Troops construct wall to section off Sadr City

[unhappycamper]

Troops construct wall to section off Sadr City
By Joseph Giordono, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Saturday, April 19, 2008

American troops have begun construction of a massive concrete blast wall that will section off parts of the Shiite slum of Sadr City, U.S. military officials and news reports said.

Sadr City is the stronghold of Muqtada al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army militia, and U.S. officials have said the indirect-fire attacks peppering the Green Zone during the past month have been launched from that part of Baghdad.

Using huge concrete blast walls to cordon off large sections of Baghdad has become one of the U.S. and Iraqi militaries’ favored tactics in the city. The purpose, military officials have said, is to prevent insurgents or criminals from entering and leaving neighborhoods at will. The walls are generally accompanied by checkpoints, manned by anyone from U.S. military to U.S.-funded, armed civilian groups (called “Sons of Iraq” by the military).

The Sadr City wall was first reported by The New York Times, which had a reporter embedded with the unit putting up the walls. The work began Tuesday night, the Times reported.

Once the wall is completed, the area of Sadr City will be flooded with government reconstruction efforts, officials said.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=54162

[annabanana]

1. This should be in GD! We are constructing ghettos in Baghdad..

wonderful.

[midnight]

2. Last night Bill Moyer's interviewed a Journalist who spoke of her

experiences in this city. Sounds like a no win situation. Very condensed and populated poor community. It use to be referred to as Sadam city. Waste matter just flows in the streets. Our soldiers are occupying abandoned homes and when family's come back to get their children's school books, they are not allowed back in their homes. It is a very sad situation.

[izzie]

3. Yes the 'wall' and how they work. Any one read Hersey's book?

Shades of the German army and how they did things. I hate to read about it. I am just to old and these things are left in my mind from times past. Shame on us.