Blog Post 3: Iraq February 19th through February 25th, 2011

The main story of the last week is protests, protests, protests. The entire Middle East has erupted into protests, not to exclude Iraq. The protests centered around social reform, new jobs and direct supervision to try and reduce corruption in the government.
Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki made a statement on the night of Thursday, February 24th urging protestors not to take to the streets on Friday. He claimed that insurgent groups, such as the Al Qaeda and remnants from Saddam Hussein's Baath party were going to try and bring terror and chaos to the protests.

Map of the Green Zone from CNN on globalsecurity.org 

The protesters waived off the Prime Minister's warning as a scare tactic and took to the streets on Friday anyways. Thousands of protesters flooded the streets and things soon became violent. People threw rocks, got into scuffles with security forces, and protestors in Baghdad even pulled down barriers blocking the bridge to the Green Zone. The Green Zone is a cordoned off area of Baghdad where US authorities live and work.

Riot Police guarding the Green Zone

These protests in Iraq quickly turned violent on Friday, forcing security forces and the Iraqi Army to resort to using lethal force. There are reports of forces opening fire on groups of protesters all over Iraq in places like Baghdad, Hawija, Salahuddin, and Mosul. It's not clear how many have been killed and injured so far. Articles from the International Herald Tribune and Al Jazeera give a more detailed look at the protests.


Tunisia really sparked a sort of "Middle Eastern Revolution" that has people demanding more from their government. The protests in Iraq are slightly different than those in other countries, though. Iraqi protesters are calling for better services from and reforms in their government instead of dismantling it and starting over. This shows that while the government the US helped set up in Iraq is weak and needs to be adapted, the people have generally taken to it. They accept the democracy we tried setting up there and are now exercising their rights within that democracy. The use of lethal force is a little nerve racking, but if the protests calm down a bit and use peace instead of violence, I think they can get big changes to happen.

Blog Post 2: Iraq February 12th through February 18th, 2011

Iraq has joined in the middle eastern wave of protests that was sparked by Tunisia and Egypt in the past couple months. People took to the streets all over Iraq to protest different things. In Basra, protests favored better services and jobs from the government. Protests in the Kurdish region in northern Iraq appear to be a response to an attack on the Kurdistan Democratic Party offices the day prior. Reports show that one person was killed and 47 were injured in these protests.

Protests!!!

Protests in Baghdad and Kut turned violent when security forces opened fire on a group of protesters calling for the resignation of their provincial governor and at least 3 were killed. The shooting spurred protesters to storm and burn the governor's office and home. They burned all the rooms and even the employees cars. At least 27 people were injured in the storming of the governor's office and home.


There is a glimmer of progress in Iraq through the smoke of these recent protests. In an effort to help provide Iraq with the right amount of electricity, a contract has been made with the Korean Hyundai company to build a 500 megawatt power plant. This power plant, as well as the 1,250 megawatt power plant being built in the Karbala Province, will help close in on the needed amount of electricity to power the country. The Ministry of Electricity expects that the national grid will be able to meet the needs within 2 years.


Iraq continues it's ceaseless cycle of moving forward and then backwards. While protests are not bad in every respect, violent protests are not the way to go. Police violence to protests will do more harm than good.  One person in Iraq said, “When they opened fire on us, I was feeling that we are not a free country.” These feelings will lead to more violence, moving Iraq even more backwards. 

Blog Post 1: Iraq February 4th through February 11th, 2011

Much has happened in Iraq in the past week, but some things stand out more than others.

A Turkish firm has made plans to construct a power plan in the Karbala Province. The project is going to cost about $450 million and will generate 1,250 megawatts. The plant will create as many as 500 new jobs and is expected to be completed within 2 years. The power plant will provide more than double the amount of electricity that the region needs and will export the surplus to its surrounding provinces. Further information can be found here.

There has also been buzz surrounding a display of mannequins in northern Baghdad. The mannequins are dressed, according to Muslim standards, rather scandalously. There is blond hair showing beneath scarves, skin exposed that usually isn't, and other things of the sort. What's causing the buzz is that the mannequins are standing before a fiery backdrop with a message that says "Whoever fills his eyes with the forbidden, on judgment day God will fill them with fire." This entire display is a blunt reminder that if women don't dress according to their religion, they and the men that look at them will be punished by God. Read the full article here.

Wreckage at Kirkuk

The usual Thursday morning bustle in the towns of Kirkuk and Dujail was broken by a series of car bombings. Dujail is about 50 km north of Baghdad while Kirkuk is about 240 km north of Baghdad. In total, there are an estimated 15 killed and as many as 50 injured from the bombings. Terrorist organizations are suspected to be behind the incidences. Here are the links for both articles: Dujail and Kirkuk.

The events this week show to me the struggle still going on in Iraq between moving forward and keeping to well established roots. The construction of a huge power plant is a great way to make jobs and supply necessary electricity. At the same time, heritage, traditions and religion still play a large part of society, such as women remaining covered for fear of God. Then, the constant reminder of terrorist organizations' plots to disrupt what they can is ever present. I would personally not be surprised if the building of the power plant is slowed due to attempted bombings.