Survival of Abu-Ghraib Jail

This entry is part 5 of 10 in the series Survival of Abu-Ghraib Jail

Dr. Ala Musa Hasan | Exclusive to iKurd.net

From pitiable to the pits

For many years, the Faili Kurds experienced a systematic discriminations, bureaucratic segregations, and state-sponsored persecution in Iraq. As I noted in my last narrative that derision and degradation had a formidable influence on the Faili youths behaviors, and it compelled them to risk their lives to avoid humiliation, and some of them choose a suicide mission in response to the threat of humiliation.

Like I stated in my previous sequence, that the Faili Kurds youths were discriminated against and disgraced on the bases of their ethnic background, faith, language, culture, and identity that are not readily changeable. It was a huge strike at the very essence of their sense of being and belonging.

At Abu-Ghraib Jail, the Faili Kurds youths felt so disparaged, scorned, and disrespected for what who they were, rather than for what they did. When they were situated at Abu-Ghraib Jail, they got the impression that they were being punished on the root of their ethnic background and identity, because, they fail to live up to the customs of the societal ideals and the slandered of what constitutes a good and suitable Iraqi citizens in the eyes of the dominant group as well as the eyes of others in the region.

When the Faili Kurds youths rampaged through the Abu-Ghraib facility in order to free other incarcerated youths, the Jail guards left the facility and they were on stand by at distance. All youths went out running around Abu-Ghraib facility and they were shattering “This is our country, let us out” and “God Grate”.

I was so shock seeing this and I did not know what to do, I just stood out by the cell gate, watching everybody and especially the guards. Because what was going on, it did not look normal to me, and I was not sure what the guards are waiting for, and how come they are not intervening. I had all these questions in my mind and I was so speechless.

Later on all youths went outside to the Jail field and they got a steal bed and placed it against the wall and they all climbed over it to the top of the Jail roof that had a long walking path that the Jail guards uses it when they are looking out for the prisoners. I was too afraid to do that so I stood by the cell gate watching them from distance.

Some youths called me to come up and to join them, but I did not know what to do and where to go, thus, I decided to clime up and be present with them. By then, all youths started to settle down and they sat down waiting for help. I did not know what we were waiting for, and what our plan was. I just started to walk around there and not to discern myself with what next.

This whole event lasted for almost two hours and there were about almost 1000 youths in the loose. Those youths were able to free only four large cells that were in the same hallway close by.

While I was walking around not knowing what to do and what is fate is holding for us, not to long after that,, I heard a lots of gun shots above our heads and we all lay down to the ground, and I was pushed by other youths and jumped down from the roof which was about three meters and injured my right hand and leg, so I dragged myself back to our cell and I stood by the cell gate watching what was going on.

I saw that we were surrounded by Saddam’s especial forces with their guns and sticks firing above the youth’s heads. When these forces got closer to the youths , they stopped shooting, and I saw the youths got themselves together holding each others hand and at the same time, they were very frightened and they were shouting “This is our country, let us out”.

The commander of the especial forces, talked to the youths and he told them that he does not want to harm them and they should com down. The youths asked the commander about their status and why they were incarcerated for no reasons, and what is going to happened to them? He mentioned that this will get settle soon and they should go back to their cells.

Some of the youths told Saddam’s commander about what the Jail commander said to them earlier regarding their mothers and sisters, and the commander said that he will talk to him about that.

After that talk, the youths were told to go down to the jail field in order to relocate them into other cells. All youths were gathered in the Jail field and we were surrounded by Saddam’s forces for almost four hours. I also saw many members of Saddam’s Intelligent Unit being there as well.

After all the youths gathered at the jail field, the Jail guards asked all youths who got injured to come to the Jail clinic for treatment. I was very scared to go there, but many youths who got injured did go for treatment, and after a lengthy time, they came back to the Jail field with bruises on there faces.

They were interrogated and tortured by the Intelligent Officers asking them questions about who started this occurrence. I do remember the night before this incident, the guy from Ahwaze Iran, shared with me that his right hand was very itchy, and this was an indication for him that he will get some money tomorrow. I was very sceptic about that, because we were incarcerated in a maximum security Jail and there is no way that he will get paid money inside the Jail.

However, he was one of the people who went to the clinic for treatment and once he got there, he was ruthlessly interrogated by the Intelligent Officer. He shared with me his story and what happened to him at the interrogation, and he said that the Intelligent Officer gave him a hard slab on his face, so he felled to the ground.

This poor guy is suffering from epilepsy, and while he was incarcerated, his epilepsy was triggered many times. When he was beaten by the Officer, he felt so afraid and his epilepsy was triggered. The Intelligent Officer felt sorry for him and once the poor guy came to his senses, the Intelligent Officer gave him two Iraqi Dienarre.

So he came back to the Jail field smiling and he said to me “didn’t I tell you last night that I will receive some money tomorrow?, there it is”, and he showed me the money in his hand.

When I was standing in the Jail’s field, and by the way, this was the first and the only time that we ever saw the sun after being there for few months, I saw the commander walking around in the Jail field among the youths, so one of the Iranian Kurdish guys stopped the commander and told him that he is a Kurdish guy from Iran and he wants to know what is going to happened to him, the commander gave him a funny look, and he replied to him, “did’nt we have enough Kurdish people in our land, so you had to add to them?. So the Kurdish guy was so shocked hearing that, and he looked at me surprised with open mouth.

After being at the Jail field for almost four hours, finally, they open the gate and asked us to line up and inter another section of the Abu-Ghraib Jail. This time, they placed each 14 youths with their belonging into individual cells 2.5 meters square by three meters square (the size of small bedroom).

Those cells were so small that we could not all sleep lying down on the floor, because there was not enough room for all of us to lay down. Some of us used to sleep while they were sitting down. Each of those cells had one little open bathroom with no shower.

We felt so depressed and hopeless being in those cells and some of us refused to eat and many of them used to cry most of the time. Each day being there, our feelings, health, mental status, emotions, and living condition was getting from bad to worst.

I used to go in deep thought thinking about our situation, and I asked myself many times this question,” Why us”? “What did we do to deserve this treatment”? and “When will this end”? I could not come up with any gratifying answers for any of my above questions and I was very frustrated with that.

What you about to read in these narratives the facts and the misery that the Faili Kurds youths had to go through while they were incarcerated at Abu-Ghraib Jail.

Like I stated above, that the Faili Kurds youths were tortured physically, mentally, emotionally, and psychologically for who what they were, not for what they actually did. They were discriminated against and disgraced on the bases of their ethnic background, faith, language, culture, and identity that are not changeable.

Dr. Ala Musa Hasan, a Canada-based Faili Kurd, PHD Candidates in Clinical Psychology.

The opinions are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of iKurd.net or its editors.