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| Iraq-Jordan |
| Violence Grows in Iraqi City Where Japanese Troops Are Stationed |
| 2005-08-13 |
| From Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, an article by By Kathleen Ridolfo The south-central Iraqi city Samawah has been touted by Iraqi and U.S. officials as one of the calmest cities in Iraq. Some 550 Japanese ground self-defense troops (GSDF) have been stationed in the city for more than a year, carrying out humanitarian activities. But a recent surge in violence and reports of growing public hostility to the Japanese presence are prompting many to question the prospects for continued humanitarian assistance there. Moreover, the growing unrest leaves many wondering whether Samawah -- named as one of the first cities where the coalition is expected to hand over control to Iraqi forces -- is ready for self-governance. Like Al-Basrah, it appears that the governorate has fallen into the hands of extremists in the al-Sadr trend who are bent on imposing their vision of Islamic rule on the population. The impact of this turn of events will likely weigh on the presence of Japanese forces, who are stationed in the governorate to provide humanitarian assistance through December. The Japanese government has already hinted that it would be interested in remaining in the governorate for an additional year, and media reports indicate there is an interest in bringing in private sector assistance. With al-Sadr loyalists essentially in control of the city and governorate, it is likely that the Japanese -- labeled "occupiers" by the group -- would be forced out. The unrest in Samawah culminated last week a massive demonstration by locals outside the governor's office protesting unemployment and poor water and electricity services. Protesters threw rocks at police and police fired into the crowd, killing one and injuring dozens. The ensuing violence left several police cars burned and forced the governor to impose a curfew on the normally calm city. ..... Al-Sadr's group is said to be behind a string of demonstrations in the city that began in June. .... At the same time, the Sunni-dominated Ansar Al-Sunnah Army has purportedly claimed responsibility for at least one attack on Japanese forces in Samawah. .... Fifteen self-proclaimed members of Ansar Al-Sunnah Army identified as Syrian and Iraqi nationals were captured in the city on 14 February and confessed to planning an attack on the Japanese camp .... Another Sunni insurgent group, the Islamic Army in Iraq, claimed responsibility for a 4 July rocket and explosives attack on the Japanese camp in Samawah .... An Iraqi sports group and another unidentified association planned a pro-GSDF rally in Samawah for 3 July in support of Japanese assistance, but the rally was canceled because an armed group threatened to "punish" those taking part .... On 29 July, two explosions rocked a job-training center for women funded by the Japanese through the United Nations Development Program. .... |
| Posted by:Mike Sylwester |
| #16 If its the Aussies, the situation is in excellent hands. They have great soldiers. |
| Posted by: Captain America 2005-08-13 23:05 |
| #15 Here's the callup for the protest (translated from the Arabic blog on this interesting site) which led to the shooting: |
| Posted by: KBK 2005-08-13 22:24 |
| #14 there goes that "Great Raid" analogy :-) |
| Posted by: Frank G 2005-08-13 16:26 |
| #13 The Japanese in Samawah are defended by Australian troops. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2005-08-13 16:17 |
| #12 If the Japanese troops behave the way they did in the movie The Great Raid (saw it last night, excellent film!) then the little Jihadis and their civilian enablers are in for a world of hurt. Here's hoping a tiny, little bitty bit of the Samuri spirit remains. |
| Posted by: The Angry Fliegerabwehrkanonen 2005-08-13 15:02 |
| #11 Iraq the Model has detailed information about Samawah. It seems that the local police are shooting at people who are demonstrating for a return of order, but not interfering with marches staged by the local thugs. Whether that is because the police are aligned with the "militias" or afraid of them is unclear from the posts. http://iraqthemodel.blogspot.com/2005/08/protests-and-clashes-in-samawa.html http://iraqthemodel.blogspot.com/2005/08/samawa-update.html |
| Posted by: KBK 2005-08-13 13:00 |
| #10 I agree, Matt, but the lesson here is that we have to fix and not let it fester. These things have a way of spreading. |
| Posted by: Steve White 2005-08-13 12:38 |
| #9 The Friends of Democracy website has a number of posts by Iraqis about the Samawah situation. The main gripes seem to be about corruption and the power grid. Here's one. This sounds to me like a fixable set of problems rather than impending doom/gloom/disaster/Fairbanks. |
| Posted by: Matt 2005-08-13 11:51 |
| #8 if they want to go back to herding goats |
| Posted by: anon 2005-08-13 11:32 |
| #7 They are going to go right back to the way it was before we came, 9th century shit. They would rather sit around growing their beards and beating their women than work at building their country. However they will still bitch about the great satan keeping them down. Occupiers, I'm sick of the talk of it, if they want to go back to herding goats and living in tents then screw em. |
| Posted by: Glinesing Unomomble1842 2005-08-13 11:19 |
| #6 MSQUAGMIRE! |
| Posted by: Frank G 2005-08-13 10:30 |
| #5 it is likely that the Japanese -- labeled "occupiers" by the group -- would be forced out. Last time a checked a history book it appeared that Japanese troops are hard to force out of anywhere. It takes a shit hammering the likes of which al-Sadr's Islamomutts are incapable of administering. I don't think so much has changed in the last 2 generations that the previous 2000 year old warrior code has gone entirely by the wayside. Here's to hoping the Japanese are armed and ready to teach those animals a very hard lesson. |
| Posted by: JerseyMike 2005-08-13 10:27 |
| #4 Article: Like Al-Basrah, it appears that the governorate has fallen into the hands of extremists in the al-Sadr trend who are bent on imposing their vision of Islamic rule on the population. The problem isn't that they're extremists - (1) the Amish are extremists - they won't use modern conveniences because of their religious beliefs and (2) Hindus are extremists - they won't eat meat because of their religious beliefs. The problem is that they have no problem imposing their religious beliefs on others by killing those who won't obey their commands - i.e. that they are religious terrorists. |
| Posted by: Zhang Fei 2005-08-13 09:46 |
| #3 Aw s**t. I was hoping for a longer hiatus. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2005-08-13 09:10 |
| #2 Have they started shooting down helicopters yet [re:Rantburg report on Albuquerque yesterday]? |
| Posted by: Elmasing Cromoting5441 2005-08-13 08:42 |
| #1 Kathleen Ridolfo is an analyst in the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies at Georgetown University. She previously worked with Palestinian nongovernmental organizations on the West Bank and served as director of programs at the Middle East Institute. |
| Posted by: 2b 2005-08-13 08:30 |