Laying the Groundwork for Violence
by: Dahr Jamail,
t r u t h o u t : May 7, 2009
Throughout history, those who collaborate with the occupiers of their
country tend to end up hung out to dry, or dead. The occupation of Iraq is
no different - collaboration and the poison fruits that come of it are on
full display for the history books once again. Only now, the rapidity with
which this is happening is staggering.
On May 5, the Iraqi military killed Basim Mohammed and detained his
brother. Mohammed was a member of the Sahwa, the 100,000-strong Sunni
militia composed mostly of former resistance fighters that the US created in
order to use them to battle al-Qaeda in Iraq, as well as paying them off to
draw down the number of attacks against occupation forces.
The Sahwa, who were supposed to be given government jobs either in
security or in civil services, have been betrayed. Instead of being given
the promised jobs, they have been consistently targeted by the Iraqi
military, and at times the US military, which has left them vulnerable as
well to attacks from al-Qaeda. As a result, they are walking off their
security jobs for lack of pay, and have largely ceased their military
operations against al-Qaeda. The predictable result is what we have been
witnessing over the last months - a slow but steady increase in the number
of attacks against Iraqi and US forces and a dramatic rise in the
spectacular car bomb attacks in largely Shia areas that kill scores at a
time.
The obvious solution would be for the Obama administration to pressure
its client government in Baghdad to fulfill promises to incorporate the
Sahwa into its ranks, as well as applying pressure to Prime Minister Maliki
to lay off targeting the Sahwa and its leadership.
Instead, Sahwa members like Mohammed are being killed and their family
members detained, and the attacks continue. On May 3, Iraqi forces arrested
Nadhim al-Jubouri, a Sahwa leader in the volatile Salahadin province. In
March, Iraqi forces detained Adil al-Mashadani, head of another Sahwa group
in the Fadhil neighborhood of central Baghdad - which ignited clashes
between US, Iraqi and Sahwa forces that left three men dead and set the
stage for more bloodletting.
Let us be clear - the US military knew, when the Sahwa were formed back
in mid-2006, that most of the members were either former resistance fighters
or members of al-Qaeda. Promises were made to these men that if they took
the $300 monthly paycheck and promised to stop their attacks against
occupation forces, they would be granted amnesty from any Iraqi government
reprisal. The latter was necessary because from the beginning of the Sahwa's
creation, the Maliki government has opposed them, and spoke in bellicose
terms that there would be measures taken to exact revenge on Sahwa members
who had been in the Ba'ath Party, or who were former resistance fighters,
which describes the vast majority of its members.
Sahwa leaders are complaining about this, to little or no avail. After
his arrest on May 3, Sahwa leader Nadhim al-Jubouri, a former al-Qaeda
militia leader, told reporters that his arrest by Iraqi police violated the
amnesty deal he'd signed with the US military last year. Shame on al-Jubouri
for putting any faith in the occupiers of his country. Clearly, he believes
he lives outside of history. Jubouri told AFP, "We signed a cease-fire
agreement with American forces, just as we signed an agreement to grant us
immunity from the courts, even if we killed half the American army or shot
down a plane."
Clearly, he believes the occupiers, and their client government in
Baghdad, would hold true to their word. Jubouri must read about as much news
as Sarah Palin, or he would have known better. In a classic good-cop/bad-cop
routine, while the US military played good-cop and offered immunity and
money to the Sahwa, the Maliki government promised there would be no
immunity, and the attacks began. The US military issued a statement after
Jubouri's arrest by the Iraqi government, saying, "Coalition forces had a
very minor role in this as the warrants originated from the Iraqis." It's
clear who has held true to their word.
Violence across the country continues unabated. On the same day the
Iraqi military killed Basim Mohammed, nearly 40 Iraqis were killed, 31 of
them "suspected militants" (read Sahwa members) killed by the Iraqi military
in Diyala province.
In the last 72 hours, most of the violence is due to Iraqi government
operations that are in full swing to take out as many Sahwa members as
possible.
On May 4, at least 15 Iraqis were killed and 24 wounded. Four of the
dead were policemen (read Sahwa) in the Dora area of Baghdad (security in
Dora is run by the Sahwa) who were killed when someone threw a grenade at
their checkpoint.
The day before this, the Times of London reported that a leading member
of the Political Council of Iraqi Resistance, which represents six Sunni
militant groups, said, "The resistance has now returned to the field and is
intensifying its attacks against the enemy. The number of coalition forces
killed is on the rise."
While the rhetoric is laden with hubris, there is a rising trend of US
soldiers being killed in Iraq. At least 18 soldiers were killed last month -
making it the deadliest month since September for US occupation forces.
This, coupled with the large uptick in Iraqi deaths, prompted Richard Haass,
president of the US Council on Foreign Relations, who returned from a visit
to Iraq last week, to state, "It is obvious there are still multiple
fault-lines in society. In my view, Iraq and the United States are going to
have to adjust the timelines and leave a residual force of tens of thousands
beyond 2011."
Sahwa groups around Baghdad and other areas of Iraq are now reporting
that half their members are leaving their posts to rejoin the resistance.
Others are reporting that 75 percent have already left.
On May 2 in Hilla, south of Baghdad, over 120 members of a Sahwa group
abandoned their posts at dozens of checkpoints south of the capital city, on
the grounds that they had not been paid their monthly salaries. "This strike
is going to continue until we get our April salaries, and some of the Sahwas
have not been paid for March either," Nazar al-Janabi, one of the
militiamen, told AFP. This is becoming common.
I suspect it will take some time for new resistance groups being formed
of disenfranchised Sahwa members to reconstitute themselves. Sporadic, yet
increasing, attacks against US forces will continue in the meantime, and the
Iraqi people, who always bear the brunt of failed US policy in Iraq,
continue to die in the hundreds with each passing week.
***
From: Michael Novick
Sent: Monday, May 11, 2009 9:20 PM
Subject: [LAAMN] Demonstration to oppose LAUSD cuts in
Adult Education, Thursday, 5-14, 1:30-3:30, 333 S Beaudry
"The relatively tiny amount of money (about $40 million would restore
the adult ed cuts, when the District is dealing in billions) would have
huge positive payoffs for a district that desperately needs and wants
parent involvement in the schools. For more information, check out
www.aeutla.net"
Adult education programs were cut 20% statewide by the legislature in
the budget deal, and adult education funds were added to the general
fund of the various school districts instead of being reserved for
adult education classes. LAUSD has the largest adult and
career-technical education program in the state, probably the country
-- 300,000 individuals are in the program during the course of a
year. The vast majority of students are poor working class immigrants
and people of color. Los Angeles has the highest percentage of
under-educated and pre-literate adults of any major metropolitan area
in the U.S. The need for adult education and job training has never
been greater. Study after study has shown that the best predictor and
guarantor of academic success for elementary and secondary school
kids is the educational attainment of their parents. Yet, in the face
of the state cut, LAUSD's Division of Adult & Career Education is
making 30%+ cuts in classes, programs and hours at the school sites,
with much smaller cuts in the administration.
In response, teachers, students and community people are demanding
that the school board reverse the cuts by trimming administration and
bureaucracy first, and restoring some of the state cut with federal
stimulus money (some of which was specifically designated for making
up for cuts in "categorical" programs like adult education). There
will be a demonstration to press these demands on Thursday, May 14
from 1:30-3:30 PM outside the school board at LAUSD's headquarters,
333 S. Beaudry Street (served by the DASH "F" bus on Figueroa). The
cuts are resulting in the elimination of some programs like Distance
Learning and Older Adults, as well as reduction of classes and hours
on weekends, evenings and during summer. Some evening teachers have
been told their fall classes will be reduced to eight or nine hours a
week. Such a schedule discourages students from bothering to attend
at all, especially when the Distance Learning component (at-home
study) has been eliminated. Such teachers will lose their benefits,
holiday pay, and longevity with the district as part-timers. In fact,
they are no longer considered bargaining unit members!
This penny-wise, pound-foolish cut will result in the decline and
elimination of adult education at the worst possible time. Tens
of thousands of parents of LAUSD kids attend adult school to help
and inspire their own children's schooling. A very high percentage of
the kids that do graduate successfully from LAUSD high schools do so
in part with credits earned in DACE classes and ROP programs. The
relatively tiny amount of money (about $40 million would restore the
adult ed cuts, when the District is dealing in billions) would have
huge positive payoffs for a district that desperately needs and wants
parent involvement in the schools. For more information, check out
www.aeutla.net
__,_._,___
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