Dr. Sabah Salih’s article, “Of Halabja, the Kurds, and American Politics” certainly struck a chord within us. His eloquent observations and arguments as to the disregard of Kurds and Kurdish identity by the international community are representative of the opinions we heard from the Hawramani Kurds from the first day of our arrival. It would become a conversation we learned by rote by the time we left Iraqi Kurdistan one year later.

As U.S. Army Civil Affairs Officers, we were tasked to assist the local government in maintaining a safe and secure environment and fostering further inroads to peace and prosperity for all Iraqis. It was our good fortune to be assigned the region of Hawraman in Iraqi Kurdistan. We arrived in April of 2003, and attended a meeting held by the Ministry of Cooperation and Reconstruction in Sulaymaniah for Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs). The meeting’s purpose was to provide a strategy for the use of any funds that would re-build Iraqi Kurdistan from the decades of neglect under the Ba’athist regime, as well as from the recent war damage. It was then that the Minister stated that the priority for aid should be given to the Hawraman area due to three reasons:

1. The area deteriorated under the recent rule of Ansar-al-Islam and other militant fundamentalist organizations;

2. The area sustained considerable damage in the US/Peshmerga fight against Ansar-al-Islam; and

3. The area’s traditional role as Kurdistan’s cultural epicenter.

We agreed that we would assist in any way possible

We consider ourselves lucky due to the fact that we were able to access multiple resources of money for reconstruction projects. In all, we spent over $2.2 million in construction projects in towns like Byara, Khormal and Tawellah. These were small towns, and identifying the immediate needs was not difficult. It proved to be more difficult, however, for the town of Halabja.

Long before we entered Iraq, we knew of Halabja. We recall the then obscure name being discussed by nightly news reporters and college professors in 1988, and we were certainly reminded of it during the preparations of war. It is for this reason that it struck us as odd to discover that any NGO or UN presence in the town was conspicuously absent.

Once in the area, every representative and citizen with whom we spoke told us of the horrible events in 1988. At the end of an excellent lunch in the residence of Halabja Mayor, Jamal, he showed us a well-thumbed book of photographs depicting the victims of the atrocious attacks. Momasta Shaho, our dearest friend, brought us to the Memorial and showed us the cemetery throughout its somber construction.

Everyone we interviewed responded with a similar theme; nobody in the world did a thing to avenge, correct or address the gassing of the Kurds. There was a small amount of activity by various NGOs, but no help of any significant amount. It did not take long to become apparent to us that this feeling of isolation and alienation is deep in the identity of the Kurds of Hawraman. And why shouldn’t it be?

We can say that we did the best with what we had. As Americans, we thought it our job to attract the greatest amount of funds to the region, and we worked hard to do so. Once we had the funds, it was the Kurds turn to work hard in the design and execution of the projects, which they did extremely well. We were able to work with the wonderful Kurdistan Save the Children to rehabilitate three schools in Halabja. They did a magnificent job, far above and beyond the NGO industry standard. We also worked with local computer and internet providers to purchase computers and internet service for places like the hospital and Halabja Memorial, so they could connect with the outside world, and, more importantly, so that the outside world can connect with them. We funded the acquisitions of games and toys for the youth center and library, and even musical instruments, such as eastern pianos and violins, so that the region that is so well known for its music could continue its legacy. But we came to understand that these acts, although beneficial, were not addressing the true ailment of Halabja; the feeling that, even still, no one cares about the attacks, except politicians who use them in speeches. Realizing this, we took the remainder of our funds to build an furnish an addition to the Halabja Hospital, one that would be used as critical care unit, but double as the base for the caring of victims of the attacks, as well as a center for research on the immediate and long term effects of chemical exposure. It was here that we hoped that the psyche of Halabja would begin its healing process, by demonstrating that the outside world acknowledges the despicable crimes that were allowed to be committed against the Kurds, the cowardly inaction of the international community, and a desire to right the wrongs. What has become of our initiative, we do not know because, although we left the project funded, our tour was over before construction could begin.

Although we are happy with our efforts, we do wonder why more attention was not paid to Halabja. And, not just to Halabja, but to all the Iraqi Kurds. What other citizens of Iraq fought alongside (and, in many instances, in front of) U.S. forces? What other citizens of Iraq offered security and housing to U.S. forces? We do hope that the days of the international community neglecting the Kurds are coming to a close, and we will be sure to pay close attention and provide assistance in any way we can. It’s the least we can do for those who did so much for us, and who desire to do so much more for themselves.

CPT Justin Thomas, USAR

CPT Kevin Curseaden, USAR

KurdistanObserver.com