US to re-assess Baghdad wall after PM orders halt

[maddezmom]

Source: AFP

BAGHDAD (AFP) - The US military said Monday it will re-assess measures to secure Baghdad after Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki ordered it to stop building a concrete wall around a dangerous Sunni enclave.

"We are aware of what the press has reported that the prime minister said," US military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Christopher Garver said in an email to AFP.

"The government of Iraq and multinational forces in Iraq do agree that we need to protect the people of Iraq," he added.

"How that is done is always being discussed and we will continue that dialogue. We will coordinate with the Iraqi government and Iraqi commanders in order to establish effective, appropriate security measures."

Maliki told a press conference in Cairo on Sunday that he was against walling in Baghdad's Adhamiyah district.



Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070423/wl_mideast_afp/iraqsecuritywallmalikius_070423065034

[Eugene]

1. "We will coordinate with the Iraqi government..."

No report yet clearly indicates that U.S. forces
complied and actually stopped work last night.

[maddezmom]

2. they may have complied here, but what about the other walls they are building?

And was Maliki only against this one wall? :shrug:

[maddezmom]

4. U.S. envoy: Iraq wall meant to protect (but stops short of saying construction will stop)

U.S. envoy: Iraq wall meant to protect By LAUREN FRAYER, Associated Press Writer
4 minutes ago



BAGHDAD - The U.S. ambassador to Iraq said Monday that the American military will "respect the wishes" of the Iraqi government regarding a barrier being built around a Sunni enclave in Baghdad, but he stopped short of saying construction would stop.

Meanwhile, bombings around Iraq killed at least 27 people and wounded nearly 60, authorities said.

Ambassador Ryan Crocker spoke at a news conference a day after Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said he had ordered the building of the barrier in Azamiyah to stop after the project drew strong criticism from residents and Sunni leaders.

"Obviously we will respect the wishes of the government and the prime minister," Crocker said at a news conference. "I'm not sure where we are right now concerning our discussions on how to move forward on this particular issue."

more:http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070423/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq;_ylt=AghDp1TRGp2ckh9SXEtYy_JvaA8F

[NastyRiffraff]

22. Walls, badges, census

Remind anyone of anything?

In some sealed-off areas, troops armed with biometric scanning devices will compile a neighborhood census by recording residents' fingerprints and eye patterns and will perhaps issue them special badges, military officials said. At least 10 Baghdad neighborhoods are slated to become or already are gated communities, said Brig. Gen. John F. Campbell, the deputy commander of American forces in Baghdad.

(snip)

"They've been doing it in Florida, and the old people seem to like it," joked the platoon's leader, Sgt. 1st Class Charles Schmitt, 37, as he watched his team create the public entrance to the new gated community.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/22/AR2007042201419.html?hpid=topnews

I kinda doubt that the "old people" are subjected to "biometric scanning devices" and badges. I also doubt that they'll see soldiers at checkpoints doing this:

The outpost's leader, Capt. Darren Fowler, 30, said the raids alone will not keep terrorists out. Walls and technology might, he figures.

So Fowler plans to have soldiers at the entry point use scanners to log the fingerprints and eye patterns of every person who enters southern Ghazaliyah. That will deter insurgents while building a sort of neighborhood census, he said, something counterinsurgency experts say is an essential step in tracking population movements. It will also let soldiers compare the fingerprints of people who enter with fingerprints collected during operations.

If anyone things the U.S. will "respect" al-Maliki's request (or "order" as some news accounts have it) to stop the wall building, I have some Florida swampland for sale, cheap. And it's not in a gated community.

[DRoseDARs]

3. "We are aware of what the press has reported that the prime minister said..." Ok, so what...

...you don't talk directly to the Iraqi government? You rely on the press to keep you apprised on what the Prime Minister has to say?

Bloody hell... :shrug:

[sam sarrha]

5. Wall dont protect us anymore...Heh ..heh

[maddezmom]

6. Iraqi Military spokesperson defends the wall, temporary measure

Iraqi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Qassim al-Moussawi said the barrier in Azamiyah was a temporary measure aimed at protecting the population and he noted similar measures had been taken elsewhere in the capital as part of a nearly 10-week-old security operation.

"The Baghdad security plan includes setting up temporary and movable barriers," al-Moussawi said. "The main aim of these barriers is to protect civilians and to guarantee that security forces are in control and prevent terrorists from moving between areas."

U.S. spokesman Rear Adm. Mark Fox, meanwhile, said during the joint news conference that the security barriers were being built with permission from the Iraqi government and the military would adjust its plans according to their wishes.

The U.S. military announced last week that it was building a three-mile long concrete wall in Azamiyah, a Sunni stronghold whose residents have often been the victims of retaliatory mortar attacks by Shiite militants following bombings usually blamed on Sunni insurgents.

more:http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070423/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq;_ylt=Ah5QoCTse0ViTHmbQwQGCB0LewgF

[jody]

7. Issue like this determine whether Iraq has a sovereign government or is an occupied nation. n/t

[tanyev]

8. "We will coordinate with the Iraqi government"

Translation: We're sending a bunch of Blackwater goons over right now to help him "reconsider" what he said.

[maddezmom]

9. update: Iraqi military says no plan to halt security barriers across Baghdad

Iraqi military says no plan to halt security barriers across Baghdad
BAGHDAD (CNN) -- An Iraqi military spokesman said Monday that moveable, temporary security barriers are being built and used in hot-spots across Baghdad, but denied any plans to wall off the Sunni neighborhood of Adhamiya.

On Sunday, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said that he ordered a stop to the construction of a wall around Adhamiya, a Sunni enclave in northern Baghdad near a large Shiite community. The neighborhood has been plagued with violence.

Brig. Gen. Qassim Atta said al-Maliki was responding to "groundless" media reports that a permanent wall -- 40 feet high (12m) and 3 miles (5 km) long -- was being constructed.

"The prime minister is in agreement with the work of the security forces and the issue of security barriers," Atta said at a news conference in Baghdad. "We will continue to set up these barriers in Adhamiya and other areas."



http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/04/23/monday/index.html

[annabanana]

10. So. . will we have a wall or NO wall?

any bets?

[maddezmom]

12. they are still building the walls

US officials have said the barriers they began building on 10 April should be finished by the end of April.

Brig. Gen. John Campbell, the US deputy commanding general in Baghdad, said in a press release on Saturday that temporary concrete barrier walls will be built in selected neighbourhoods around Baghdad in an attempt to help protect the Iraqi population from terrorists, adding that protecting people is the primary reason behind the concrete barriers.

"The intent is not to divide the city along sectarian lines. The intent is to provide a more secured neighbourhood for people who live in selected neighbourhoods," Campbell said.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x276885

Iraqi military says no plan to halt security barriers across Baghdad
BAGHDAD (CNN) -- An Iraqi military spokesman said Monday that moveable, temporary security barriers are being built and used in hot-spots across Baghdad, but denied any plans to wall off the Sunni neighborhood of Adhamiya.

On Sunday, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said that he ordered a stop to the construction of a wall around Adhamiya, a Sunni enclave in northern Baghdad near a large Shiite community. The neighborhood has been plagued with violence.

Brig. Gen. Qassim Atta said al-Maliki was responding to "groundless" media reports that a permanent wall -- 40 feet high (12m) and 3 miles (5 km) long -- was being constructed.

"The prime minister is in agreement with the work of the security forces and the issue of security barriers," Atta said at a news conference in Baghdad. "We will continue to set up these barriers in Adhamiya and other areas."

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x276828#276837

[bemildred]

11. Curfew imposed to avert anti-wall protests

BAGHDAD April 23 (UPI) -- The erection of a U.S. "security wall" in a Sunni district of Baghdad is set to spark additional unrest in a country already torn by widespread violence.

The U.S. and Iraqi forces slapped a curfew on the Adhamiya district in northern Baghdad Monday to prevent plans by the residents to hold a peaceful demonstration against the 12-foot high, 3-mile long wall around their area.

Eyewitnesses said residents remained confined to their homes as Iraqi and U.S. troops surrounded Adhamiya to enforce the curfew, while U.S. military helicopters were seen hovering above the area. Instructions from mosque speakers warned the people to remain indoors after the U.S. forces allegedly threatened to forcefully confront any protests.

The U.S. forces began erecting the wall April 10 on the grounds of protecting the Sunni population from Shiite attacks. But many residents and Sunnis have condemned the move, saying it was a sectarian separation that constitutes a large prison.

http://www.upi.com/International_Intelligence/Briefing/2007/04/23/curfew_imposed_to_avert_antiwall_protests/

[Barrett808]

13. U.S. to 'respect' Iraqi wishes for wall

Source: Associated Press

BAGHDAD - The American ambassador said Monday the U.S. would "respect the wishes" of the Iraqi government after the prime minister ordered a halt to construction of a three-mile wall separating a Sunni enclave from surrounding Shiite areas in Baghdad.

Meanwhile, bombings killed at least 46 people and wounding more than 100, authorities said, including a suicide attack that killed at least 19 near a restaurant outside Ramadi. A parked car bomb also exploded outside the Iranian Embassy in Baghdad, killing one civilian, and a British soldier was shot to death while on patrol in the southern city of Basra.

Any plan to build "gated communities" to protect Baghdad neighborhoods from sectarian attacks was in doubt after Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said during a visit to Sunni-led Arab countries that he did not want the 12-foot-high wall in Azamiyah to be seen as dividing the capital's sects.

However, confusion persisted about whether the plan would continue in some form: The chief Iraqi military spokesman said Monday the prime minister was responding to exaggerated reports about the barrier.

"We will continue to construct the security barriers in the Azamiyah neighborhood. This is a technical issue," Brig. Gen. Qassim al-Moussawi said. "Setting up barriers is one thing and building barriers is another. These are moveable barriers that can be removed."

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070423/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq

[global1]

14. Interesting To Note They Are Calling It "Gated Communities"......

in this country - aren't the gated communities where all the 'rich' live?

[yellowcanine]

15. Except gated communities don't have curfews and they don't come around and finger print you.

And make you carry a biometric ID.

What these really sound like are ghettos, as in Nazi Germany.

"A ghetto is an area where people from a specific racial or ethnic background and united in a given culture or religion live as a group, voluntarily or involuntarily, in milder or stricter seclusion."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghetto

[Rosemary2205]

17. Georgia requires you to carry biometric ID if you drive.

We also have 3 gated communities that I know of in my general area that use fingerprints to open the gates rather than a code if one wishes to bypass the security stop.

[yellowcanine]

19. Of course there is this difference: In real gated communities it is voluntary.

And the guy taking your data isn't toting an automatic weapon and flak jacket.

[Tempest]

16. How many gated communities in the U.S. have 12 foot walls?

And U.S. military checkpoints at the entrances?

I'm willing to bet barbed wire was also in the plans.

[rocktivity]

18. If you really respected them, you would have discussed the plan with them

before taking it public--which you obviously didn't!

:headbang:
rocknation

[Disturbed]

20. How long will it take until massive holes will be blown

into this wall? I give it a week or so.

[bemildred]

21. Didn't they try this in Fallujah and Ramadi?

How did that work out?