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Iraq
Jihadi Volunteers Recall Bitter Memories, Betrayal In Iraq
2003-04-21
Link courtesy of "Best of the Web." English translation is a little ragged.
IslamOnline.net: After three tough weeks in Iraq, Tunisian volunteers who fought against the U.S.-led invasion forces returned home with haunting memories and bitter feeling of betrayal and hatred.
The "haunting memories" are probably memories of U.S. firepower; the "betrayal" came from their own mullahs.
"We left for Iraq as volunteers to join the Iraqis who are die-set [dead-set?]to defend their country, but returned victims to betrayal by some Iraqi army members and hatred — and even attacks — by some Iraqi civilians," recalled Al-Tayeb Bin Othman, a 27-year-old teacher.
"They were only using us! Imagine that!"
"Upon reaching Baghdad, we stayed for four days without any sort of military training and were later given standard jihadi fashion accessories Kalashnikovs and rocket-propelled grenades after lightning [perfunctory? brief?] training," Othman told IslamOnline.net. But since the first days of war, unleashed on March 20, Othman's group of volunteers was deserted by their Iraqi commander who suddenly vanished in thin air.
"Beam me up, Ali! It's too hot down here!"
"Amid the conflicting showdown, the governor of the eastern town of al-Kut called on the Arab volunteers to counter the attack by the U.S. forces in the absence of Iraqi army units," he recalled.
The Iraqi army units had wisely decided to go somewhere else.
"The battle was so ferocious and we lost 26 martyrs, all Arab volunteers," asserted Othman.
That's 26 we don't have to haul to Guantanamo, I guess.
He said that the Iraqi regular forces pulled out of the area in large and organized numbers and donned civilian clothes.
It's called "desertion."
"This left the situation on the ground as intense," he bitterly remembered.
I think he means "lonely," as in "the Marines were coming and we were standing out there all alone."
Talk about betrayal by some Iraqi army members were also rumored among the thick palls of smoke that turned reality of the situation there as blurry.
Cheeze, enough with the metaphors there, Hemingway!
"Arab volunteers were put in the frontlines to stop all the bullets while the Republican Guard units were in the back working on their exit strategies in the battle around Baghdad’s Saddam International airport," said Al-Assad Jirad in disgruntle. . .
"Disgruntle?" Does he work for the Tunisian Post Office or something?
. . . adding 400 Arab volunteers breathed their last during the fighting.
Good shooting, boys!
We were stun-founded [stunned? dumbfounded?] when a Yemeni was about to "fire on a U.S. Apache helicopter gunship only to be ordered by an Iraqi officer 'Do not shoot
 it is an Iraqi aircraft', he recalled.
Who was that masked officer? Mohammed Saheed al-Shahaf?
To add up to the plight of people leaving their country for the defense of another, the inhabitants of southern town of Nassiriyah welcomed Arab volunteers with nothing but gunfire. "We were fired at by the town residents, who killed three of us. They just shouted asking us 'why you are here? Did you came to defend Saddam?'" Emad, another volunteer, asserted.
Maybe they were trying to tell you something--Like, maybe, they didn't want you there.
. . .
Selim, standing outside the Palestine Hotel 15 minutes before the U.S. marines drove in amid surprisingly scant resistance, gave up on the whole "martyrdom" gig found no way out but to desert hide among human shields after taking off the Khaki suit which he felt would leave him less secure.
Brave Sir Robin ran away! Bravely ran away away!
"I was nabbed by the invading forces along with western human shields, then escorted by them back to my country through Jordan," he recalled. Selim was lucky he found a French acquaintance that helped shave and join the human shields.
A Frenchman who shaves! Will wonders never cease.

Aint it hilarious when the cannon fodder discover they're just cannon fodder, bullet stoppers for guys who're too important to die? And ain't it hilarious when you discover that the people who were screaming "Saddam, we will defend you with our blood" a week ago aren't really as dumb as you are?
Posted by:Mike

#7  So much for Arab Solidarity!
For the life of me I can't figure out why these people are being repatriated.We will have to deal with these ignorant fools agin.
At the least they should be held as unlawfull combatants,held until Iraq has a Judicial System up and running.Figure 2 or 3 years,meanwhile put them through an intense regiemen of deprograming and re-education.
Posted by: raptor   2003-04-22 08:57:32  

#6  Too bad they all did not get a chance to die for Saddam! If you think these idiots learned a lesson? Think again. These are just the types of yahoos who sport a chubby everytime some Iman issues a fatwa. Do they really think God was on their side this time, last time, or ever?
Posted by: Cyber Sarge   2003-04-21 18:38:08  

#5  "And I tell you, Mahmoud, I was just about to kill 2 marines -- no, make that five-- with my bare hands when this old Iraqi lady sneaks up behind me and starts giving me a wedgie..."
Posted by: Matt   2003-04-21 18:02:51  

#4  Well, I am glad he survived his ordeal, and I am glad that he survived and was traumatized. Now he can go home and tell his story and in doing so, put some more cracks in the Jihad Fascade.
Posted by: Alaska Paul   2003-04-21 17:51:13  

#3  This is a whole new level of pathetic phantasist meets reality.

Rhetorical question:
Who is the ultimate tool & fool?
a) Western weenie human shield
b) Arab Jihadists who give up all to fight for Taliban / Saddam / ???
Posted by: PD   2003-04-22 00:15:12  

#2  Stun-founded again!

This has to be the funniest story of the entire war. "Hey what the f**k are you guys doing here? Helping Saddam?

"Uh, yeah."

"Say hello to my little friend..."
Posted by: R. McLeod   2003-04-21 23:42:36  

#1  "Curses! Foiled again!..."

Smarten up, dumb shit.
Posted by: mojo   2003-04-21 23:04:20  

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