Report from Iraq: The Spanish Brigade visits the first civilians injured in the war on Baghdad

CSCAweb

Baghdad/Madrid, 22th March, 2003.

Translation from Spanish by Donald Murphy. ( www.nodo50.org/csca )

Contrary to the affirmations of Spanish Minister of Defence Federico Trillo that “the targets of the US bombing attacks are being selected exclusively from Iraqi military and government installations so as not to harm the civilian population”, the missiles launched by the US in the early hours of last night and the night before have caused victims among various families residing in the city. They are, as the bellicose masters of war obscenely refer to them when the fact can no longer be hidden from the public, the first Baghdadi “collateral damage” of the Iraq war.

The Spanish Brigade in Baghdad states at noon today, 21 March, that during its visit this morning to the University Hospital at Yarmuk, Baghdad, they were able to confirm that the two preceding nights’ bombing has caused injuries to the Iraqi civilian population. On its visit to the hospital, in which various representatives of the Spanish media were also invited to participate, the Brigade was received by the Director, Dr. Yamil Al Bayati, who, before taking them to see the persons injured in the attack, said that 36 people had been hospitalised there – 9 as a result of the missile attacks in the early morning of 19 and 20 March, and 27 last night. Dr. Al Bayati also indicated that no deaths had been registered in his centre, although he did not know if there had in fact been any civilian casualties. As the reception of patients in Baghdad hospitals is de-centralized, it is very probable that deaths have been recorded, along with more injuries, in the city’s other medical centres.

Whole families affected

The Brigade visited some of the victims and can affirm that among them are entire or almost entire families from various Baghdad neighbourhoods. According to these people’s own reports, in none of the neighbourhoods where they live are there any military or government installations.

The Brigade was able to visit three brothers: a 17-year-old boy with injuries in both legs, one older brother of his with head injuries, and still another who was unconscious and whose legs were severely burned. According the first of these, two younger brothers were also badly hurt and one was being operated on at that moment. All were hit last night by the shock wave of a

missile when they looked out onto the patio of their house after the alarms had sounded.

Another family group injured by a missile attack is made up of two sisters and a baby. The younger of the sisters is a girl of 14 who was wounded by an impact in the abdomen and legs while having breakfast at home at 9:30 AM. Her older sister, the mother of a 14-month-old baby she was breast-feeding at the moment of the explosion, suffered burns over several parts of her body and her bandaged hands were bleeding when the Brigade visited her. The baby had back injuries. These people, as they themselves explained to the Brigade, reside in a farmhouse on the outskirts of Baghdad.

In another room, a woman was caring for a pregnant neighbour, whose belly had been ripped open by the impact of another missile blast.

Visit to the burned Ministry of Planning

The Brigade also visited the Ministry of Planning, which had been a target of the

missiles launched late last night. The Ministry, situated in Yumhurriya (Republic) Square, near the Tigris River, was gutted by fire resulting from the impact of several missiles. Although the structure is still standing, both the interior and exterior of the building were completely destroyed by the explosion.

Visit to the Al Qadimiya district

The Brigade visited the popular Al Qadimiya district where much of Baghdad’s Shi’ite population is concentrated. Its streets, usually boisterous and busy, were fairly lively as people shopped at circulating fruit and vegetable stands. The majority of businesses remain closed. In this neighbourhood, as in the rest of Baghdad, one finds groups of militia and soldiers among the civilian population. We exchanged warm greetings with them, who in general seemed calm and relaxed, trying their best to enjoy this brief respite before night falls, when the ominous designs of the lords of evil and war will bring new bombardments upon them. Who knows where they will fall this time and who their victims will be?

The Brigade has issued a declaration of support for the mobilizations against the war taking place tomorrow (Saturday) in all the capitals of the

Spain

, and in other cities and villages.

Arab Cause Solidarity Committee