Region | Iraq
Fallujah offensive leaves its scars
Four years after the US launched a military offensive in the Iraqi city of Fallujah, many people remain to be accounted for.
- By Basil Adas, Correspondent
- Published: 23:23 November 28, 2008
- The US invasion has turned the City of Mosques into a city of graves.
- Image Credit: Basil Adas/Gulf News
Fallujah: Four years after the US launched a military offensive in the Iraqi city of Fallujah, many people remain to be accounted for.
"The city is still suffering from the aftermath of the military offensive and destruction is still apparent in the Al Sinaie neighbourhood," Khalid Obaid, a senior citizen of Fallujah, told Gulf News.
"Hundreds of people are still reported to be missing and we know nothing about their fate. Are they in US prisons or are their bodies under he rubble of destroyed houses?" Obaid said.
Fallujah, also known as the City of Mosques with its over 90 prayer halls, has a population of more than 450,000 people.
"After the US military offensive, its name changed to the city of graves and cemeteries because the two wars left 420 murdered in the first offensive and over 2,200 were killed during the second offensive," Tahsin Al Jumaili, an imam at a Fallujah mosque explained.
"Hundreds of families are still waiting to know what happened to their sons. The new efforts to reconstruct the city will not erase the painful memories of its residents," he said.
Um Kamel, a 55-year-old Fallujah woman, told Gulf News: "Every second of my life I remember my sons, Sabri, who was 27, and Amer, who was 22. Until now, there is no trace of them. Some people think they are in US prisons, but no one really knows for sure. Iraqi officials must help me find out what happened after all this time."
She hopes that the new US-Iraqi security agreement will help understand the fate of the hundreds of missing persons of Fallujah.
Export industry
Many of Fallujah's young men worked in the import and export industry that Fallujah was famous for.
Fallujah was an important transit trade point among Iraq, Syria and Jordan and was also known for its exceptional carpentry industry as well as for gypsum, nylon, and cement manufacturing.
"The damage to Fallujah will not keep us from moving forward with our lives. We hope to build a university here, with four important colleges: law, veterinary medicine, business, and Islamic sciences," Salem Al Janabi, a professor of law, told Gulf News.
Young Fallujah residents have dreams that the city will be rebuilt as a modern city with a football club that participates in league competitions.
"My dream is to build a football stadium to host all the games in northern and western Iraq, and open a physical education college as well," said Adnan Al Kubaisi, a high school student.
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