For many in the MSM, this will be America's truly unmentionable legacy at Abu Ghraib.Workers and heavy machinery dug at the remains of Muhmood Arahe's building. The structure, now a pile of rubble along Abu Ghraib's main thoroughfare, had been a home to tenants and a source of income for the Iraqi landlord and his 20 brothers before it was destroyed by a series of bombings two years ago. It is now only a grim landmark, one of the last reminders of the catastrophic violence that has plagued downtown Abu Ghraib.
But piece by piece, the Iraqi government, with help from the U.S. military, has been working to clear the tons of war debris from the city center -- and give Muhmood the hope of once again taking up business as a landlord on the property. "The government is going to compensate us and we are going to set up shops," said Muhmood, who has filed a claim for compensation money in Iraqi court.
The story of this property reflects the changes taking place in Abu Ghraib, a district where combat and house bombings raged through last fall and the stigma of the Abu Ghraib detention facility -- where U.S. troops were accused of abusing Iraqi detainees -- lingers. In some ways, it reflects the changes taking place throughout Iraq. Now, the city center hums with construction and commerce. A wave of redevelopment efforts by the Iraqi government, the U.S. and nongovernmental organizations swept the area in recent months as fighting and bombings dropped off.
The U.S. alone is plowing $8.2 million into about 135 projects. The money is being used to provide a new city marketplace, water, school upgrades, electricity service, sewage systems, trash pickup and other improvements to Abu Ghraib, according to the 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team of the 25th Infantry Division. Abu Ghraib Hospital has been rebuilt and furnished with new equipment. A second story will be added, expanding inpatient facilities by 100 beds, officials say.
The "nonlethal" surge follows security improvements that began in October as members of the Sunni Awakening were transferred into the Iraqi security forces, bolstering the power of the local Iraqi police and army, according to Lt. Col. Mario Diaz, commander of the battalion. The battalion hopes the widespread reconstruction work will help the district begin planning for a more prosperous future. The effort is transforming the city center, a long strip of more than 1,000 shops and vendor stalls where much of the city buys and sells goods.
The Iraqi government has headed the effort to "put a new face on the city center" and the U.S. has contributed advice and money, including the funding for the demolition of Muhmood's building, said Maj. Benjamin Eiser, who is overseeing the battalion's reconstruction effort there. The building was taken over by the Iraqi army during the insurgency. In 2006, it was damaged by a massive vehicle bomb and the following year was collapsed by multiple insurgent rocket attacks.
From the property, the changes along the main street in Abu Ghraib are visible. New awnings hang over shops; a gravel parking lot is filled with vehicles; freshly poured curbs are lined up and waiting to be set along a planned sidewalk. Crowds filled the streets one Saturday as butchers cut goat meat, bakers handed out hot bags of flatbread and banana vendors called out to passersby. "The one thing that was left, the one eyesore, was this building," Eiser said. "It is like the last piece of old Abu Ghraib. Al-Qaida no longer has its mark on the city center."
Bomb and rocket attacks against U.S. bases are still common in Abu Ghraib but violence has "dramatically decreased," he said. Six months ago, the highway through the city was blocked off to traffic -- a measure to cut the number of vehicle bombings -- and residents were forced to walk about a mile to the central market area, Eiser said. Residents can now pull off the highway and park vehicles in a gravel lot in front of the shopping district, he said. "Every day, you will see a new shop open," said Eiser, who visited a newly opened currency exchange on Saturday. Meanwhile, a new market area -- with a sewer, ventilation, electricity and internal security -- is being constructed and planned for completion in about two months, according to Eiser. "Five months ago, this was all trash and rubble," he said.