Tag: Iraq

There are a lot of dry mouths, watery bowels and heads bowed in prayer in Iraq as 12,000 soldiers prepare to battle in Fallujah. Men will die, women will weep and the left wing will still fail to get the message that a democracy in the Middle East is an answer to the question they can’t fathom. The Australian quotes in full a Sunday Telegraph piece by Hala Jabah where Hala touches on the enemy Order of Battle (ORBAT) that includes # 5000 rebel fightersTerrorists # 300 foreign fighters terrorists volunteers for suicide bombings # 118 vehicles already rigged with explosives, and # Homes and narrow lanes booby trapped. Another bad day at the office for the troops about to enter Fallujah but they know their stuff and have been through it before. They will prevail and the terrroists will weaken further Over at Greenside a Marine pens an email home. It’s worth the time to read in it’s entirety but to quote just a paragraph..

If we build a school or clinic, they destroy it. They would rather deny medical care or education for the children of the citizens who live nearby than to have any symbol of the West in general and America specifically among them. It is hard to comprehend. Frankly, we are done trying. For eight months, we have been on our chain.

The chain has been let loose. Go for it guys.

Aussie Troops fire rounds in anger….

The man, whose nationality is not known, did not respond to signals to stop as he drove “in an erratic manner” towards an Australian patrol in Baghdad, a defence public affairs spokesman said last night. The Australian troops opened fire on the vehicle, which they felt presented a threat to the patrol, injuring one of its occupants.

…and miss!

This person was later seen to be taken away in another vehicle by Iraqi civilians and the extent of his injury was not known to the Australian troops, the spokesman said.

Pictured is digger contemplating loss of Mil Skills portion of his pay for not killing a terrorist when he had the chance. The spokesman said the troops had acted within their rules of engagement, but an investigation into the incident would be carried out. I trust the investigation looks into why the Iraqi was only wounded and why the killing zone wasn’t secured.

The war is the War against Terror with Iraq being the current theatre. Let’s not confuse the battle in Iraq with the much broader War against Terror.Most left wing commentators are confused on this issue, but I am buoyed to note that Tim Dunlop finally accepts pre-emptive strikes on foreign sovereign soil as a valid strategy, albeit his post is couched in anti-US terms.Having had some experience in war and being an avid reader of history I am possibly more aware than Tim that war is not all black and white and above all no plan survives contact with the enemy. Sure it would have been great to have captured and killed Bin Laden and Abu Massub al-Zarqawi, the current heavy in Iraq, but the head is not the only part of the body and daily killing of terrorists still serves the purpose and goes part way to meet the aim.Hitler was never captured and killed but never-the-less his war machine was defeated and so it can be the case in this war.One of Tim’s links under allowed to escape from Tora Bora does critisize US decisions and it certainly could be seen that they were mistakes. However, I have long held the view that if absent from the planning meetings and thus not aware of all of the considerations, then critics need to need to temper their criticisms with the rider. “It is my opinion only and I am not aware of all of the facts”. Todays Australian has an article by Scott McConnell: Betrayal of the Right and in the dead wood edition there is a highlighted quote.

Bush’s international policies have been based on the hopelessly naive (and unconservative) belief that foreign peoples are eager to be liberated by the US armies

. Who is it I wonder that is so hopelessly naive? That statement is so radical that I have never heard it put forward before. Scott McConnell must have something going for him as he is the editor of a main stream conservative publication but I feel the only reason he has been quoted is to give a Bush bashing piece a run for balance.Bush’s policies have been based on nothing of the sort. They are based on a threat analysis that points a long finger at the middle East as a recruiting source for sadists who respond to TV recruiting ads run on Al Jazeera. You know, those ads depicting decapitation. The area is the source of insane religious zealots that, in blind and illiterate fury, live to rid the world of infidels.A democratic Iraq will give all but the looney left a warm inner glow and a feeling of increased security but it is not the ultimate aim of the war. It is only a subsidiary aim towards control of the Islamic terrorist hordes.It is clearly not a case of We are doing this for you but we are doing this for the free world and when it comes to fruition, you will be, coincidently, better offWell, at least we now have the anti-war mob insisting that attacking Iraq was the way to go. With that fact established maybe we can get on with defeating the terrorists there and elsewhere.In the absence of any historical evidence of a perfectly run war, I can assure you the winner is the guy who makes less mistakes. Perfect is for armchair warriors and 20:20 hindsight

AN Australian journalist held captive by Iraqi insurgents for less than 24 hours over the weekend has been released unharmed.

John Martinkus, a veteran freelancer who was compiling a report for SBS’s Dateline program, was seized outside his Baghdad hotel about 5pm on Saturday Australian time (10am Baghdad time).

My guess is that after some questioning it became apparent to the terrorists that John Martinkus was on their side so they they released him to continue his work as one of the anti-coalition/pro-terrorist journalists. As an aside in this article from stopthewar.com journalists quote the ‘country mile’ when they say

News of Mr Martinkus’s kidnapping came as a car bomb exploded near the Australian embassy in Baghdad, killing seven people, and as Mr Downer confirmed the government had rejected a United Nations approach for Australian troops to help protect UN officials in Iraq.

near the Australian embassy turns out to be half a kilometer from the Embassy which in CBD terms could be the next suburb. Still, maybe it looks better or worse, depending on your viewpoint, if Australia is seen as being the target. Drawing a long bow, methinks.

A sergeant in Iraq phones his wife and spills the beans on the rotten Army sending him on a dangerous mission. Left wing fools pick up on it and try and turn the word of a recalcitrant into an indictment of the US. Lets turn the clock back and put it into perspective. It’s 1970 and by some weird time warp I have a mobile phone in Vietnam. I’ve received my orders to take a patrol into the ‘Light Green’ looking for the ever elusive ‘Charlie’ and I don’t like it one little bit. So on the eve of the patrol I phone my wife back home in Brisbane.

“G’day Sweetheart..Yeah. I still love you..OK, social shit over. Just wait till you hear what’s been going on over here. You wouldn’t believe what the bastards have got me doing now, Joan. Tomorrow I have to patrol the ‘Light Green’. I told you last call that there’s minefields down there and we don’t know exactly where they are. I mean, how’s that for totally ignoring Work Place Health and Safety. On top of that we’re being inserted by APCs and everyone knows they’re way over on service schedules due to, and how?s this for a piss-weak excuse, the exigencies of war. Just because we’re fighting a war here, we’ve had a lot of contacts this week and the 2nd Cavalry Regiment drivers haven’t slept, they think they can get away without servicing the vehicles.

Warming up to the theme I remember other unbelievable indictments of the Army. I mean, hulloooo..where’s the armour plating?

I’m getting sick of this shit. Only last week I had to do a convoy protection run and the Land Rover didn’t even have armour plating…like it was a convertible..no roof..no sides. One tropical downpour and we’d all be soaked not to mention the obvious problems associated with being ambushed. I mean, I might have been shot.

I sent this photo to Joan and when she saw it she thought of phoning the press. She told me later that just one look at the dark shadows under my eyes clearly meant I was doing too many ambush patrols. Just not on! (You can just see the Nokia down by the butt of my M16) Yeah, well, we all know that?s bullshit. If it had have happened I wouldn’t have led the patrol anywhere. I’d be in hospital recovering from the beating my Sergeant gave me and contemplating a post-military career. And rightly so. Well, I think rightly so, but guys over at Road to Surfdom seem to think that similar behaviour in Iraq by a platoon of logisticians is symptomatic of all that is wrong with the evil empire that is the US.

This is an unbelievable indictment of the Bush adminsitration:

says Tim Dunlop who has obviously learnt how to upload to his web site from Neptune or somewhere else out there because he is sure as shit can’t be from any planet I know Read the initiating article here and then check in at The road to Surfdom Be sure to read the comments.

The Washington Post reports local insurgents terrorists are getting sick of the foreign terrorists and psychopaths coming in from all over the Moslem world to help keep Iraq in the 12th century.

Local insurgents in the city of Fallujah are turning against the foreign fighters who have been their allies in the rebellion that has held the U.S. military at bay in parts of Iraq’s Sunni Muslim heartland, according to Fallujah residents, insurgent leaders and Iraqi and U.S. officials.

To paraphrase one of Murphy’s Combat Laws, never share a foxhole with someone who is braver more psychopathic than yourself..it only leads to arty and F-16 strikes.

Relations are deteriorating as local fighters negotiate to avoid a U.S.-led military offensive against Fallujah, while foreign fighters press to attack Americans and their Iraqi supporters. The disputes have spilled over into harsh words and sporadic violence, with Fallujans killing at least five foreign Arabs in recent weeks, according to witnesses.

Good stuff. Another step in the right direction They heap particular contempt on Abu Musab Zarqawi, the Jordanian whose Monotheism and Jihad group has asserted responsibility for many of the deadliest attacks across Iraq, including videotaped beheadings.

“He is mentally deranged, has distorted the image of the resistance and defamed it. I believe his end is near,” Abu Abdalla Dulaimy, military commander of the First Army of Mohammad, said

First Army of Mohammad…a bit presumptuous, don’t you think. I bet the previous generations of terrorists are pissed off with Dulaim claiming to be the first. I mean to say, what about all their beheading, amputations, infanticide and otherwise uncivilized behaviour…doesn’t that count? Oh, and Dulaimy, your end is near as well. Animals.

It would appear that the Italian Government has paid $1.4 mil ransome to get Simona Torretta and Simona Pari released from their Iraqi kidnappers.

Despite an official government denial, a leading parliament member said he believed Italy had handed over about $US1 million ($1.4 million) to secure their freedom.

$1.4 million buys a hell of a lot of AK47s and RPGs. I hope they’re not used to kill some of the 3000 Italion troops in Iraq. The girls are all sweet and happy about their kidnappers who;

…taught us and wanted to teach us about the principles of Islam,” Ms Torretta said. “They never touched us. They treated us with great dignity.”

How lucky is that. Of all of the thousands of potential Kidnappers that are roaming about in Iraq these days, these girls were taken by what must be the only group ever to talk of dignity, ask for a pardon and express understanding. Instead of the standard operating procedure of slitting their throats these girls got love and cuddles. I don’t buy it.

“They understood the work we did” for a volunteer group in Iraq, she told reporters. Later, the Italian news agency ANSA quoted her as saying the kidnappers eventually asked for pardon.

Ok, what aren’t we being told.

They’re there, they’re not there. Defence says they aren’t, this article in the Australian say they are

AN advance team of Special Air Service reconnaissance specialists has hit the ground in Iraq in an effort to confirm whether two Australians are being held hostage by an Islamic terrorist group. The small SAS advance team, equipped with sophisticated eavesdropping devices, includes Arabic-speaking troopers able to blend in with local people.

Sophisticated eavesdropping devices is not all they will be equiped with. Watch out Mohommad

As I anticipated, the Left attacked me for my post on Prisoners fair game – some with reason and beliefs but some exhibiting such vitriol that their comments say much more about them than me. One says I make him ashamed to be Australian, accuses me of being a moral coward and signs off regards, Peter. Over at Surfdom he is much more pointed;

Kev – as an ex-servie, is probably courageous under gunfire. Alas, he’s also a bit of a moral coward. Because he considers the Iraqis so awful and terrible, he’s willing to drop the ethical bar clanging to the ground. A shame, but that’s life. (I just hope he never went above Corporal.)

Hate to dissapoint you about the Corporal bit – I went a long way past but once I was a corporal and then I was making decisions that effected mens lives and, in fact, their chances of living. It puts a perspective on life that people whose sole source of knowledge is restricted to the written word will never see. Because he considers the Iraqis so awful and terrible… I don’t know where that line come from. Iraqi’s are OK, they’ve had a terrible time and I believe the thrust of the war will help them live better lives. So do they, actually. It’s the terrorists I hate, I have problems with terrorist of whatever nationality. And neither am I suggesting we drop any ethical bar , I’m suggesting there are people who are not aware of where the bar rested in the first place. I’m not suggesting excessive physical violence, murder or rape are acceptable. They are not. But the methods espoused in basic Interrogation are And now it’s plain lack of morals. Now that’s reading a lot into a short post.

Of course, there’s moral relativism and there’s just plain lack of morals.Some people get so bent out of shape because of their political prejudices that they will excuse anything because they fear their side being held accountable and perhaps losing power. And then they try and pretend that the real problem is the other side’s political prejudice, in this case suggesting that anyone who expresses concerns about our guys being the abusers isn’t really concerned about that, only in scoring political points. Talk about projection. If you want get your political arguments and moral perspective from someone who’s happy to consider dropping people out of planes in order to film them falling and dying just so they can say “up yours”, then I guess that’s your choice. I mean, you can either choose to be civilised or you can choose to behave in the same way as those you claim to despise. It’s pretty simple really.

And then they try and pretend that the real problem is the other side’s political prejudice, in this case suggesting that anyone who expresses concerns about our guys being the abusers isn’t really concerned about that, only in scoring political points. Expressing concern is fine – but for six months? How many ways can you express concern. Should you do it every day for a year at the expense of all other stories. Is there a benchmark or is it like the Tampa/Children Overboard/ SIEV saga – everyday until someone notices that the country has gone on to other problems. I’ve never thrown any one out of a plane and don’t intend to. I would have thought most people would see the line about tossing Osama out of a plane etc as a comment on how strongly I feel about him and his obscene crimes against humanity. Still, it’s a pleasant thought. Whatever others think, The Abu Ghraib saga has grown out of all proportion to it’s actuall importance. It’s at risk of becoming a longer saga that the Nurembeg Trials. I’m a sick bastard as well.

Is it permissible for me to express the heartfelt wish that sick bastards like Kev and all the others who seek to justify these crimes, one day find themselves in an Abu Ghraib or some other evil hellhole, at the mercy of similarly evil people? “I come from a harder world”, waffles Kev. Yeah, right. We all come from the same world, you pathetic wanker. People like you just MAKE it harder.

Mate, your comment confirms we come from a different world and I don’t make it harder, I just point out that winning this battle is harder than you can imagine and it is made harder by people dwelling on one mistake and ignoring the strategy and the realities and all the other facets of the campaign. I stand by my statement that the Left are breathing life into a carcase as they hammer at Bush and Howard.

Amos, a Tim Blair reader left a comment on Tims post about Dick Morris titled TRIANGULATE THIS. You should go to the post and scroll down to the comment but if your a gentle type and don’t like others using strong language I have edited the comment and included it below.

Since you ask I’ll tell you why we invaded Iraq: because Afghanistan will never be anything but a bandit-ridden hellhole, but Iraq is one of the centres of the muslim clutural world, the seat of the old Bahgdad calphate and the second biggest Shia muslim concentration in the ME after Iran. A democracy in Afghanistan will last only as long as the vareous illiterate warlords are being terrorised or bribed into line, but a democracy taking roots in Iraq will transform utterly the entire middle east. This is why absolutly every terrorist organisation, every Muslim dictatorship and every sleezy, oil-grubbing UN rep scumbag and his lawyer are trying to stop it. Democracy in Iraq is their death-kneil. If Dubya pulls this off he will have achieved in under a decade what the worlds vareous hand-wringing internationalist do-gooders and their bleating flocks of useful idiots in the media would not have achieved in a million years- the world’s first Arab democracy and the beginnings of the emergence of millions of people from medieval tyranny into the modern age.

I’ve said it before. Amos has said it. All evidence supports it but we’re still looking for WMDs and I note the ABC tonight are running what must be it’s 423rd expose of the Abu Graib torture series. Some people just cannot see the big picture.