March 25, 2009
LIONS
RETURN Release of detainees reunites families separated by war By Philip Forgit
The Mother of All Battles Mosque, now renamed The
BAGHNDAD, Iraq
Mother of All Cities (Um al Qura) Mosque, is a monument to Sadaam Hussein’s mixture of religion and politics toward the end of his regime. Responding to the changing political winds within Arab and Iraqi society, Sadaam undertook a number of measures to “get religion,” adding the words “God is Great” to the Iraqi flag, famously writing a copy of the Quran in his own blood, and building this mosque, all in an effort to appease the rising power of fundamentalist religious forces. To many Iraqi Muslims the Um al Qura Mosque is offensive, as it perversely mixes recognizable symbols of Muslim faith with Sadaam’s militarism and nationalism. Iraqi flags in mosaic tile can be seen within minarets that none too subtly suggest rifles pointing to the sky. However Iraqis feel about this mosque, on this day I R A Q I V O I CE S 57 families view it Former Rawls as a place of Byrd Elementary reunion, of freedom, school teacher and of a new beginPhilip Forgit is embedded with ning. They are the U.S. troops in Iraq, families of detainees filming how the being released in a war has affected ceremony nickthe Iraqi people. named by the U.S. Sixth in a series. Army as a “Lions Return“. A formal ceremony is presided over by Sheikh Mahmud, the religious leader in Mansour. Various dignitaries speak, including Col. Martin of the Big Red One’s Dagger Brigade, who reminds the detainees of the oath they have taken. Like loyalty oaths taken by Confederates following the U.S. Civil War, released detainees take an oath of allegiance and pledge to live in peace. Cake and soda is passed out while the detainees and their family members, numbering in the hundreds, sit in folding chairs spread in a semi-circle around the speakers’ podium. The Iraqi and western press form a mob in front of the podium with cameras and microphones pressed forward, blocking the view of the ceremony for the seated detainees. The ceremony is frequently interrupted by mothers’ cries as late processing detainees are dropped off by the police. The cries are shrieks that turn to celebratory melodic wails as wrapped soft caramel candies are thrown into the air and detainees emotionally break down hugging family members, tears flowing. Abbas Fadil Abdul Hadi is one such detainee. He was imprisoned in “buka” or jail for one year and eleven months. Oddly he is charitable to his captors, thanking “the Iraqi government and the coalition for giving us the chance to be released today… hopefully it will be a new and prosperous future for myself and the other detainees.” The Government of Iraq certified Abbas and the other detainees as low risk or no
Photos by Phil Forgit
Above, a detainee wearing his prison-issued checked shirt is reunited with a family member in Baghdad. Left, the Um al Qura mosque, built by Sadaam Hussein to resemble a rifle pointing to the sky, is offensive to many Iraqis. Below, Abbas Fadil Abdul Hadi, a former security worker at the French Embassy, is greeted by his son after his release. Bottom, graduates of a vocational program watch the ceremony. Many of the released detainees will enter similar programs to learn other skills.
risk, and sees the “Lions Release” program as a way of healing the country. Abbas hopes to return, ironically, to security work. He used to work with the United Nations and did security work for several embassies including the French Embassy as an employee for the Ministry of Interior before being detained. Some detainees will end up in training programs to be generator repairmen and electricians, joining demilitarizing neighborhood watch groups like the Sons of Iraq and Haifa Street Guards that the Government of Iraq is phasing out. Under the Status of Forces Agreement between the United States and Iraq, the government has begun a release of prisoners like this one at Um al Qura Mosque, averaging 50 prisoner releases a day. Abbas’ father-in-law explained that as a condition of Abbas’ release, detainees’ family or tribal members guarantee responsibility for the detainees. They sign a paper that guarantees they will provide housing and income for the detainee should they not be able to support themselves upon release. Abbas’ father-in-law is also thankful for the release and is hoping that it signals a new start for Iraq and his son-in-law. As Abbas stands in his prison-issue red flannel shirt, reunited with his son, he is hopeful. “I’m looking forward to a new future.” Next — Religion and war.