The truth about Falluja

Reports suggest that at least 600 Iraqis have been killed and over 1000 injured in Falluja. Most of the UK media has repeated uncritically the US story that those all killed are "insurregents" but my friend Jo Wilding, who is taking a circus around schools in Iraq, spent the weekend working with ambulances in Falluja and tells a very different story: "The satellite news says the cease-fire is holding and George Bush says to the troops on Easter Sunday that, "I know what we're doing in Iraq is right." Shooting unarmed men in the back outside their family home is right. Shooting grandmothers with white flags is right? Shooting at women and children who are fleeing their homes is right? Firing at ambulances is right? Well George, I know too now. I know what it looks like when you brutalise people so much that they've nothing left to lose." (read more from her).

I feel so helpless here in the UK. Rationally I can argue to myself that I may be able contribute more to Iraq by working on long term issues such as debt through Jubilee Iraq, but my heart says I should be out there now like Jo standing alongside Iraqis and using my white skin, blond hair and english accent to try and protect the innocent and the wounded, assuming I could summon up a fraction of the courage that she and many brave Iraqis have.

Following on from my post on Easter Sunday, a story of solidarity from Iraqi newspaper Azzaman which reported that Iraqi Christians did not celebrate Easter in the normal way this year. They only went to church, prayed, and asked the Lord to end this distress. Instead of visiting relatives and friends, as is common on Easter, they went to health centres to donate blood. Najat Yousif Hanna said "How can we celebrate while our brothers in Fallujah, Karbala, Najaf, and other cities are suffering and bleeding."