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THE
ATTACK AT HAJABJA
History
of the Kurds
The Kurds describe themselves as the largest ethnic
group on earth without a country to call their own
own. There are more than 20 million Kurds living
in parts of Iraq, Turkey, Iran and Syria. Although
never officially a nation, Kurdistan was erased
from the world map when the allies divided up the
region after World War I. They have been struggling
for their independence ever since.
About four million Kurds (23% of Iraq's population)
live in Northern Iraq. (see
map) They occupy the oil rich land around Kirkuk,
an area that is key to the Iraqi economy. The Kurds
have always been seen as outsiders and their national
dream of independence has been a threat to Saddam
Hussein.
The
Anfal Campaign
Saddam began a brutal campaign - called the Anfal
campaign - in 1988 designed to bring the Kurds to
their knees. (read
more about the campaign) Human rights organizations
have documented thousands of cases where Kurdish
men were removed from their homes at gunpoint never
to be seen again.
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Peter
Galbraith recorded scenes of destroyed Kurdish
villages when he visited the region in the
1980's.
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Peter
Galbraith, the U.S. Senate's expert on the region
traveled there in the 1980's. (read
more about Peter Galbraith)
"As
we traveled from the Arab area to the Kurdish
area, we were stunned to see that the villages
were gone. And the villages that were on our maps
were no longer there…they had simply been
erased from the face of the earth. As we traveled
from place to place we could see this destruction
as it was taking place. Rubble on one side, on
the other side…bulldozers waiting to complete
the work of destruction. As we got further into
Kurdistan…all traces of human inhabitation
were gone. These were places that had been inhabited
for millennia. The graveyards were removed, the
mosques, all the wire had been taken down form
the electric poles. It had become a desolate region."
But
Galbraith says, at that time, he wouldn't have thought
that a genocide was taking place.
"There
had been no indication this was being accompanied
by any killings of significant number of people.
It just looked an effort to depopulate the rural
territory."
(Download an entire interview
with Barham Salih, the Prime Minister of the
Kurdistan Regional Government--Sulaymania, where
he describes in detail what has happened to the
Kurdish people) 
The
Chemical Solution
Then Saddam made a fateful decision for the Kurdish
people. His cousin, Ali Hassan Al Majid - now known
as 'Chemical Ali' - was appointed the governor of
Northern Iraq and carried out the plan.
“Tell
him I will strike. I will strike with chemicals
and kill them all. What is the international community
going to say? The hell with them and the hell
with any other country in the world that objects.”
translated from an audio tape of Ali obtained
by the U.S.
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Thousands
of innocent people died on the streets of
Halabja.
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Again
and again helicopters flew over Kurdish settlements
throughout northern Iraq releasing clouds of lethal
gases and leaving bodies piled in the streets.
Then on March 16, 1988 the Iraqis flew over the
Kurdish town of Halabja. Within a hour, over 5,000
innocent men, women and children died on the streets.
Many tried to hide in basements, unaware that they
would provide no protection against a chemical attack.
Tens of thousands of others fled into nearby mountain
caves where the deadly fumes took their lives days
later.
But this time, television cameras were there to
document the tragedy. Images of bodies piled in
the streets of Halabja were broadcast around the
world.
It's estimated that as many as 30,000 Kurds lost
their lives to Saddam's chemical weapons.
The Present
Today the Kurds find themselves as one of the
reasons for the present war. In a State of the Union
address George Bush criticized Saddam for his use
of chemical weapons.
“This
is a regime that has already used chemical weapons
on ….thousands of its own citizens –
leaving the bodies of mothers huddled over their
dead children.”
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Barham
Salih fears another chemical attack by the
Iraqis.
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Barham
Salih, the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional
Government--Sulaymaniais is afraid that Saddam, unable
to attack the U.S. or Israel, may release his fury
on them.
"We
all know that Saddam Hussein has chemical weapons
and biological weapons. And there is a very serious
risk of him unleashing these heinous means of
war against the defenseless population in Kurdistan."
The
Kurdish government is appealing to Canada for gas
masks, chemical suits and protective gear should
Saddam use chemical weapons against them again.
So far, they haven't been received.
"We
are told that there are shipments awaiting to
be delivered to us. The geography of our region
is not going to be easiest in the world. I’m
told that our friends here are working hard to
deliver those supplies to us. I wish that they
did so long ago. We are talking about a very serious
situation. But I hope they won’t be too
late."
(download the
entire interview with Barham Salih)
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