Opinions | Columnists
An ignominious end
Iraqis will not mourn the departure of British troops, who achieved little in Basra and showed scant regard for the local people.
- By Mayada Al Askari, Staff Writer
- Published: 22:44 May 4, 2009
One hundred and seventy-nine dead soldiers. For what? 179,000 dead Iraqis? Or is the real figure closer to a million? We don't know. And we don't care. We never cared about the Iraqis. That's why we don't know the figure. That's why we left Basra yesterday."
These words, written by British journalist Robert Fisk about the pullout of his country's troops on Thursday, recall the first day after the downfall of the Baath regime in 2003. On that day six years ago, a tribal chief sat with tribesmen from the Abu Al Khaseeb area on the floor of their guesthouse with high-ranking British officers.
The Shaikh of the Basra-based tribe, speaking through a translator, asked the British: "Are you going to pull out unexpectedly, like you did the first time?"
The Iraqi was referring to the aftermath of the 1991 war, when coalition forces pulled out of Iraq abruptly, leaving the southern part of the country vulnerable and at Saddam Hussain's mercy.
A few days ago, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown referred to the 2003 invasion of Iraq as a "success story". Hilary Benn, the British Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, declared that the UK will leave Iraq "a better place", a line that was picked up by Oliver Harvey, the Sun reporter who spent a week in Basra as British troops were preparing for their exit.
Harvey wrote in his article: "A new five-star hotel will open in the next few months as Western businesses look to invest. British tourists have even returned to this battered city of more than a million people."
But in the same story, retired archaeologist Bridget Jones, 77, from London, who visited recently, conceded: "It wouldn't be everyone's cup of tea."
Yes, trust the Sun to have "Bridget Jones" comment on Basra!
In Iraq, all Brits are referred to generically as "Abu Naji", a name that originated in the days of the first British occupation of Iraq in 1918. The name is associated with Gertrude Bell, who was a writer, traveller, political analyst, administrator, archaeologist and kingmaker. Bell was respected by Iraqis for a simple reason: she cared about them, while her government never did.
An Iraqi member of parliament described the UK presence in Iraq after the 2003 invasion as "insignificant", saying the number of troops was too small. He also alleged that the British troops had an understanding with the illegal armed militias in the south to the effect of "we mind our own business, while you mind yours".
This undeclared understanding became evident when Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki led a military campaign involving Iraqi troops to bring order to Basra in April 2008.
As the battle proceeded, two senior US military officers, a member of the Navy Seals and a Marine major general, were sent to Basra to help coordinate the Iraqi operation. Soldiers from the Army's 82nd Airborne Division were pressed into service as combat advisers and US transport planes joined the Iraqis in ferrying supplies to Iraqi troops. But the British troops were nowhere to be seen.
From Basra to Baquba, basic services, power supplies, sewage treatment and clean water are in short supply. Even the undrinkable saline water that was available in Basra during the 13 years of US-UK sanctions on Iraq is gone.
Today, Iraqis view Britain's role in Iraq with distaste and regard its troops' withdrawal as an occasion to celebrate.
However, the occupation continues. The British army has handed control of Basra to the Americans, while 400 British troops are to stay on as "advisers" and "trainers", reprising the role they played in Iraq before the 1958 revolution.
The story does not end here.
While British troops were pulling out of Basra, Al Maliki and other Iraqi ministers, including Iraqi Oil Minister Hussain Al Shahristani, were in London to attend an investment conference with about 250 companies, including Royal Dutch Shell and Rolls Royce.
The UK is keen to do business in Iraq. Brown said Britain would work on oil exploration in the region and help to protect Iraq's vital oil industry. So while Britain never cared about the Iraqis, it does care about their oil - a gift bestowed by Allah on Iraq that will never benefit its people.
Your comments
I was in Iraq a couple of years ago assisting the US military in rebuilding Iraq, and I have to say the projects set for areas under the US flag were enormous and benifited the Iraqi people in general. That said, I have no idea what was going on in Basra. If you asked a question about it to one of the many UK contractors in Iraq, there'd be a quick change in conversation. In retrospect, I think there should have been more oversight.
Gonzologer
Dubai,UAE
Posted: May 05, 2009, 13:26
Share this article
More from Columnists
More from Opinions
Popular in Opinions
-
Opinions
Speak Your Mind: World hunger
Who is responsible for world hunger? Are there any solution?
Opinion Editor's choice
-
Parochialism versus India
The idea of India gets defeated if people are governed by domicile considerations
-
Between crime and insanity
Major Hassan's actions debase the universal parlance of the very faith that he professed to embrace so ardently
-
Its time for Karzai to show his mettle
He may have fallen out of favour, but for now there are no other leadership options
