Devastation, bitterness and glimmer of hope: Snapshots in the aftermath of

[leftchick]

Devastation, bitterness and glimmer of hope: Snapshots in the aftermath of Fallujah's invasion


http://www.boston.com/dailynews/342/world/Devastation_bitterness_and_gli:.shtml

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FALLUJAH, Iraq (AP) The mangled cables and trash that litter the power station's control room do not bother Adil Raffah. But the bespectacled chief engineer begins to shake when he sees the desk he has worked behind for 25 years, now smashed.

''Only animals could do this, no Iraqi, never,'' he whispers, picking up a hammer left on the floor. ''It must have been the Americans.''

Ismail Kasim, the plant's senior adviser, tries to reassure him. ''It's nothing, we can fix this in a few hours,'' he says.

To the U.S. Marines combing Fallujah, the appearance of these two men is a positive sign: Perhaps they can play a small role in getting the shattered city up and running again. Kasim is said to know the power grid in this part of Anbar province, which includes Fallujah, better than anyone.

But the two Iraqis may not be so willing to play the part.

''I'm doing my job for my country and my family, not for the Americans,'' Kasim says. What hurts most, he adds, is that he still cannot go back into the city. ''I don't know what happened to my home,'' he says.

Kasim and Raffah are just two of the thousands of people who will begin trickling back into this devastated city after a massive U.S.-led invasion, when at least 1,200 insurgents were killed and more than 1,000 suspects were captured. More than 50 Marines and eight Iraqis were killed.

.... hmmm, no mention of how any innocent Iraqis were slaughtered.



U.S. Marines of the 1st Division advance further into the western part of Fallujah, Iraq (news - web sites) on Nov. 14, 2004. Once known as the 'city of the mosques,' Fallujah is now a landscape of pancaked multistory buildings, ruined homes and broken minarets that testify to the overwhelming firepower the U.S. military employed to retake the city. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)