Outside Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison are, from left, Qasim Kadhim, Salah Zinad, Nazaar Joudi, Laith Aggar, Al'aa Hassan and Basim Al Fadhly. They and three others were ordered by Saddam Hussein to have their hands amputated in 1995.
Posted on 05/25/2004 11:56:43 PM PDT by kattracks
May 26, 2004 -- WASHINGTON - Seven Iraqi men whose right hands were chopped off on Saddam Hussein's orders at Abu Ghraib prison yesterday went to see President Bush - to thank America for freeing their country and getting them prosthetic limbs. "You have to thank everybody who participated in the decision-making of going to war against Saddam, because without this, nobody can live in peace ever in the United States, Iraq or in Europe," said Basim Al Fadhly, 43.All seven had their right hands amputated by a doctor at Abu Ghraib on Saddam's orders, on charges of foreign currency trafficking - and each had an "X" tattooed in the middle of his forehead to mark him as a criminal.
Laith Aggar, 42 - a jeweler whose hand was chopped off for calling his bank to check the price of gold - said Abu Ghraib under Saddam was so awful that even losing his right hand "was also something good, because we could leave."
Yesterday, the Iraqis showed off their new $50,000 prosthetic arms - all individually cast - and told with joy of how they can now do simple things, like knot a tie, hold a glass of water and walk down the street holding one child by each hand.
The men spoke at a press conference several hours after going to the Oval Office, where Bush said, "I'm honored to shake the hand of a brave Iraqi citizen who had his hand cut off by Saddam Hussein. They are examples of the brutality of the tyrant."
But the men - who today plan to thank some of the U.S. troops who helped free Iraq - also spoke with surprising optimism and lack of bitterness about the future, talking about the need for forgiveness, as well as punishment, so Iraq can build anew.
Journalist Don North found the men, brought them to America and lined up plastic surgeons Joe Agris and Fred Kessler to do the surgery for free at Houston Methodist Hospital and fit them with donated high-tech prosthetic arms.
North's documentary, "Remembering Saddam," which has yet to find a distributor, tells their story - complete with Saddam-era video images of their hands being chopped off. In fact, Saddam's thugs meticulously documented torture at Abu Ghraib.
The men cheered Bush's call to demolish Abu Ghraib, and said they'd be honored to strike the first hammer blow to knock down the notorious prison.
nSeveral U.S. soldiers face possible discipline for forcing two Iraqi detainees to jump off a bridge into the Tigris River earlier this year, a military spokesman said in Denver yesterday. There have been questions about whether one of the Iraqis died, but Fort Carson spokesman Lt. Col. Thomas Budzyna said no one was killed.
The soldiers were part of a combat team led by Lt. Col. Nate Sassaman, a star quarterback at West Point in the mid 1980s, Budzyna said, adding he could not confirm a published report that four soldiers faced reprimands.
Dare I ask if any of this hit the network news?
It was scheduled for all 3 network broadcasts, but they all ran long and had to leave out this story.
Maybe they should have held the news conference with panties over their heads.
Outside Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison are, from left, Qasim Kadhim, Salah Zinad, Nazaar Joudi, Laith Aggar, Al'aa Hassan and Basim Al Fadhly. They and three others were ordered by Saddam Hussein to have their hands amputated in 1995.
There is no doubt in Al Fadhly's mind about the rightness of the decision to invade Iraq. He is surprised at criticism of the war — and changed mosques in Houston when one mosque leader lectured him about the American presence in Iraq.
"The coalition doesn't need to find weapons of mass destruction of justify the war," he said.
Holding up the stump of his right hand he continued, "Doesn't the world community consider this an act of brutality? May this never happen to another human being again."
I was following this story ever since I read about it on the opinionjournal.com almost 2 weeks ago in the midst of the nonstop wall-to-wall coverage of Abu Ghraib in the lamestream press. This was a wonderful story with a wonderful ending.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.