Pacifica Foundation, KIRKUK, IRAQ – Who's backing the terrorists? That's a question many here are asking after Tuesday's twin bombings of Shi'ite religious celebrations in Baghdad and Karbala. Most people don't seem to think it's al-Qaeda.
The Americans “encourage these bombings in order to be sure that they will stay here for a long time,” suggests Muftar al-Hassan Romathey, an activist in the organization of the young Ayatolla Muqtar al-Sadr. Look at the timing, he says: “The bombings yesterday were timed with the signing of the new constitution in Baghdad. When these steps finish they will have to leave this area and for this reason they are encouraging this terrorism.”
The Eid attacks on Baghdad mark the third time major political or religious activities have been bombed since the Americans Army took over from Saddam Hussein's. The first victim was Ayatolla Bakir al-Hakim whose Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq receives support from the government of Iran. Next came the bombing of the Kurdish Parliament in Arbil, a key source of power independent of America.
Al-Qaeda, which like most terrorist organizations is usually quick to claim responsibility for its acts, sent a statement to London-based al-Quds al Arabi flatly denying it had “anything to do at all” with the bombings.
So who's the guilty party? Ali Adnan Adwan has an idea. The 25 year old Shi'ite graduated law school a few months before last years war, but with limited telephone service and intermittent electricity its hard to run a law practice. So he started a fruit stand.
“The people who don't have jobs will go to anyone with money and explode themselves.” He cites a story a taxi driver told him that there are people willing to pay $250,000 to potential suicide bombers. “So their family and their grandchildren will be able to live well in the future.”
Shop-keeper Ali Adnan Adwan, like almost everyone in Iraq, knows George Bush has gotten $87 billion extra from American taxpayers to spend in Iraq. He suggests if some of that went to the Iraqi people there would be fewer bombings.
