Musafir's Musings

The human cost of Operation Iraqi Freedom

Death toll for U.S. soldiers nearing 1200. The number of wounded reported to be many times that figure. For some the wounds would mean living with pain and disability for the rest of their lives.

A military hospital in Landstuhl, Germany, is where injured American soldiers are being taken for treatment. Heard a soldier say during a CNN broadcast from Landstuhl that some of the insurgents fighting against them were as young as 14-15.

Why are 14 year old Iraqis fighting against the U.S.?

Why do they hate the presence of American soldiers ?

Could it be possible that they are fighting because we destroyed their homes and killed their family members who were ordinary civilians? The civilian death toll is said to exceed 100,000!

Why did we go there ?

What is our objective ?

Eventually,do we really want a "free" Iraq or Iraq under a puppet regime to ensure continued supply of oil and strengthen U.S. hegemony in the region ?

Those who wish to learn more about what is going on and how the Iraqis feel, following blogs (posted from Baghdad by two students) would provide some answers:

http://riverbendblog.blogspot.com/

http://raedinthemiddle.blogspot.com/

Collateral damage (a cold and cruel phrase)

A report dated 11/14/04 by Tini Tran of The Associated Press reads:
"........Marines continuing to search door-to-door, blowing the gates off houses with explosives. A bit of bright color stood out on one of the city's ubiquitous gray, rubble-ridden streets---a pink dress on the body of a small child crumpled next to the curb."

The BBC reported body of a white woman being found wrapped in a blanket. Two women were known to be held as hostages by terrorists: Margaret Hassan, chief of CARE International in Iraq, and Teresa Borcz Khalifa, a Polish born journalist. The body cannot be identified without forensic tests.

Another report on 11/13/04 from BBC reads: "Aid agencies are increasingly concerned about Iraqi civilians trapped in the besieged rebel city of Falluja.

"There are more and more dead bodies on the streets and the stench is unbearable."
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"Yes, 'n' how many deaths will it take
Till he knows that too many people have died."
----Bob Dylan