's farmers currently rely on hand tools due to a shortage of agricultural machinery and power.

This investment in tractors and generators is expected to improve efficiency and the yield of local farmers, who are not presently able to compete with imported agricultural goods from neighbouring countries. The farmers have had little support over the last 25 years but, in the past, Basra was a very productive farming area that produced up to 70 percent of Iraq's, said British Royal Navy Lt. Alan Paton, a Civil Military Operations project officer with Multi-National Division Southeast.

"The idea was if we can help improve their efficiency by providing greenhouses, tractors, irrigation systems then we might be able to make them a little more productive, perhaps potentially stop the flow of farmers away from an industry that has been in southern Iraq for many years," Paton said.

U.S. officials say 12,000 American troops will leave Iraq by September

U.S. officials say 12,000 American troops will leave Iraq by September along with another 4,000 British troops. As part of the drawdown, the U.S. is handing over 74 facilities and areas under its control to the Iraqis by the end of March.

Art flowers again in Iraq as violence ebbs

Six years after the US-led invasion, art galleries are reopening in Baghdad in the first signs of a renaissance in what was long a cultural capital of the Arab world.

As they did for centuries before, Iraqi artists are again showing the way, taking advantage of the reduction in sectarian bombings to rebuild a proud tradition.

Galleries in the capital, whether owned privately or by the ministry of culture, have launched a new four-month season of exhibitions, reviving a practice which began in the 1950s but then fell victim to the invasion.

"The galleries are showing a remarkable return to a high level of activity," Salah Abbas, who sits on the independent Plastic Artists commission, told AFP. The plastic arts use materials that can be shaped.

"We have received dozens of requests to open galleries in Baghdad and other cities," said Abbas, editor of Tashkeel, the culture ministry's magazine.

"We will do it with the cooperation of the culture ministry," he added, although artists are not being subsidised by the government.

Abbas said falling levels of violence across much of the country had a "psychological impact on both the artists and art lovers who visit the galleries."

February saw 258 Iraqis killed after 191 died in January, the lowest official casualty figures since the 2003 war.

The past year saw a dramatic improvement in the security situation. In 2008, 6,772 Iraqis died in the violence, but in January 2007 alone there were 2,087 killed.

"The galleries suffered badly and were forced to close their doors. So artists resorted to foreign galleries to market their works," Abbas said. "But now the scene is greatly changed and galleries are reopening."

Before the invasion in March 2003, Baghdad alone boasted some 60 galleries.

However only three battled on after the toppling of Saddam Hussein's regime -- Hewar, Akad and Madarat, along with the individual studios of a small number of painters.

Today exhibitions are being held of the works of leading Iraqi artists Alaa al-Hamdani, Sattar Luqman and Monther Ali. More artists are due to exhibit in the city shortly.

"The large number of different cultural activities that are going on, including the plastic arts, reflect Iraqi yearning for culture, art and literature", Abbas said.

Writers and poets hold weekly meetings, and in October last year Baghdad's National Theatre staged its first evening performances since the invasion.

In the south, Basra and Hilla each boast three galleries which are now open, as do the northern cities of Arbil and Sulaimaniyah.

Sculptor Monther Ali believes the improved security situation is encouraging people to go out more.

"The opportunity to set up galleries is there now and it's easier to travel," the 61-year-old said. "Psychology plays a major part in motivating people to visit art galleries."

Ali currently has an exhibition called "A Memory in Baghdad" at the Madarat gallery, near the fine arts school.

He said he felt the city was "a lush garden before it was subjected to violence and destruction. We want intimacy and peace after what Baghdad suffered for more than five years."

His wood carvings depict women who fell victim to violence, fear or the horror of seeing mutilated bodies.

At the Akad gallery on Abu Nawas street, artist Sattar Luqman has his third recent exhibition running. The more than 30 works reflect his fascination with the ordinary details of life in Baghdad and traditions that time has effaced.

Luqman, 65, a graduate of the capital's school of fine arts and a member of the Plastic Artists commission, held an exhibition in Kuwait back in 1971 well before Saddam's rule led Iraq into seemingly endless war.

Luqman, whose work is part of the Iraq museum collection, was also involved in Iraqi art shows in Dubai in 2004 and 2008.

Qassim Sabti, who owns Hewar gallery, said he warned colleagues against showing their work in recent years for fear of reprisals.

"I warned everybody and I told them that I'm not responsible for anything that may happen to them," he said.

"The situation has changed now. The gallery has started to witness a remarkable spurt of activity in terms of holding exhibitions," added Sabti, deputy head of the artists' commission.

"The latest one is for the artist Alaa al-Hamdani. We are also ready to receive the well-known artist Faruq Hassan on the 10th of the current month."

'Thousands Of Troops To Pull Out Of Iraq' - Sky

Around 12,000 American troops will pull out of Iraq by September in what is being seen as an acceleration of the US withdrawal.

US military spokesman Major General David Perkins said the move will reduce America's combat power from 14 brigades to 12 brigades.

He also said the US is handing over more facilities to the Iraqi military as part of the withdrawal.
President Barack Obama has decided to remove all combat troops from Iraq by the end of August 2010, with all troops gone by the end of 2011.

But up to now, details of withdrawals have remained sketchy.

"Two brigade combat teams who were scheduled to redeploy in the next six months, along with enabling forces such as logistics, engineers and intelligence, will not be replaced," the US military said.

There are currently about 135,000 US troops in Iraq, down from 156,000 last June.
Meanwhile, the remaining 4,000 UK troops there will withdraw from the country by July this year, Iraqi officials have said.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown visited Iraq in December and announced the troops would leave by the end of July.

But he added their mission would already be complete "by the end of May, or earlier".
On January 1 this year, British forces handed over control of Basra airport, its main military base in the south, to Iraqi officials.

British troops withdrew from Basra city last September and since then, they have been training the Iraqi army.

After British troops leave, a small contingent of military advisers is likely to stay on in Iraq.

British commander in Iraq declares 'mission accomplished' - Telegraph

The commander of British forces in Iraq has said that all 179 UK troops killed fighting in the war sacrificed their lives for a good cause.

By Sean Rayment, Defence Correspondent in Basra

Despite the controversy surrounding the conflict, Major General Andy Salmon said that the servicemen and women who had been killed in Iraq since 2003 did not die in vain.

Gen Salmon declared "mission accomplished" for British forces, adding that now was the right time to return to the UK.

Gen Salmon, a Royal Marine Commando, who first served in Iraq 18 years ago, also said he believed that the insurgency had been defeated.

He added that the Iraqi Army now held the "monopoly of violence" and the power vacuum, which had been exploited by the militias, had now disappeared.

The general, who commands the coalition's multinational division south east, also predicted a bright future for Basra and said that with hard work and the right investment there was "no reason" why Basra could not become as successful as Dubai.

The general, who will be Britain's last commander of British troops in southern Iraq, said he was proud of what has been achieved but added that there were important "lessons to be learnt" from the six year operation.

He said that Britain played a significant part in bringing a nation out of the "darkness" of a totalitarian dictatorship.

In an interview with The Sunday Telegraph, the general said it was always difficult to judge whether any military operation was worth the sacrifice of soldiers' lives.

He is understood to be the first British officer to publicly state that war was worth the sacrificing the lives of British troops.

The general said: "It's always a very difficult question to answer. Different soldiers will give you different answers, depending on their experiences. We all know that being a member of the Armed Forces on operations is not without risk.

"The picture in Iraq is very positive right now. We (the coalition) got rid of a dictator, we have given freedom to Iraqis, we have seen the start of a democratic process, we have seen things get better. The Iraqis are very friendly towards us and they are actually very appreciative of what we've done and the sacrifices that have been made so we have given something precious. So the sacrifices of our mates have not been in vain, so in that respect it has been worth it."

The general added: "These are not just my views but the view of the majority of the soldiers. I ask them 'Do you think it was worth it?' and they say 'yes our mates didn't die in vain'."

Gen Salmon, who has been in the post since last autumn, also believed now was the right time for the British to pull-out because the military task had been achieved.

The general added that the militias had been defeated and lost the support of the population, although he admitted that they still represented a threat.

He said: "For the UK military, it is a case of mission accomplished. We have achieved what we set out to do. We have got the Iraqi 14 Division up and running to manage security by itself. We have handed over Basra International Airport; we have created a secure and stable environment for social and political development to take place."

The general said that last month's provincial elections were a "litmus test" for the Iraqi army, which it had passed.

He added that the withdrawal of the British Armed Forces did not represent complete disengagement.

"Our leaving doesn't mean that the UK isn't here to stay. It will remain in a number of ways. There will be some diplomatic presence here, there willl be some trading relationships, some commercial activity. There is still a lot of work to help investment to take place and we need to help British investors to get in.

"There will still be defence relationship too. The work that we have been doing with the naval training teams, to help build capacity in the Iraqi navy and marines, will continue to take place and we will probably help with some of their officer training. So it's the end of this particular mission for the UK military but it's not the end of the UK partnership and relationship with Iraq as a nation state."

When asked what the future held for southern Basra and Iraq as a whole, the general admitted that significant challenges lay ahead.

He said that Basra needed billions of pounds of investment and reconstruction and redevelopment of the city could take up to 20 years.

He added: "Basra is a city which has been denied investment for more than 30 years and Iraq, as a whole, has major problems with corruption."

But despite the challenges, the general said that he believed the future was bright.

He said that the "geo-strategic" position of Basra - it is Iraq's only sea port - meant that it could become a major international city.

The general added: "Basra has a rail link to Baghdad, which has rail linked to Turkey, so in two steps you are at the borders of the European Union and that should not be lost on investors.

"There is social, economic and political development that needs to take place and we often use names like Dubai when we try and give people an idea of what Basra could become. I know that speaking to some of my Iraqi colleagues they talk about tax-free zones, like elsewhere in the Middle East. It is that sort of vision the Iraqis all have for Basra."

Iraq - so was it worth it? - Telegraph

They were on the verge of humiliation – but now British troops believe they can depart southern Iraq with their mission accomplished. Sean Rayment goes to Basra to assess their legacy.

On a balmy spring evening in early May 2007, a small and isolated British outpost in the centre of Basra was attacked by more than 200 insurgents. The militiamen – followers of the Iranian-backed Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr – had a simple plan: kill all of the 40 soldiers inside the base.

Had it been successful, the attack would have amounted to "strategic failure" for Britain in Iraq, and a retreat from the country would have been inevitable.

For more than four hours, the troops inside the Provincial Joint Coordination Centre (PJCC) fought off wave after wave of attack. Those inside the base later said that the British machine-gun barrels had glowed red after firing more than 9,000 rounds and killing dozens of insurgents.

Although the attack failed, it signalled to the British that the militias had the capability to plan, mount and launch large-scale operations without their knowledge. It was also the first real sign that the Iraqi Army would struggle to control the streets once the British had gone.

Most of the insurgents who took part in that attack almost two years ago came from the Hyaniyah area of Basra, one of the most deprived parts of the city.

But much has changed in Basra in the past 18 months, especially in the Hyaniyah. Where once street battles were fought, today British soldiers are working hand-in-glove with their Iraqi colleagues, opening schools and developing strategies for clearing rubbish. The troops are regarded as heroes and liberators and are greeted with smiles and handshakes from Iraqi civilians.

The transition is, according to both Iraqis and the British, nothing short of stunning. In some areas of the city, the property market is soaring, with some exclusive homes costing $400,000. One local businessman has built a hotel costing $15 million. There are even plans to create the city's first casino.

Major General Andy Salmon, the Commander of the Multinational Division in Basra, believes the war was worth the sacrifice of the 179 British servicemen and women who have so far died fighting in Iraq. He also believes it is now time for the British military to return home.

Maj Gen Salmon, a Royal Marine, has been involved in operations in Iraq for the past 18 years. He will be the last senior British officer to command in southern Iraq.

At the end of March, the long-awaited withdrawal will begin and an estimated 2,500 US troops will replace the British inside the Contingency Operating Base (COB), to be renamed Camp Charlie. By the end of July, virtually all British troops will have pulled out.

"It is a case of mission accomplished," Maj Gen Salmon told The Sunday Telegraph. "The Iraqis now effectively run their own affairs. They control the streets, and the militias have more or less been defeated."

He believes that, with the right investment, Basra could become a major international city, like Dubai. "It's close to Iraq's only deep-water port, it sits at the top of the Persian Gulf, and it has a rail link which extends to the Turkish border, so it's knocking on the door of the EU. I'm very confident that in 10, maybe 20 years' time, this place will be transformed – and a large part of that is down to the British troops who served here.

"We have achieved what we set out to do. We have got the Iraqi 14 Division up and running to manage security by itself. We have handed over Basra International Airport. We have created a secure and stable environment for social and political development to take place.

"Everyone should be rightly proud of what has been achieved. There have been ups and downs but that is the same in any campaign. There is still a lot of work to help investment to take place, and we need to help British investors to get in. The sacrifices of our mates have not been in vain, so in that respect it has been worth it."

But when the last soldier flies out of Basra for the final time, others will question that assessment.

The Iraq War not only divided the nation, it also soured relations with Britain's European allies. The conflict lasted longer than the Second World War, cost the taxpayer in the region of £8 billion and tarnished Tony Blair's legacy; it showed that the US-led coalition had the power to topple a dictatorship but that it lacked the foresight to plan for a lasting peace. It exposed failings in the highest levels of military planning, and the battle for Basra almost left the British armed forces humiliated.

So as the 4,100-strong British force prepares to leave, what is Britain's legacy in southern Iraq?

In 2003, following the Coalition invasion, a region centred on Basra came under British control. Initial joy among the local Shia population at the toppling of Saddam Hussein's regime turned to frustration and, on occasion, to violence.

In August 2007, Basra Palace, the British Army's last base in the city, was given up to Iraqi provincial control and the British withdrew to the Contingency Operating Base six miles from the city. The ceremony was sombre. Many British troops had died in the weeks leading up to the handover as the militias, most notably the Jaish al-Mahdi (JAM) led by al-Sadr, fought to seize control of the city.

The controversial pull-out was the end to a politically motivated mission to get British troops out of Iraq as quickly as possible. While the plan looked good on paper, the reality was different.

Within weeks of the British handover, the Iraqi Army in Basra had lost control of the streets – a devastating blow for the British generals who had planned on the assumption that it was a competent fighting force. In Baghdad, American officers accused the British of jeopardising the security of southern Iraq; it was the British Army's lowest point in the entire campaign.

Basra descended into chaos, intimidation and murder were rife, women were executed for merely looking "too western", and the COB faced rocket and mortar attacks almost hourly.

Britain had once prided itself on its counter-insurgency strategy, but the failure to defeat the militias in Basra forced British generals to accept that the lessons they had learnt after 30 years of fighting in Ulster were no longer relevant.

The militias' rule lasted until March 2008 when Nuri al-Maliki, the Iraqi president, ordered his army to retake the city in "Operation Charge of the Knights". After a series of false starts, the militias were eventually forced out in May last year.

Today, Basra and southern Iraq are both relatively stable. The "monopoly of violence", according to Maj Gen Salmon, is now in the hands of the Iraqi Army.

One of the most competent officers in the Iraqi army is Colonel Khalid, the commander of 26th Brigade's 3rd battalion. The word among the British is that nothing happens on his patch without his knowledge or approval. Colonel Khalid is charged with the responsibility of controlling the Hyaniyah.

Home to around 600,000 people, this former militia stronghold is one of the most impoverished and densely populated areas in the whole of Basra, built by Saddam Hussein to house tens of thousands of Marsh Arabs "cleansed" from their historical home along the Shatt al-Arab. Today, it languishes at the bottom end of Third World poverty. Here, flocks of sheep feed off rubbish piles, unemployment stands at around 40 per cent, and the stench from open sewers, where bare-footed children play, hangs in the air.

"Today, the Hyaniyah is safe," Colonel Khalid told The Sunday Telegraph. "The insurgents have gone. They know that we will arrest them or kill them if they return. Some have been killed, others arrested and some have gone to Iran. The people here do not want them any more."

After the "Charge of the Knights", the British Army returned to Basra to work alongside the Iraqi army in Military Transition Teams (Mitts). Their role is to gently advise the Iraqi army on how to win the consent of the people. Around 850 British troops are still involved in "Mitting" around Basra, but as each day passes the role of the British diminishes.

When Brigadier General Sabah, the commander of 26 Brigade, opened the new Haleema Al Saadeyah school last Saturday, he was greeted by several hundred schoolgirls all screaming "Viva Iraq! Viva Iraq!". The adulation he and his men received is yet further proof of the trust the Iraqi public now has in its army. Once an ill-disciplined and incompetent rabble, today it is a confident and professional force, which has the support of around 97 per cent of the population.

Brig Sabah says he is grateful for the help from the British and for "the sacrifices of your soldiers". But, he says, the time has now come to leave.

"We no longer need any help from anyone. We are not ungrateful, we are thankful to our friends who released us from Saddam's prison. Your sacrifices and our sacrifices have helped us to get to where we are now. But now we can run Basra. We control Basra now."

Despite the optimism, the city's future remains uncertain. There is real concern in and around Basra that the insurgents could profit from growing discontent over the lack of jobs, especially among young males.

On Leaf Island, which lies to the north-west of Basra, Sabbah, a 22-year-old fisherman, complains about the lack of work.

"It is good that the militias have gone. But I have no work – neither do any of my brothers or their friends. If we don't get work soon, the militias will return and they will say 'Come and work for us, we will pay you', and some of the young men will go."

While troops in Basra prepare for the final withdrawal from Iraq, the nation's military chiefs are now focused on an even greater challenge: Afghanistan. The Iraq War and the conflict in Afghanistan are often grouped together but remain very different problems. It is difficult to draw lessons from the Iraq campaign that might also be relevant in Afghanistan because the countries and the insurgencies are vastly different. But one of the reasons why Britain almost lost the Battle of Basra was because there were too few troops on the streets.

David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, said last week that the war in Afghanistan was "not a numbers game". Well, commanders in Iraq disagree. Just about all the senior British officers in Iraq to whom I spoke agreed that more troops needed to be sent to Helmand to ensure that the mistakes made in Iraq should not be repeated in Afghanistan.

Waiting for the full-time whistle

In her fourth dispatch from Iraq, The Press reporter NICOLA FIFIELD highlights the vital role that York troops are playing in bringing peace and security to people living in Basra province.

IT is late afternoon, the heat is easing and the 1st Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment (1 Yorks) has just suffered another crushing defeat at the hands of Iraqi soldiers.

Friendly football matches are a weekly event for soldiers living at Camp Sa’ad – a 15 minute helicopter ride north of the British and American Contingency Operating Base (COB) and the home of one of 14 military transition teams (MiTTs) in Basra province.

But while the Yorkshire lads might have a lot to learn from the Iraqi soldiers in terms of football skills, it is the Iraqi soldiers, or Jundhi as they are known, who are the pupils off the pitch.

The purpose of the MiTTs is to support and mentor the Jundhi as they learn to protect their country and keep the peace.

The aim is that by the summer, when British troops withdraw from Iraq, they will be able to do this job without the support of their mentors.

“Our aim is to MiTT ourselves out of a job so the Iraqi Army can stand on its own two feet,” said Pocklington man Lieutenant Colonel Jonny Price, commanding officer of 1 Yorks. “We are here to help and they recognise that. There is no animosity. We have a close and easy relationship.
“You can see that when you see the British soldiers playing football against the Jundhi – there is a normal competitive spirit, but there’s a healthy respect there too.”

As the very last troops to be deployed in Iraq, Lt Col Price, a former pupil of Pocklington School, said the success of 1 Yorks would define the British Army’s legacy in Iraq.

“The British Army has been running a marathon here in Iraq, but we have come round the last corner and we’re now in the last 100m,” he said. “We have got to get across that finishing line in good order because it’s how we cross the finishing line that will define our legacy out here.

“Troops from York and other parts of Yorkshire are the custodians of the UK’s investment in blood and treasure over the last seven years and that is a huge responsibility.

“When we go we have got to make sure that the people of Iraq look over their shoulders and say the British did a good job, thank you for what you have done and Iraq is now in a good place.

“We are hugely conscious of the responsibility that’s on our shoulders and that is a responsibility we have risen to and we are hugely proud of.”

Lt Col Price said he recognised that the threat of insurgency hadn’t completely disappeared, but he believed the Jundhi could handle that threat.

“I believe they are more than ready to meet the challenges that they now face in Iraq,” he said. “The threat is very much still there. “Just last week there was an incident in the city when one of our vehicles was targeted. A device went off, nobody was injured, but it was very sobering.

“There are still bad people out there that want to do bad things, but the militia is not there in the numbers they were last year.

“They are becoming increasingly marginalised as democracy takes root and the ballot box strengthens.”

Significantly, last month’s provincial elections passed off peacefully in a crucial test of democracy that saw Basra’s unpopular and ineffective governor thrown from power.

“Iraq is a different place to what it was seven years ago and it is for the better,” said Lt Col Price.
“The Iraqi people now have a vote, giving them more control of their own destiny. There is more stability and they are not living under a repressive regime anymore.

“Yes, the last few years have been somewhat turbulent, but they can now see the light at the end of the tunnel.

“They have more electricity and water. It’s not perfect, but it’s better than it was and people can see the progress and they can see where Basra is going.”

Private Dane Clark, 20, a York City fan from Easingwold, is one of the 30 troops from 1 Yorks based at Camp Sa’ad, which lies on the desolate banks of the Shatt al-Arab river.

It is his second tour of Iraq and he said the difference from two years ago was remarkable. “Compared to the last time I was here, there’s a big difference,” he said.

“It’s a lot safer than it was and I feel very privileged to have played a part in that. “We are showing the Iraqi Army what the military should be like, from a private soldier right up to the top.

“They have progressed really far and I think they are ready to take things over when we have gone.”

Queen's Royal Hussars help put sting in Iraqi soldiers' tails

Junior Iraqi leaders have been treated to a masterclass in command after British soldiers put them through their paces in a demanding series of leadership tasks.

The Queen's Royal Hussars (QRH) have been testing their Middle Eastern counterparts in the Scorpion cadres, designed to develop basic skills.

The QRH, who are in Iraq serving as part of the Germany-based 20th Armoured Brigade, have been leading the ten-day command and tactics course at the former Iraqi Naval Academy in a northern district of Basra City.

The training is organised into an intersection competition, includes exercises in basic infantry skills, and culminates in a house clearance. The Iraqi troops, serving with the 14th Division's 51st Brigade, have impressed their British counterparts. But both senior QRH officers and the infantry instructors assisting the training said they had high expectations and were taking their responsibility to train the Iraqi soldiers extremely seriously.

While confirming that the Iraqi Army is well led at its highest echelons, Lieutenant Colonel Christopher Coles, QRH Commanding Officer, believes that its most junior NCOs (Non-Commissioned Officers) could benefit from a British Army-style cadre.

After Saddam & bombs, Iraqi band rockin' in USA

The band Acrassicauda is rockin' in the free world, but how they got here is an immigrant song of a different type.

After avoiding Saddam Hussein's secret police, enduring the bombing of their practice space, dodging death threats and navigating sectarian warfare in their native land, four Iraqi musicians who wanted nothing more than to rock 'n' roll all night are living in New Jersey, pursuing their dreams of heavy metal stardom.

Tales of bands struggling through hard times and overcoming obstacles to stardom are as old as rock 'n' roll itself. But Acrassicauda, named after a species of black scorpion, has had a harder time than most.

"A lot of heavy metal bands talk and sing about war and death and destruction, but they haven't experienced it," said bass player Firas al-Lateef. "We have."

After three years living as refugees in Syria and Turkey - and putting their survival ahead of their rock star dreams - the band is in America. They live in a small apartment with little more than some fold-out beds and a couple of chairs, doing the things many wannabe rock stars do: looking for jobs and women, not necessarily in that order.

"We're still in the process of figuring it all out," said drummer Marwan Riyadh, 24. "But we feel real optimistic about things. We're trying to fit in with a new culture and a new society and absorbing what's all around us. Our heads are spinning."

Acrassicauda (pronounced ah-crass-ih-COW'-dah) was formed in 2000 when Riyadh and guitarist and lead vocalist Faisal Talal met lead guitarist Tony Aziz, 30, in a Baghdad school where they were studying fine arts.

In between lessons, they realized they shared a love of heavy metal.

They joined with al-Lateef, 27, and played their first concert two months later before about 300 fans in a small Baghdad club. The city has a tiny heavy metal subculture that listened to cassettes by Metallica, Iron Maiden, Opeth, Slipknot and Savatage, purchased surreptitiously from the back of stores displaying Arabic music on the shelves.

Trouble soon followed. Saddam's secret police was seemingly everywhere, and grew suspicious when bands sang in English or languages other than Arabic, said the 25-year-old Talal.

"Our friends warned us this would happen, and they were right," he said. "They suggested we translate our lyrics into Arabic because the secret police would ask for it, and they did."

Though Acrassicauda's music deals with war and suffering, the band took pains to keep it apolitical, singing of injustices in a general sense in songs like "Between The Ashes" and "Massacre."

"It's like speaking about the killing of innocent children, but it doesn't have to be in your own country, or any particular country," Talal said.

When the U.S.-led coalition invaded Iraq and toppled Hussein in April 2003, music took a back seat to staying alive.

"We didn't expect to survive," Talal said. "During war, it's stay home, lock your door and stay indoors as much as you can. Missiles and bullets were coming down from the sky. It was always red outside."

Added Riyadh, "We spent nights when we didn't know if we would wake up the next morning."
Aziz's house was destroyed in the fighting, but he and his family weren't in it at the time and survived.

Once Hussein was toppled and fighting subsided in and around Baghdad, the band regrouped in January 2004, playing a show for 50 to 60 people at a place called the Hindia Club.

But the insurgency was gaining strength, and a different kind of danger was taking hold. Their next show attracted only five people.

Iraq's Maliki calls for forgiveness of Saddam allies - Helald Tribune

Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, growing in strength as violence fades and Iraq tries to embrace political unity, called for forgiveness on Friday for allies of Saddam Hussein. "We must reconcile with those who committed mistakes, who were obliged in that difficult era to side with the past regime.

Today they are again sons of Iraq," Maliki told a meeting of tribal leaders in Baghdad.
"We will reconcile with them, but on the condition they come back to us and turn the page on that dark part of Iraq's history ... What happened, happened," he said.

The call for forgiveness comes five weeks after January's provincial polls in which allies of Maliki, a Shi'ite and former opposition member who fled Iraq under Saddam and was sentenced to death in absentia, swept much of central and southern Iraq.

Salman al-Jumaili, a parliamentarian from the main Sunni Arab block, the Accordance Front, welcomed Maliki's words but told Reuters they should be backed up with action.

"We hope that these speeches will be translated into legislation and measures to allow this category (former members of Saddam's Baath party) to re-integrate with society," he said.

Parties across the spectrum are now hammering out agreements to form majority blocs on provincial councils across Iraq, with an eye to national elections at the end of the year.

While the violence unleashed by the 2003 U.S.-led invasion to oust Saddam is subsiding in most parts of Iraq, political rapprochement is proving more elusive.

Many of the players who have dominated Iraqi politics since 2003 appear unwilling to forgive the sectarian killing of recent years or set aside long-standing feuds over power and resources, many of which stem from Saddam's system of according privilege and power to fellow Sunni Arabs.

Iraq has passed legislation to reverse a government purge of members of Saddam's banned Baath party, instigated by U.S. authorities following the invasion. That decision helped fuel a bloody Sunni Arab insurgency.

While Maliki often speaks of the need for national reconciliation, some complain his Shi'ite-led government is dragging its feet on re-embracing former Baathists.

Some rivals, including Iraq's minority Kurds, fear Maliki will try to consolidate power, and have accused Maliki of edging towards authoritarianism.

Feriyad Rawanduzi a lawmaker from the Kurdish alliance, called on Maliki to "open the door wide to reconciliation not only with members of the past regime but with all those in the political process."

But he added that former members of Saddam's Baath party who committed grave crimes should be punished.

York area troops find time to relax on Iraq duty

Reporter NICOLA FIFIELD, who has been spending a week with the 1st Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment during its final tour of Iraq, gets a taste of life inside the Contingency Operating Base, in Basra.

A MILITARY camp in Iraq is the last place you would expect to see Father Christmas, Superman and a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle.

But this wasn’t a dream – believe it or not, these characters were all participants in a five-kilometre fancy dress fun run around the British and American Contingency Operating Base (COB) in Basra.

Nearly 200 troops had given up their one lie-in of the week to brave scorching temperatures of nearly 30C and take part in the charity event on a Sunday.

Each fun runner paid a minimum donation of one US dollar and together they raised more than 1,300 dollars for the Royal British Legion and a Cerebral Palsy Centre in Basra.

Among them was Corporal Dale Smith, from Selby, who proved that no matter what circumstances you find yourself in, it is always possible to cobble together a fancy dress costume.
Corporal Smith, 26, a former pupil of Barlby High School, was taking part in the run with his troop dressed as a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle.

“We made our costumes with whatever we could find,” he said.

“We’ve got plastic forks and we’re wearing our green sleeping bags.
“It’s going to be pretty warm, but it’s great to be having a bit of fun together while raising some money for two really good causes.”

Corporal Smith, who has been in Iraq since November, works as a technician in the base, repairing communication systems. Fancy dress fun runs are a monthly occurrence, and help to keep morale high and test resourcefulness.

Other costumes included a mankini, a tin-foil silver surfer, a cardboard Red Cross van and even a 12-man dragon.

Spot prizes, donated by the Navy Army Air Force Institution (NAAFI), were handed out to finishers and there was also an IPod up for grabs for the soldier wearing the best fancy dress costume.

The Basra base is home to about 3,500 British troops and 1,000 US troops.
About five miles long and two miles wide, it has become so big, shuttle buses are needed to transport soldiers around.

It is a vast, dusty warren of large beige and green tents, sandbags, security fencing, noisy generators and temporary buildings.

Accommodation is either in large dormitory-style tents or small aluminium temporary buildings – each housing a bomb-proof bunker to sleep in.

Four huge “scoff houses” – or canteens in non-Army language – serve more than 14,000 meals a day and there is also a volleyball court, gyms and even a Subway takeaway.

“I wouldn’t mind having a beer or a big steak, but the food’s pretty good considering we’re in the middle of Iraq,” said Private Billy Gillan, of Acomb, in York.

The 21-year-old, a former pupil of Lowfield School, in York, is working in the operations cell as a signaller.

“Being in the Army is more than I expected,” he said.

“I really enjoy what I do and you get so many different life experiences that you wouldn’t get working in a shop somewhere.

“We’re like a big family in the COB.

“We all look out for each other and I’ve really enjoyed meeting so many different people.”

Keeping the COB going is a team of around 80 support staff who are responsible for managing supplies and equipment.

Among them is Private Daniel Taylor, of Selby, who drives a nine-tonne truck to deliver supplies to troops living outside the COB in other parts of southern Iraq.

“The hardest thing about being out here is being separated from my family,” said the 33-year-old, whose wife Wendy and four children, Matthew, Luke, Sam and Freya, are waiting for him at their home in Münster, north Germany, where the 1st Battalion has its barracks.

“But we couldn’t ask for more here. Facilities are really good. We can use the internet and there are also gyms and a welfare tent with a TV.”

Soldiers living in the Basra base yearn for things such as long, hot, full power showers and sleeping in a bed that isn’t built of breeze blocks.

But these soldiers know they are in Iraq to do a job and such home comforts are something they are prepared to sacrifice to achieve that.

Iraqi Parliament approves 2009 budget - Middle East Times

The Iraqi Parliament on Thursday accepted a budget for 2009 that was slashed by an estimated $4.3 billion amid declining oil revenue.

Under First Deputy Speaker Khaled Attiya, Parliament voted in favor of the amended budget for 2009 following a series of setbacks, the Voices of Iraq news agency reports.

Iraq had cut its budget twice from an estimated $80 billion to $62 billion as oil prices gave back more than $100 from the July highs of more than $147 per barrel.

The accepted budget is based on an average price of $50 per barrel of crude oil, which some lawmakers see as an aggressive forecast as prices have held steady near $40 per barrel since September.

Sami al-Atrushi with the Finance Committee in Parliament said lawmakers focused on options ranging from a 10 percent reduction in the overall budget to a 10 percent cut in government spending.

Meanwhile, the provincial council in Basra convened Thursday to examine the economic prospects in the bustling port region.

"The conference aims to exchange visions on Basra's economic future following local elections and the remarkable security improvement," provincial spokesman Rasheed al-Fahd said.

Going on ‘tour’ in Baghdad

In her second dispatch from Iraq, Press reporter NICOLA FIFIELD ventures out of the British camp for a spot of sight-seeing.

IT is a war-ravaged city that attracts few foreign visitors aside from high-level politicians, journalists and members of the military.

But standing at the foot of the famous Crossed Swords in central Baghdad, I felt strangely like a tourist. This is the monument that symbolises Saddam Hussein’s horrific dictatorship.

“Bad man,” said one Iraqi soldier to me as I looked up at the giant stone hands of the former Iraqi leader.

Beyond the Crossed Swords, the dusty parade ground – which was once the scene of Saddam’s annual celebrations to mark victory in the Iran-Iraq War of the 1980s – lies eerily deserted.
Below the monument, dozens of green helmets belonging to dead Iranian soldiers are scattered in the ground. During Saddam’s military marches, these would have been trampled on by Iraqi soldiers as a mark of defiance.

Today, Iranians are helping the Iraqis to get back on their feet and there are plans to dig up these helmets and pull down the infamous swords. A row of half a dozen Iraqi armoured vehicles parked nearby are a reminder that the city has not yet left its troubled past behind.

But the soldiers were full of laughter and, sprawled across the top of their vehicles, you sensed that they weren’t expecting an imminent attack from insurgents.

Admittedly, we were inside the city’s International Zone – a secure area that was returned to the control of Iraqi forces on January 1.

But nonetheless, to be stood in Baghdad wearing no body armour or helmet shows just how far the city has come. Little more than 100 metres away from the Crossed Swords is Iraq’s national memorial – the Tomb Of The Unknown Soldier.

Nearly one million Iraqi soldiers lost their lives in the Iran-Iraq War – many whose bodies were never identified. In this tomb lies the body of one of these unknown soldiers and the site has become a Mecca for hundreds of families who believe that it might be their son, husband or brother inside.

The impressive structure around the tomb is stooped in symbolism and although nobody is allowed to visit the memorial today without being escorted by an Iraqi soldier, I wasn’t the only one who sensed a fledgling tourist industry.

“We get to see the recognisable sites that most people have grown up seeing on TV and at times I do feel more like a tourist than a soldier,” said Private Glenn Hunter, from Barlby.

“Obviously we train for the worst case scenario, but thankfully we haven’t needed the training.
“It’s good that we can show people around. It proves that the job is nearly done and it’s safe to be here.”

Private Hunter, whose wife Nicola is waiting in Barlby for his safe return, was speaking as he drove me in his armoured car from the British camp to see these sites.

The 30-year-old is part of the One Star protection team that provides secure transport for the British brigadier generals in Baghdad.

“With the International Zone still being closed, there is still a threat here,” he said.
“But the arrival of tourists is not going to be too far away.

“The Turkish airline already flies into Baghdad International Airport and once one flies, the rest will follow.

“Personally, I would like to come back in ten to 15 years time and see how things have moved on.”

Captain Laurence Roche, who works for the 20th Armoured Brigade, to which the Yorkshire Regiment belongs, said he thought the tourist industry would be booming in Iraq within five years.

“It’s a country full of history,” he said. “It has the Garden Of Eden and the Hanging Gardens of Babylon – one of the seven ancient wonders of the world.

“They say Sinbad The Sailor sailed from Basra and they are looking to build a Sinbad park there to encourage tourists.

“Iraq also has the third oldest mosque in the world and there are some genuine religious pilgrim sites as well.

“I don’t think it’s such a crazy idea that the tourists will come.”

Capt Roche said he believed foreign visitors would also be attracted to Iraq for the very reason it was a war zone.

He said: “There is a whole generation of soldiers who have fought here in the First Gulf War in 1991 and we have returned here since 2003.

“This place will mean something to them. It might not always have been happy memories, but there will be a lot of pride in what they have achieved here and many will want to return with their families to see the country that Iraq has become.

Thousands of people visit the site of the D-Day landings in France and I can see the same happening in Iraq.”

Capt Roche, who lives in Harrogate, will be returning to North Yorkshire later this month during a two-week break from his brigade’s six-month tour in Iraq.

The 32-year-old said he was looking forward to visiting one of York’s most popular tourist attractions – Betty’s tea rooms.

Chemical Ali receives third death sentence - Telegraph

Saddam Hussein's cousin, known as Chemical Ali, has received his third death sentence from a Baghdad court.

Ali Hassan al-Majeed, who earned his nickname for his role in using poison gas to kill thousands of Kurdish villagers in Iraq, was condemned to death for "premeditated killing as a crime against humanity" and displacing civilians in raids on their homes.

The sentence was in connection with the murders and displacement of Iraq's Shia Muslims in 1999.

His previous sentences were for masterminding a genocidal campaign against Kurds in the 1980s and has role in the killing of thousands of Shia Muslims during their uprising after the 1991 Gulf War.

His execution has been held up by political wrangling in Baghdad.

In the latest case, the Iraqi military were ordered into Shia areas, mainly in Baghdad, to prevent demonstrations after the assassination of the revered Shia cleric Mohammed Mohammed Sadeq al-Sadr.

Of the 14 defendants, two others were sentenced to death and four were jailed for life, including Abed Hamid Mahmoud, who was Saddam's personal secretary at the time.

The court acquitted Tariq Aziz, the former deputy prime minister, who is also facing another trial for his alleged involvement in executing dozens of merchants accused of breaking state price controls in 1992.

The Iraqi High Tribunal was established after the US invasion in 2003 to try former members of Saddam's government. It is the same court that convicted the late dictator and sentenced him to death.

Iraq eyeing WTO membership for boost to economy

Iraq, whose plans to rebuild after years of war have been undermined by a collapse in oil prices, could get a boost from joining the World Trade Organisation (WTO), a top official said.

"Iraq has all the components to be able to accede" to the Geneva-based multilateral body, Trade Minister Abdul Falah al-Sudany said in a statement after a meeting with U.S. officials in Baghdad.

Violence has dropped sharply in Iraq, but Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's government is increasingly alarmed about the impact of a drop in oil prices on plans to provide essential services and create jobs.

The price of oil, which accounts for more than 90 percent of government revenues, has fallen by more than $100 from a record $147 per barrel last July.

A steady stream of oil dollars will be key to paying police, paving streets, boosting power supplies -- all crucial to ensuring Iraq does not return to the horrific violence of the years since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.

According to the WTO, Iraq applied to WTO membership in 2004, and the last meeting of a working group on joining it was held in April 2008.

To protect and to serve

NICOLA FIFIELD reports from Baghdad in Iraq, where she has joined up with the 1st Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment during its last operational tour of the country.

AS our Puma military helicopter flew low over Baghdad, the rear gunner scoured the city through the open side door – ever alert for potential danger.

Our 12km journey took us from Baghdad International Airport (BIAP) inside the city’s insecure Red Zone, to the British base, which lies within the boundaries of the protected International Zone.

Half an hour earlier, I had been strapped into a canvas seat, sandwiched in the middle of a row of soldiers, on a Hercules plane bound for Baghdad.

The city was in darkness when the Hercules landed at about 2am and within minutes, a Puma helicopter had dropped down from the night sky in a cloud of dust to collect us and take us to our final destination.

On arrival at the heavily fortified British camp, we were finally able to remove the body armour and helmets we had been wearing since leaving Kuwait.

For civilians like myself, this body armour weighs at least eight kilos – but this is nothing compared to the 18 kilo kit soldiers have to carry.

The camp, called Albert Lines, is home to the 140 British military personnel serving in Baghdad.
Accommodation here is basic, but comfortable, and there isn’t a vac-packed meal in sight.

The team of six chefs serve up a varied menu in the canteen every day – ranging from steak, sausages and curry to chocolate rice crispy cakes and cheese cake.

The 1st Battalion’s “A Company” has been in Baghdad since last November as part of Operation Telic 13 – the last operational tour of Iraq by British combat troops.

With the majority of British troops in Iraq serving in Basra, the 71 members of A Company are among only a handful of British soldiers to have experienced life in the capital city.

Private Daniel Shewan, from Tadcaster, is one of them and the 20-year-old said he felt proud to be here.

“Not many people can say they’ve been to Baghdad,” he said. “But I’ve got the T-shirt.”
The company’s main role in Baghdad is to protect senior military British representatives – namely Lieutenant General John Cooper, who retires shortly as deputy commander of all coalition forces in the country.

“We are allowing senior British people to engage at a very high level with their contemporaries within the Iraq security forces and the coalition – and that is an important job to be doing,” said Major Phil Bassingham-Searle, officer commanding of A Company.

“They need our support and protection and that is why the company is here.
“We guard the location where the General and his support staff live and we protect him when he goes out and about doing his daily business.

“We are also on show as the only British troops in Baghdad – we are representing the British Army here.”

Running the gauntlet in danger zone
During my first day in Baghdad, I was lucky enough to join a convoy of Vector armoured vehicles as they ventured out into the Red Zone to collect the General from a meeting at BIAP.

“In the past, this route – Route Irish – had a bit of a reputation for being one of the most dangerous in the world in terms of attacks on coalition troops and insurgent attacks on vehicles,” Captain Laurence Roche, from Harrogate, told me.

“But the number of roadside bombs and coordinated attacks from insurgents has died down quite a lot in the past few months.”

As we trundled in convoy down Route Irish, two gunners on top scanned the roadside and nearby roof tops for any signs of roadside bombs or insurgents.

When I had the chance to poke my head out the top of the Vector, I discovered a city that has suffered from years of neglect and bombings.

It is a city overshadowed by wasteland and derelict buildings and the silence was also striking.
The hustle and bustle that characterises most capital cities was unmistakably absent and although Iraqi soldiers could be seen patrolling the route, civilians were few and far between.
Route Irish is the main road from the BIAP to the International Zone and all supplies have to come this way.

Although the security threat has significantly improved in recent months, the American Army still searches the route four times a day looking for roadside bombs.

Acting platoon commander Sergeant Duncan Simms said: “The Iraqi Army and police service have more or less taken over security here and these days the threat is more to them than to the British military.

“But we still have to be professional to do the job we have been brought here to do and we take the risks seriously.”

For me, professional is the very word that sums up all members of the Yorkshire Regiment I have met here in Baghdad – and their families back home in York and other parts of the county should be proud at the crucial role they are playing in getting the city back on its feet.

English National Team To Honour War Heroes

The English international squad are to honour the British servicemen and women that were involved in the Middle-Eastern conflicts as of late.

English football stars such as David Beckham, Frank Lampard and Wayne Rooney will join the rest of their international team-mates to show their support for the Armed Forces before their friendly fixture with Slovakia on March 20.

England boss Fabio Capello approved the idea of letting 30 rehabilitating members of the military watch the international squad train at London Colney before heading to the Grove Hotel to enjoy lunch with the players.

This all comes in the wake of Rugby Union's efforts to raise funds for military personnel injured in the line of duty.

Premier League board staff are also eager to back the troops, showing their gratitude by funding an inter-services football tournament in Basra.

"We are liaising with a platoon currently based in Basra about funding a charity football tournament they are playing with teams comprising soldiers from UK battalions, US forces and local Iraqi soldiers," announced a Premier League spokesman.

"We have actually sent out shirts from all 20 Premier League teams – and a signed Michael Carrick Manchester United shirt – for the teams in this charity tournament to wear. The battalion we have been working with have looked to get the UK and US troops to donate money to play in the tournament, with the proceeds going to a soldier rehabilitation charity that they work very closely with.

"It should be a fantastic tournament – imagine the pictures of the UK, US and Iraqi players from all of these different backgrounds coming together to play in Basra, all wearing Premier League kit."

Quick to follow in the footsteps of other major football bodies, the FA also announced their invitation of yet another thirty services personnel to the England vs Slovakia friendly.

At the heart of the initiatives, Wembley itself will also be host to members of the Armed Forces when the Football League play-offs take place in May.

Stephen Crawford, Goal.com

Troops examine Iraq legacy - BBC Radio

As the last Scottish based unit to serve in Basra prepares to pullout, Cameron Buttle looks at what kind of Iraq they are leaving behind.

Click here for the Radio poscast

BBC in Basra - available until 8 March 09

BBC's Paul Adams is with the British Army in Basra. As the troops prepare for the final pull-out later this year, Paul looks at the city they leave behind them and asks how their work in southern Iraq will be judged.

Broadcast on: BBC News Channel, 5:30am Saturday 28th February 2009
Duration: 30 minutes
Available until: 11:59pm Sunday 8th March 2009

Click here to see the programme

Last goodbye - BBC video of 51 Sqn RAF Reg

Click here for the video on the BBC website - The 51 Squadron RAF Regiment come to the end of their final tour of duty in Iraq and prepare to fly home.