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Baghdad teen killed, strung up in city square did not shoot protesters: family
Gruesome images emerged on social media on Thursday of an individual being strung up from a set of traffic lights in Baghdad’s Wathba Square, where protesters have been camped out for several weeks. The incident has been universally condemned by protesters, who have been out on the streets since October 1 demanding jobs, public services, and an end to corruption. It was alleged that the individual, named by his family as Haytham Ali Ismael, had fired on protesters from a rooftop, killing at least five, before being grabbed by the mob. Conflicting reports say Ismael, born in 2004, was running away from police, who then stood by as he was attacked by the mob. Rudaw tracked down Ismael’s grandmother, Sameerah Ahmed, who has been forced to flee after the mob torched the home she shared with her grandson. Ismael’s father had been killed 15 years ago while serving in the Iraqi National Guard and his mother had remarried. Ahmed insists Ismael did not provoke the attack by shooting at the protesters as some accounts suggest. He had merely gone outside to tell the protesters to move their encampment from outside his grandmother’s home. "The thing is he went out, told them that they should leave because they have girls at home, that it is inappropriate [for them to continue camping in front of his house]," Ismael’s aunt told Rudaw. "He told them that they are protesters, that they should be protesting in Tahrir Square, not near families," she added. The aunt had been weary of male protesters harassing her six daughters. Ismael was beaten by protesters several times in the weeks leading up to his death, his aunt claimed. "On the third occasion, he shot one bullet into the air to make them go away," she said. It was then that security forces intervened. "The emergency [forces] got him out of the house, then handed him over to them [protesters], telling protesters to kill him, to slay him," said Ahmed. Videos which have surfaced on social media show armed security forces trying to break into the house. Ahmed says she went to the Civil Defense Forces to ask them to rescue her grandson, but they told her they could not intervene. "They beat me too. They were saying kill her alongside him," she said, claiming the assailants stole her gold jewelry and millions of Iraq dinars from her home. According to the autopsy report seen by the family, Ismael was stabbed 30 times, his aunt said. The family directly called on Moqtada Tateral-Sadr  ...hereditary Iraqi holy man and leader of a political movement in Iraq. He spends most of his time in Iran, safely out of the line of fire, where he's learning to be an ayatollah. Formerly an Iranian catspaw, though lately he's gagged over some of their more outlandish antics..., the firebrand ... firebrandsare noted more for audio volume and the quantity of spittle generated than for any actual logic in their arguments... Shiite holy man, to protect them. Sadr’s ’Peace Brigades’ ‐ recognizable by their blue caps ‐ have been deployed to the city’s squares to help protect activists. "I want my son. What has he done? He was just 14 years old," Ahmed said. Posted by: trailing wife 2019-12-14 |
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