Salman
06-17-2008, 09:50 AM
Atrocities should never be forgotten so I thought I would open a thread depicting the atrocities against the kurds in Baghdad and central Iraq.
A google search landed me with little information so I will go from here with the tales of my family and relatives. There will be at least one credible source to back it up.
My family had lived in Bagdad for at least 5 generations on my fathers side and 4 generations on my mothers side. My parents grandparents were farmers, my grandparents were mostly "traders" and laborers (crafts of all kind) and the generation of my parents were mostly University educated. We were FILTHY RICH!!.... JK!...at least upper middle class mostly thanks to my grandfather who worked sense he was 6 years old!
My family lived in relative peace in Iraq until the end of the 70ies (not adding the usual discrimination against kurds such as the impossibility to become an officer in the army/police and the difficulty to gain permissions from the goverment). This all changed quite quickly and dramatically to the worse. The anti Iran- and anything remotely Iranian sentiment raised alot the years before the Iraq-Iran war.
The first worrying signs that something dramatic was going to happen was when Iraqi news channels (goverments propaganda) began showing more and more "news" clips about "collaborators" (often kurds) being discovered by the police and army. These "collaborators" were often accused of espionage and sabotage for Iran, their fate was often public execution.
Shortly after this people began to hear rumors about entire families being arrested and taken away (women, children, elderly etc..everyone) and some people who were far sighted enough or had alot to lose, sold all their belongings and fled to other countries. Most people however did not want to believe that they were in danger, they thought that the goverment would not arrest them because they had Iraqi citizenship and were well integrated in the society. Many had a bad feeling though as just 10 years earlier alot of Iraqis were expelled to Iran after tentions raised between the two countries.
In the midst of all this panic/worry the goverment arranged several "public meetings" for the kurds who felt threatened. Among these meetings were a "Buissnessmen" meeting for those who felt that their companies, factories or other larger property were being at risk of confiscation. My grandfather was on that meeting (which later would proove disasterous for my entire family on my mothers side) and he were told that they had nothing to worry about and that they were considered Iraqi.
Luckily? no one on my fathers side got "above the radar" by attending such a meeting so they were spared the ensuing misery.
In the spring of 1980 on a seemingly ordinary day my aunt heard a loud bang on the door (my mothers family house). As she asked who it was before opening a loud and angry voice told her that it was the police and that she should open the door. My aunt opened the door and was faced with several men armed with ak47s. As my uncles (then in their early 20ies) and my father got to the doorway to find out what was going on the police entered the house uninvited. An argumentation began about the reason they were there and some moments later my uncles and my father were told under gunpoint to get all people out of the house. Once outside the house with only the clothes they were wearing at that time they were forced into an army truck, they were assured that they would only travel to the police station for questioning and that they would not loose their belongings....at the same time other security police members were putting the red "candlelight" on the front door (a sign of confiscation by the goverment, breaking the red seal would mean certain jailtime).
My oldest unlces child thought they were going on a trip and were laughing, my oldest sister (then a baby) were crying, while all the others were in chock, fear and anger.
The truck did not drive to the police station but took the road leading out from baghdad, no one dared to ask what was going on as the chock and anger had developed to mostly fear after some time in the back of the truck. After a while it was obvious that they were being taken to the Iranian border.
At the Iranian border the truck stopped and they were told get out of the truck and to move in a certain direction. A couple of hundreds of meters in that direction lay Iran. With little choise they began walking and thus left Iraq, most probably for good. My grandparents never saw Iraq again.
The Iranian goverment took care of us, even though we lived in cramped makeshift rooms with only rugs on the ground and had to get our own water from a small river we were still fed and had a roof above our heads. This saved the life of several of my family members, politics aside, Im grateful for that. This did however not stop the weak from breaking down emotionally for being deported and ruined, especially the eldery who had worked hard most of their lifes to build up a future for their families.
We were despite everything lucky during these circumstances, many distant relatives "disappeared" (murdered!) in Iraqi jails.
After a short while we were put in refugee camps from which we departed 6 months later (few stayed in Iran, they left Iran however for germany years later). Most of my family fled to syria, lived there for 5-15 years then traveled to Europe. Today I have relatives in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Germany, France and the US. I live personally in Sweden.
Hope this was interesting for some.
http://asiapacific.amnesty.org/library/pdf/MDE140051997ENGLISH/$File/MDE1400597.pdf
A google search landed me with little information so I will go from here with the tales of my family and relatives. There will be at least one credible source to back it up.
My family had lived in Bagdad for at least 5 generations on my fathers side and 4 generations on my mothers side. My parents grandparents were farmers, my grandparents were mostly "traders" and laborers (crafts of all kind) and the generation of my parents were mostly University educated. We were FILTHY RICH!!.... JK!...at least upper middle class mostly thanks to my grandfather who worked sense he was 6 years old!
My family lived in relative peace in Iraq until the end of the 70ies (not adding the usual discrimination against kurds such as the impossibility to become an officer in the army/police and the difficulty to gain permissions from the goverment). This all changed quite quickly and dramatically to the worse. The anti Iran- and anything remotely Iranian sentiment raised alot the years before the Iraq-Iran war.
The first worrying signs that something dramatic was going to happen was when Iraqi news channels (goverments propaganda) began showing more and more "news" clips about "collaborators" (often kurds) being discovered by the police and army. These "collaborators" were often accused of espionage and sabotage for Iran, their fate was often public execution.
Shortly after this people began to hear rumors about entire families being arrested and taken away (women, children, elderly etc..everyone) and some people who were far sighted enough or had alot to lose, sold all their belongings and fled to other countries. Most people however did not want to believe that they were in danger, they thought that the goverment would not arrest them because they had Iraqi citizenship and were well integrated in the society. Many had a bad feeling though as just 10 years earlier alot of Iraqis were expelled to Iran after tentions raised between the two countries.
In the midst of all this panic/worry the goverment arranged several "public meetings" for the kurds who felt threatened. Among these meetings were a "Buissnessmen" meeting for those who felt that their companies, factories or other larger property were being at risk of confiscation. My grandfather was on that meeting (which later would proove disasterous for my entire family on my mothers side) and he were told that they had nothing to worry about and that they were considered Iraqi.
Luckily? no one on my fathers side got "above the radar" by attending such a meeting so they were spared the ensuing misery.
In the spring of 1980 on a seemingly ordinary day my aunt heard a loud bang on the door (my mothers family house). As she asked who it was before opening a loud and angry voice told her that it was the police and that she should open the door. My aunt opened the door and was faced with several men armed with ak47s. As my uncles (then in their early 20ies) and my father got to the doorway to find out what was going on the police entered the house uninvited. An argumentation began about the reason they were there and some moments later my uncles and my father were told under gunpoint to get all people out of the house. Once outside the house with only the clothes they were wearing at that time they were forced into an army truck, they were assured that they would only travel to the police station for questioning and that they would not loose their belongings....at the same time other security police members were putting the red "candlelight" on the front door (a sign of confiscation by the goverment, breaking the red seal would mean certain jailtime).
My oldest unlces child thought they were going on a trip and were laughing, my oldest sister (then a baby) were crying, while all the others were in chock, fear and anger.
The truck did not drive to the police station but took the road leading out from baghdad, no one dared to ask what was going on as the chock and anger had developed to mostly fear after some time in the back of the truck. After a while it was obvious that they were being taken to the Iranian border.
At the Iranian border the truck stopped and they were told get out of the truck and to move in a certain direction. A couple of hundreds of meters in that direction lay Iran. With little choise they began walking and thus left Iraq, most probably for good. My grandparents never saw Iraq again.
The Iranian goverment took care of us, even though we lived in cramped makeshift rooms with only rugs on the ground and had to get our own water from a small river we were still fed and had a roof above our heads. This saved the life of several of my family members, politics aside, Im grateful for that. This did however not stop the weak from breaking down emotionally for being deported and ruined, especially the eldery who had worked hard most of their lifes to build up a future for their families.
We were despite everything lucky during these circumstances, many distant relatives "disappeared" (murdered!) in Iraqi jails.
After a short while we were put in refugee camps from which we departed 6 months later (few stayed in Iran, they left Iran however for germany years later). Most of my family fled to syria, lived there for 5-15 years then traveled to Europe. Today I have relatives in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Germany, France and the US. I live personally in Sweden.
Hope this was interesting for some.
http://asiapacific.amnesty.org/library/pdf/MDE140051997ENGLISH/$File/MDE1400597.pdf