Horrible mistakes.

The following is an edited version of Kenneth's message to a friend that I (Barbara) am including in Kenneth's blog, because I found it most relevant as to what Kenneth and others are faced with.

A couple of weeks ago, Kenneth was headed out to go meet with the staff of a hospital that we accidentally rocketed five days earlier. Kenneth reported that

"unlike the criminal insurgent groups who purposefully seek to injure civilians, we try hard not to do so, but sometimes mistakes are made. This time we killed four Iraqi policemen in the process. Very tragic, and of course in the current context of high emotions amidst escalated fighting, very capable of stirring emotions. Within less than one week, however, the US military will have made condolence payments to the families and we are making plans to cover the cost of repairs. The US has a good track record in dealing with this kind of problem.

It was a long and tiring day. In addition to meeting with all the hospital reps, I was asked to address the Provincial Council on the same issue and there was an emotional (for them) Q and A session."

Kenneth wrote the above wondering if he would return, and because he wanted to have it noted.

Posted by Barbara Dillon Hillas

I was complaining about the lack of a dry cleaner...

... here on the compound . . . . until I learned today (April 18) what happened in Baghdad. Due to recent activities in the IZ (international zone), clothing dropped off from 21 thru 31 March at the Embassy's laundry department was not returned from the vendor. The Embassy has tried to contact the vendor in order to have the clothing returned, but so far has not been successful , although it has not given up hope on retrieving the clothing in another week.

Moving on...

Barbara "emotes" about moving yet one more time...

Hope and Humans - an update.

We got the little girl to Baghdad late yesterday, to be assessed and stabilized. Our good friend and world-renowned Czech spinal surgeon has been very helpful, and he contacted another spinal surgeon in Kuwait with whom we will try to work to have this little girl sponsored for
surgery there. I am working on getting her to either the UK or Kuwait.

Hope and Humans.

Written yesterday:

I thought of Adriana today.

I was contacted in the morning by the head of the Hillah doctors' association about helping a 13-year old Iraqi girl who was involved in a road accident and is now paralyzed. Without urgent medical attention, her prognosis is that she will suffer permanent paralysis and be a quadriplegic. Adequate medical care is not available in Hillah nor, it turned out, even in Baghdad. Those hospitals don't have the a surgical capabilities to deal with the spinal fractures she suffered.

We in the PRT were grounded today in anticipation that there might have been a resurgence of violence. Last evening Moqtada al-Sadr called off today's planned Million Man March on Baghdad, and some people were expecting the south-central provinces to be the stage for Sadr's followers to take to the streets. That left PRT staff with no outside activities scheduled. That was fortunate, because when I learned about this case, I asked my staff to start working on getting the young girl to Baghdad, not knowing then that even Baghdad did not have the required facilities. Well, everyone from the security offices in Hillah and Baghdad and a major contractor's physician's assistant in Hillah, to the Locally Engaged Staff, contract employees, FSOs (Foreign Service Officers) and the Third Infantry Division staff, all got behind the effort throughout the day. You would have thought that I put up the Hope Diamond as a prize!

After lots of hard work through the course of the day all the elements seemed to come together. I signed off on a memo this evening to the Chargé to have a formal request made so that this little girl will fly out of our compound tomorrow to a U.S. military medical facility north of Baghdad. Tragically, her Mom died today of injuries sustained in the same road accident. There are a few poignant ironies in all of this which give our help extra meaning, but that will have to await another day.

On reflection, it became apparent to me why so many people threw themselves into this effort with such gusto -- arranging in one day a medical helo, translating, scanning and transmitting medical records, working the phones, getting approvals, coordinating with the Hillah hospital and the family, arranging for ambulance transport, arranging for an accompanying nurse -- a PRT Civil Affairs officer who also has a teenage girl back in the US -- and lining up some media coverage. (After all, if we are going to do all this for a 13-year old girl, for whom the USG has no responsibility, there is no reason to keep that news under a rock.)

The reason for this humanitarian surge, perhaps, is that amidst all the death and destruction and occasional despair in and around our little corner of Iraq, the chance to save a little girl from permanent paralysis gave everyone a sense of promise and purpose. It is the antidote of hope to the horrors of war, and it just made everyone feel good. Between 6-7am Thursday morning we should know if we have a green light, and when that little girl flies out of here, she'll carry with her the hopes of more people than she'll ever know.

Planting a tree on Earth Day ...

... one of more than a thousand being planted in Babil as a gift of the American people. The date palm is Iraq's national tree -- although in fact it is actually a grass -- and is recognized as a symbol of peace. I am the bearded fellow.

Bombings, Babylon and the Bloody Sands.

It has been busy the last two weeks, and I had forgotten that I wrote much of this journal entry on March 13, the day before the first rocket attack on our compound in several months. Another occurred on March 17 and then again -- with more accuracy -- on March 28. We were very fortunate that no one was killed or injured. I have edited and updated the entry.

On March 20 I had the chance to participate in festivities marking Babil's designation as Iraq's cultural capital. It was one of the few "representational" activities in which I have had to engage. PM Maliki was there, and he gave a rather inspiring speech about the need to respect the rights of fellow citizens and about the change that has and is taking place in Iraq's political culture. One phrase -- about each person's freedom being tied to that of his neighbor -- could have come out of a US civics lesson. Although the festivities took place next to the Babylonian ruins -- the most important part of which (the Ishtar Gate) can be found in Berlin -- I did not have a chance to tour the ruins. Embarrassingly, my personal security detail rivaled that of the PM. I learned with surprise from some of the staff that TV viewers that evening saw a dark suited, tall, bearded man exchanging greetings with PM Maliki and assumed that it was . . . . a visiting Iranian official. As an American diplomat, I would prefer to be mistaken for something else.

It is quite impossible for PRT members to move around in a low profile fashion. We always move in a convoy of several vehicles with lots of guns and gunners. There is no alternative, given the present situation, but it is a sore point for the local population.

Another interesting site only a few minutes drive away is Abraham's birthplace, Borsippa. Together with Kish, another ancient ruin site, the tourism potential for Babil Province is not small, if the security situation were to improve significantly. I hope to have a chance to visit these two spots in the coming weeks, in shallah. The Governor last week signed MOUs with some Australian firms to build hotels and housing in Hillah. He wants to develop the tourism trade and I give him credit for thinking ahead. We are working with him to train staff on tourism and investment promotion activities. Not unsimilar to the kind of activity that took place in Eastern/Central Europe right after the fall of communism.

I have met often with Governor Salam -- three times in my first two days for a variety of reasons. He lived for many years in Iran and has an Iranian wife, in addition to his Iraqi wife. We stay in close touch; he is a "hands-on" Governor. All the activity in the south, including Babil, has limited our ability to move around, so the PRT does more work nowadays by phone. Today's announcement by Moqtada al-Sadr, the leader of an opposition Shia poliitical movement (with its own militia, Jaysh al-Mahdi), may open the door to resolution of the ongoing violence in the southern part of the country, most notably in Basrah but also in Baghdad. Today there was a memorial service for one of the Americans who was killed last week in a rocket attack on the IZ (International Zone).

Babil sits astride the main north-south transportation artery along which goods are moved by truck from Kuwait to Baghdad. Babil was under a curfew for the last few days, but that was lifted today -- to the great relief of our local employees. They are a great group and very dedicated. These folks risk their lives to work for the USG.

We have had a few dust storms in the last two weeks. After each, dust coats everything in the office. It makes no difference if your windows are closed. This stuff is so fine it seems to get through anyway. Its almost like a fog and you can taste it in the air.

Mental conditioning...

Barbara recommends an article she read in Men's Mental Health magazine on what makes the US Navy SEALS so brave. It starts with a description of Katyusha rockets exploding in Iraq...

Current situation.

I know that you must be reading about southern Iraq going to hell in a hand basket, and there is a bit of that going on, but I wanted you to know that I am fine. In fact, the more dangerous things become on the outside, the more we hunker down on our base. If one does not travel around, you can't be hit by an IED or have an EFP tear up your car. So the paradox is: the more dangerous it is, the more safe I am.

Drama comes naturally here and of course, there is a bit of drama to what is playing out.

Meanwhile, from the US Embassy in Baghdad:

Warden Message: Personal Protective Equipment and Hardened Structures

March 27, 2008

This is to notify all U.S. citizens in Iraq that the U.S. Embassy has announced that, until further notice, all personnel under the authority of the Chief of Mission are required to wear body armor, helmet and protective eyewear anytime they are outside of building structures in the International Zone. In addition, Chief of Mission personnel in the International Zone have been advised to remain inside of hardened structures at all times, except for mission essential movements.

Reality check...update:

Some of the latest news:

ISF contain violence in Hillah

Many killed by U.S. strike in Iraq's Hilla: sources

Reality check.

One of the first American diplomats in a while was killed yesterday in Baghdad. Paul Converse, who had earlier served here in Hillah, was a victim of the shelling that has hit the IZ (International Zone) hard recently. We have gunfire just 1 kilometer away, and some militants tried to seize a Police checkpoint I passed through this afternoon on the way to meet with the Governor and provincial security officials. Never a dull moment.

The fighting yesterday here in Hillah kept some of our staff from going home last night. There aren't any US journalists in this province, so the news here won't make it to the western media, except if the Katyusha rockets manage to land on our compound.

We have had to stay in the hotel this evening...

... unable to go to the DFAC (dining facility) or our SHUs (Single Housing Units or home trailers), because of fighting nearby. It's been nearly a week since my last journal entry, so this gives me a chance to write one.

Yesterday saw the imposition of a dawn to dusk curfew in Babil, which continued through today in an effort to tamp down outbreaks of violence. Most of this has come from disaffected Jaysh Al-Mahdi (JAM) elements (the Mahdi Army, also known as the Mahdi Militia). I met with the Governor and his key advisors today about this.

We are fortunate that our situation is better than that in Basrah. Babil's very competent SWAT forces have regional responsibilities, although they were quite engaged here in Hillah last evening. Prime Minister Maliki is directing the effort to reestablish government control in and around Basrah. That southern border is an area through which Iranian weapons are smuggled into Iraq. The events in Baghdad and Basrah, of course, have reverberations throughout the Shia community in the south, and tensions here are high.

Met two Polish soldiers this week up from their neighboring area. The province in which the Polish forces are based has seen lots of JAM activity this last week.

On a local note, yesterday was the day Shia celebrate the Prophet's birthday, while the Sunnis commemorated his birthday on March 20.

Last Thursday, I attended the opening festivities at the Babylonian ruins celebrating Babil's designation as Iraq's cultural capital. PM Maliki was there with the Minister of Agriculture and Deputy Minister of Culture. He gave an inspiring speech about the importance of freedom and how it has reshaped the country. I was taped being introduced to the PM, and was mistaken by some viewers as an Iranian diplomat, according to one of the PRT staff, because of my beard and dark suit. Barbara used to say that a beard made me look like a European socialist, something that didn't have much of an impact on me. But an Iranian diplomat?

The heat has arrived in the last two days...

I believe it got to 100F today, but it is much less painful than a Washington or Warsaw 100F. It is of course, much drier. Now I may have a different perspective on 130-140F.

We had no chaplain visit on Easter Sunday, so we had no Easter Service. Worked all day long. Everybody here works 7 days a week.

Awul stuff happens.

I did not know Paul Converse, the US Embassy employee who was killed during the Easter Sunday attack of the Green Zone in Baghdad, but some of our staff here did. He served in Hillah prior to Baghdad.

There is a 24-hour curfew in effect after the fighting here yesterday, but today has not seen the same level of violence. We had to provide shelter to some, because of the security situation -- fighting in the downtown area.

Here's what a "typical" day is like ...

...let's say this Thursday, March 19:

Babil PRT Staff meeting at 8:30am.

Fire training at 9am, which is a requirement for new arrivals.

1130am: I was to host a visiting Colonel from Baghdad and the Treasury Attaché, when I found out just prior to arrival by helo that it was a large delegation. After they deboarded we found out that an Ambassador, whom I had met many years ago, was the ranking person, (not the Colonel), plus a whole group of senior guys from USAID and the Embassy. (One of them asked where he had met me earlier, and it turns out he worked in USAID in Pretoria with Barbara. First person in Iraq to peg me as Barbara Hillas' husband!). Only when the meeting started did I and my deputies learn that the purpose of the visit was to critically look at PRTs...

Anyway, when the visiting delegation left after its one and one half hour visit, we threw on our armor vests and drove off to visit the Euphrates Fish Farm.

Got back to the compound just in time to sit down for almost two hours with a French/Iraqi film director, Amer Alwan, who is known for Zaman, the Man from the Reeds, a semi-documentary about a Marsh Arab. (The Smithsonian Magazine wrote about the Marsh Arabs 2.5 years ago and National Geographic 5 years ago ). His documentary on Iraq will be called "Another World", which pretty much captures my initial reactions to Hillah. He wants to show that life is starting to return to normal and that there is a new sense of hope in Iraq.

He is actually a native of Hillah who moved to France 25 years ago. This is his first time back and he was surprised in passing through Baghdad how easy it was to move around and that there was not a blanket of dread hanging over the city. He had the same impression in coming down here to Hillah.

At 6pm I was able to sit down and start to read emails. At 10pm the DFAC (dining facility) opens again for the late night crowd. In this place, you are never more than a few hours away from an amazingly bountiful buffet. It would be easy to gain weight here.

I prepared for the following day's ceremonies out at the Babylonian ruins celebrating Babil designation as Iraq's cultural capital. Prime Minister Maliki will be there as well.

I also learned that a Sadrist member of the Provincial Council called asking to meet with me about an issue that I'll skip over here.

By 10:30pm I was able to go grab a bite and then go to bed.

Birding in Iraq...

Barbara says it's coming in the mail...

Anglers delight!

Fish farming in Babil?

Sgt. Terry Alan Horn with his 50 lb. Iraqi carp.

Today we threw on our armor vests and drove off to visit the Euphrates Fish Farm (EFF, as it is known here), which is the site of a big multi-million dollar project to expand carp production.

Carp, of course, seem to be beloved by all the world except by North Americans, who still consider the fish trash.

Photo by Field and Stream

The project is moving along and at the end of the day Iraq will soon have several million more carp to eat.

Some will be exported down to Diwaniyah, but the Poles will be gone by the time that the carp are big enough to be eaten. (Both Poles and Czechs love their carp. It is their Christmas specialty.)

Did you know, for example, that carp scales are like trees? The EFF Director yanked one scale off a pregnant female -- don't tell PETA -- and showed me five rings for five years.

I now know way more about carp than I thought was possible!

Once upon a time in Babylon...

Babylon, the city made great by Hammurabi and his code, and made famous by the story of the Tower of Babel, was the site of the first recorded inflation, which lasted a decade! Alexander the Great was responsible for it... he was also mummified in Babylon.

Photo courtesy of The New York Times

This pic of a couple of years ago shows a Polish helicopter hovering over the ancient city of Babylon (about 10 kilometers from Hilla).

More general information about Babylon, from ancient times to present day can be found here.

Some of the things we do here...

The T-Wall Beautification project: beautifying the ugly, large cement slabs that surround provincial infrastructure, from Hamza to Jibala.

More Katyushas.

Voice of Iraq (Aswat Aliraq) reported the St. Patrick's day's attack on what many refer to as the US Consulate, but which is really the Regional Embassy Office (REO).

They missed again, but if you weren't awake by 6:17am -- I was -- you weren't likely to keep sleeping.

By the way, the Babel Hotel of the article was once a 4-star hotel!

Iraqi sand storms...

The sand is so super fine that it suspends in the air like a fog.

Guess where the Spanish "Usted" comes from?

.........It comes from "Usthaat", which in Arabic is used as "sir", and actually means professor.

Inspection.

Yesterday we walked around the school that was damaged by the Katyushka rocket attack - just before a dust storm hit.

On the wall next to the Arabic writing that you can see in the background of one of the two photos below, there was a long biography of Christopher Columbus in English!

I have an armor on underneath my jacket, so rumors of my having gained 20 lbs are false.

The FLO (Family Liason Officer) said to us at the crash and bang course back in Washington, people return from Iraq as hunks, drunks, skunks (the guys who cheat), or junks (messed up).

We had a bit of excitement here last evening...

.. which has evidently made it to some LA news website. So I wanted you to hear from me that I am fine and no one here was hurt when we had a few (21) rockets launched at the compound. All of the rockets missed us, although a local school and a few homes were struck. I visited the school today (Saturday) to look at the damage. It is repairable, and fortunately the attack took place on a Friday so school was not in session and no children were hurt.

UPDATE: One woman was killed and it was not 21 rockets but 25! Check out here and here.

Hilla reflections...

It is very dusty and I ruined my dark suit trying to clean my dust filled office while wearing it, and there is no dry cleaning here, unlike Baghdad.

This place is soooo dusty.

My trailer is in an area where there are no lights, so I can't see a thing at night. Kind of freaky.

Had my first armored vehicle sortie today to attend the Provincial Council session. Met the Governor later in the day while hosting a meeting for visiting Gen. Cardone.

This place takes some adjusting. I am trying not to gain weight. Started exercising today.