May 3, 2008 10:55 AM
by Baghdad Bureau
By David Mac Dougall
Iraqis are feeling the squeeze of food price rises which affect consumers all round the world. This week, we got local camera crews to shoot video and interview people in two different cities: Mosul in the north, and Karbala in the south.
So often the video you see on TV from Iraq is gray and not very colorful: whether it’s buildings, or military uniforms or the aftermath of some terrible bomb attack. However, the video from the markets is lively and colorful, and hopefully shows you how much vibrant life there is here.
Something I didn’t get the chance to mention in my story for TV: each Iraqi gets monthly rations from the Government. Since so many millions of people here live in poverty, they receive essentials like cooking oil, flour, powdered milk, beans and rice. Unfortunately, since January, the Government has only been able to provide a few items from the list (bars of soap, washing powder, rice & sugar) and so people have to buy more with their incomes. One thing that’s going up in price: cooking oil.
I’m told that’s because the cheapest vegetables are the ones Iraqis like to deep fry (eggplant and potatoes) and since they’re buying more of the cheapest food, they need more vegetable oil to cook with.
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Posted Under: Behind the Scenes
May 1, 2008 3:28 PM
by Baghdad Bureau
By Malini Bawa
Sadr City just LOOKS like a rough place. You see piles of rubble and trash everywhere. But once in awhile you drive down a street where the shops are open, and people are walking around normally.
Soldiers from the 1-68 Silver Lions say they’ve seen daily combat in Sadr City since a Shiite uprising began last month. They’ve been attacked by gunfire, mortars, rocket-propelled grenades, and the deadliest type of roadside bombs known as EFP’s.
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Posted Under: Behind the Scenes
April 30, 2008 12:30 PM
by Baghdad Bureau
By Malini Bawa
During my embed in Sadr City, I ran into several K-9 teams.
The first dog I saw was a fellow passenger riding in a Blackhawk helicopter.
When I reached COP Callahan at the edge of Sadr City, I talked to several K-9 handlers. They told me the dogs are mainly used to sniff for explosives. But most of the K-9’s are also trained to chase down suspects and hold them at bay.
In Iraq and other Muslim cultures, dogs are considered unclean, and many Iraqis are terrified of them.
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Posted Under: Behind the Scenes
April 30, 2008 11:22 AM
by Baghdad Bureau
By Malini Bawa
I spent part of last week at COP Callahan, a small U.S. Army outpost on the edge of Sadr City, home to the 1-68 Silver Lions.
They set up shop in an abandoned shopping mall, with chipped marble staircases and crumbling escalators.
It’s not all rubble and ruins. The areas where the soldiers live and work are fairly clean and comfortable. But they’re definitely roughing it, compared to the relative luxury of life on a large base.
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Posted Under: Behind the Scenes, International News
April 24, 2008 4:28 PM
by Baghdad Bureau
By David MacDougall
The FBI has confirmed what family members feared: remains found in Iraq last week are those of Jonathon Cote, aged 25, from Amherst in upstate New York. He was kidnapped 17 months ago along with four colleagues, while working as a private security contractor. They were apparently ambushed at a fake checkpoint in southern Iraq back in November 2006, by 30 gunmen said to have been dressed in Iraqi police uniforms. The “fake checkpoint” scam has been pulled frequently by various insurgent groups (often, though not exclusively, Shiites).
I talked with Dan Herbeck of the Buffalo News, who has covered this story extensively from the start. He tells me that Jonathon’s family were always gracious, and remained very proactive in keeping the story in the public eye, through their efforts with local media.
A month after being kidnapped, Jonathon appeared on a videotape released by his captors (it’s online at www.myspace.com/freecote). Talking to the camera, Cote said:
“I’m Jonathon Cote, I’m from Buffalo, New York, I’m being treated well. I can’t be released until the prisoners from the American jails and the British jails are released”
It seems like nothing more was heard about the fate of Jonathon and his colleagues for many months. The wait and lack of news must have been incredibly frustrating and frightening for his family. I know my own family worries if I don’t call while out on an embed; or if they watch TV and hear about bombings, they worry how close I might have been. Cote’s father is quoted as saying the only information the Government had provided was “we have no news, we have activity”. Mr Cote said “it’s very vague”. Keep Reading …
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Posted Under: Behind the Scene, Behind the Scenes, International News
April 23, 2008 5:24 PM
by Baghdad Bureau
By David Mac Dougall
I spent the day yesterday in Sadr City. We were guests of Brigadier General Will Grimsley, Deputy Commanding General of the 4th Infantry Division.
It was my first trip to Sadr City since March last year - although I’ve made forays there every year since 2004 on various embeds. It’s difficult to describe what conditions are like in Sadr City.
It truly is one of the worst slums I’ve ever seen. The General’s convoy made a stop in one of the main markets - but it wasn’t doing a thriving trade. Raw sewage ran down the middle of the street, with construction debris and rubble littering the sidewalk. Most businesses and stores were closed.
A make-shift gas station had sprung up, selling fuel from oil drums (it’s one of the ways militias and criminal gangs make money - illegal fuel). Men huddled in doorways, and seemed to sway between being suspicious and curious about our visit.
Keep Reading …
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Posted Under: Behind the Scenes, International News
April 22, 2008 3:52 PM
by Baghdad Bureau
By Malini Bawa
I visited the Baghdad Ballet School– where a Western art form has survived through five years of war. The school once had 150 students and a dance troupe that performed professionally. But now they’re down to just 15 girls and boys.
Extremists — both Sunni and Shia — disapprove of Western music and dance, and girls in form-fitting leotards. They’ve scared away many of the students by threatening their families.
I had the chance to report on an extraordinary teacher and students who refused to be intimidated. Here’s a little more behind-the-scenes action.
Click here to read more on this story >>
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Posted Under: Behind the Scenes
April 17, 2008 5:16 PM
by Baghdad Bureau
By Malini Bawa
This week, I took a trip to the Baghdad Ballet School– a welcome break from covering the bombings and violence in Iraq.
The ballet school has managed to hang on with just a handful of students through five years of war.
The piece on the school, and the remarkable teacher and her students, is scheduled to be broadcast Friday April 18 on Special Report (barring breaking news.) But this photo essay gives you a sneak peek.
As a former/frustrated ballet dancer, I desperately wanted to cover this story, but Fox cameraman Tom Streithorst got into it just as much as I did!
The instructor allowed me to teach the older girls “something modern from America”– a lyrical jazz dance. It’s a lot different than the classical style they’re used to, but they picked it up quickly. Thanks to my colleague Eric Stewart for these fantastic photos.
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Posted Under: Behind the Scenes, International News
April 14, 2008 7:03 PM
by Baghdad Bureau
By Malini Bawa
I’m told that my colleagues in the Baghdad have already blogged repeatedly about the flock of stray cats living in our compound.
I saw the first litter a few days ago, in an empty lot (left) nearby.
Around here, springtime means kittens (below).
You wouldn’t think anything could survive in this barren landscape.
But there they are, among the bricks at the base of these concrete barriers.
A cat and her three kittens have made their home! Another litter turned up in an outdoor utility area.
They can’t be more than a couple days old. Their eyes are still closed!
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Posted Under: Behind the Scenes
April 14, 2008 6:00 PM
by Baghdad Bureau
By Malini Bawa
Back in Baghdad! My fifth rotation here in the last two years. This is the first time I’ve been here in early spring, and the signs of the season can lift your spirits, even in a war zone.
Last week, our gardener (pictured below) began planting bright-colored flowers in the small patch of green inside our compound.
Roses, geraniums and petunias now decorate the base of protective concrete blast walls. Our fixer tells me a small rose bush costs only about a dollar at the nearby nursery.
As the planting started, an unexpected rain shower washed over Baghdad leaving droplets of water clinging to the flowers.
(Photo courtesy of my colleague Eric Stewart)
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Posted Under: Behind the Scenes, International News
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