Baghdad Journal
Days 5 and 6
It's Easter Sunday; a big day for the Christians in Baghdad
as elsewhere, but for most people in this city it was another
day, doing their own bit of rising from the deadening days of
the past few weeks. The looters had an interesting afternoon.
Over the past week, the U.S. Marines set up checkpoints along
the roads, many of them at the ramps to the bridges that cross
the Tigris. They were soon after joined by the few members
of the Iraqi police who'd chosen to put their dark green uniforms
back on.
At that time (3-4 days ago) they started stopping all the
trucks and taxis piled high with things that were obviously
NOT household items being moved to Auntie Amira's house across
the city. The looters were being forced to cough up truck
tires, chandeliers, chairs, and all sorts of strange mechanical
things that they had "liberated" from government
buildings, palaces, neighbors, and who knows where.
Every time we crossed the Al Jadriyah bridge for example,
we watched the pile at the side of the road at the north end
of the bridge grow and grow until it was 10 feet high, and
about 50 yards long. It looked like one of those huge yard
sales where everyone on the block pitches in. Computers, cars,
trucks and other large items were added to the pile. (Excuse
me sir; do you have the papers for that forklift?) It was
amusing to watch but it also seemed like a sign that things
were improving, something of a return to order.
Then the Marines left, and it was just the Iraqi police stopping
the looters. The pile still got bigger, but the "intercepts"
were clearly not as enthusiastic without the guys in camouflage
helmets with the fancy guns and the humvees with the cannons
on the roof.
Today we were crossing the Al Jadriyah and the police were
gone. So was most of the pile of confiscated goods. What was
left was hurriedly being tossed into pick up trucks, onto
horse drawn carts (yes) and into the trunks of cars.
It is, as I said, a religious holiday for Christians, for
acquisitive Iraqis it was a day to give thanks in a different
fashion. The looter takes. The looter giveth away. And the
looter takes again.
A man with a "borrowed" satellite phone now works
a street corner near our hotel.
$7 a minute is what he charges. Now why do I think he's not
planning on paying that phone bill? Can't really blame him.
There's no mail in Baghdad anyway.
A man with a rifle decided to take some potshots at the Americans
late this afternoon.
The army brought in five tanks, three humvees and a Bradley
fighting vehicle and as a crowd of 100's gathered to watch.
They blasted the building he was in. The crowd cheered like
their team had scored a goal in a soccer game. When it was
clear that the "fight" was over, the men and boys
walking back, past us, smiled at our bulletproof vests, waggled
the fingers on their hands, and said "khalas, khalas"
(Finished), or, the "game's over." Time to go home.
Another Sunday afternoon in Baghdad.
FIELD REPORTS
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