Middle East Focus: Moonlighting in Baghdad: Cops, Salafi Bombers, Two-Timing Vice Presidents……..

Arabia Deserta

Moonlighting in Baghdad: Cops, Salafi Bombers, Two-Timing Vice Presidents……..

Rattlesnake Ridge

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“When the hot evening sun sets over Baghdad, Sulieman Hassim does not go home to his wife and family. For this Iraqi, the work day has only just begun. Hassim, 32, is a two-year veteran of the Baghdad police force. Despite earning "danger pay," he still struggles to stay afloat financially, and has had to take on a second job as a terrorist just to make ends meet. "After my electricity and water supply were restored, I suddenly had a lot more bills to pay," Hassim said. "Jobs are still pretty scarce, but I figured terrorists are always hiring." Hassim, who has previously supplemented his income with such part-time jobs as guarding gas-fueled turbines from insurgents and driving a taxi, said he was initially unsure that he was qualified for terrorist work. "My buddy Abdullah [Bahri] worked at the Brotherhood Of Total Islamic War, and he said he'd put in a good word for me with the head sheik," Hassim said. "I didn't expect to hear back for a while, but before I knew it, I got an interview."………. "Last week, I couldn't work a suicide-bombing shift………….”

This is more serious than you think from just reading this piece. Suleiman Hassan is not a unique case, there are many like him, and they mostly tend to miss their suicide shifts with their Salafi brethren. The neighborly Salafi Arabs are getting wary, suspicious of their two-timing Iraqi police brothers, who seem to have a family emergency whenever a suicide bombing in Sadr City is scheduled. This goes beyond mere policemen; it is becoming a serious problem. It even goes way above mere officers, if the Iraqi government is to be believed: it goes all the way up to a vice president like Tareq al-Hashimi who also allegedly drew the line at suicide missions. I draw the line, however, at Jalal Talibani.
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mhg

m.h.ghuloum@gmail.com