A Letter From Alan Johnston To Shihab Al Tamimi

Alan Johnston, the former BBC's Gaza correspondent who has been kidnapped by a militant group in Gaza and stayed in captivity from March the 12th 2007 till July the 4th 2007, has sent me those words for our Precious martyr, the peer of Iraqi journalists Shihab Al Tamimi : " Every death in Iraq is an utter waste- a tragedy for those who loved the victim and a loss to the nation as a whole. But as a journalist I can't help but be particularly aware of the number of my Iraqi colleagues who have been among the casualities. Among those to die most recently was Shihab Al Tamimi. I was not familiar with his work, but I am reliably informed that he was a much respected figure who will be badly missed by his devoted readers. And I have no doubt that he was a man of real courage. Given the appalling number of deaths among his colleagues, he must have been extremely dedicated to going through about his work. One day Iraq will emerge from the horrors through which it is passing at the moment. But its recovery and eventual transformation into a something better will surely be hampered by the loss of Mr Al Tamimi and so many other fine, brave journalists. " . Those are the words of a very brave Scottish man to a very brave Iraqi man. May Allah bless your soul Shihab Al Tamimi. And Alan Johnston, my great Scottish hero, THANKS A MILLON from me and from my Iraq. With my love. Yours forever, Lubna.

A Very Sad Day

Hi. Today the peer of Iraqi journalists Shihab Al Tamimi has gone. He was seriously injured on Friday the 23rd of Feb. when 'THEY' shot him in Al Waziriya district in Baghdad. And today he died at the age of 75 years. So this is another victory for 'THEM'. Today 'THEY' have succeeded in shutting up another free Iraqi voice. Mr Al Tamimi isn't the 1st, and won't be the last. 250 Iraqi journalists were murdered since 2003 and till now. I stand and shout outloud : ENOUGH silence ! I'd say to journalists all over the World : Your Iraqi colleagues are being murdered in Iraq. We want your reactions. We want your condemnations. I'm asking from any journalist who receives this message to write a post for my blog about the assassination of the peer of the Iraqi journalists Shihab Al Tamimi. With my love. Yours forever, Lubna.

Al Hussein Bin Ali-A Tear On The Cheek Of Eternity-Part 1

Hi. Millions and millions of Iraqi Muslim Shiites are heading on their feet towards the Iraqi city of Karbala to visit the Holy Shrine of Al Imam Al Hussein Bin Ali. Those millions are acknowledging Al Arbaeen, the end of forty days of mourning for Al Imam Al Hussein martyrdom which took place 1400 years ago. Al Imam Al Hussein is the grandson of the Prophet of Islam Mohammed. 50 years after the Prophet's death, Yazid, the corrupt and shameless man who deviated from the pathway of true Islam, took power by force, and forced all Muslims to submit to his ruling by the power of sword. Al Imam Al Hussein refused to submit to the ruling of Yazid. People of Iraqi city of Kufa sent 20 thousands letters to Al Imam inviting them to come to their city, and Al Imam responded to their invitation positively. So He, together with 73 of his family members, close friends, servants, and devout believers who later joined the holy caravan. All of those people left Al Madina, the holy city of the Prophet Mohammed (in current Saudi Arabia) and headed towards the Iraqi city of Kufa. But Yazid reacted quickly. He changed the ruler of Kufa, and put the brutal and shameless man, Bin Ziyad in that position. Bin Ziyad, the new ruler of Kufa, by the orders of Yazid, directed an army of 30 thousand soldiers to prevent the caravan of Al Imam from reaching Al Kufa. The huge army trapped the caravan in an area in the desert (now the Iraqi city of Karbala) and Al Imam Al Hussein was given two options by Yazid : either surrender and submit to Yazid's power or fight to death. Al Imam refused to surrender. He asked all his companions to leave him alone and run away in the night. But all his family members, close friends, servants, and devout believers refused to leave him, and they all swore to fight with him till death. The holy caravan was so thirsty. Yazid's army deprived them of water. The summer was so hot and the desert was merciless. People of Kufa who sent 20 thousand letters to invite Al Imam to come to their city, eventually let him down. Bin Ziyad threatened them with sword and seduced them with gold. To be continued. With my love. Yours forever, Lubna. PS, Abdelilah, THANKS A MILLON my good friend.

From Rainy Baghdad

Hi from rainy Baghdad. If you ask any Baghdadi "What's your ultimate dream ?!", then he'll reply to you at once without any hesitation "Al Aman". Al Aman means safety in English. One of the most terrible feelings that most Baghdadis are still experiencing till now despite the relative improvement in the security situation is FEAR. Yes my good friends. If you want me to tell you who the Baghdadi is in one word then I'll answer you "The Baghdadi is a SCARED human being !". When you live in Baghdad, then you must get used to experiencing many feelings that are surely considered- by the standards of people who live in safe places- horrific : When you see a loved one of yours, you must keep in your mind that there's a possibility that this may be the last time you see him/her. When one of your family members gets out of the house, then your heart will keep burning till he/she gets back home again. Everytime you wanna get out of your house, then you must ask yourself "Do I have to do this ?! Do I have to get out of my house ?!". Because everytime you get out of your house, there's a possibility that you may get killed. When you're chained with fear, then you won't be able to work properly, you won't be able to go on with your life properly. When fear controls your life, then you'll be a slave. If we stop being afraid, then I can tell you that we'll be ok ! With my love. Yours forever, Lubna. PS, to my love Anita from the US : THANKS A MILLON sweetie.

No War No Peace

Hi. These days I often get very confused when someone from outside Iraq asks me : "What's the situation like in Baghdad at the moment ?". Is the security situation on the ground in Baghdad getting better ?! Or is it still as bad as it used to be in the past ?! No one inside or outside Iraq can deny that the level of violence in Iraq these days is much much less than it used to be before. That's a fact. But the question that occupies the heads of most Baghdadis is "Will that last ?!". Nobody really knows the answer to that question. The thing that we are all sure of is that 'THEY' are still there, and that 'THEY' are still active and still can operate till now. Today 40 Iraqi civilians were murdered and 60 others were injured as 'THEY' targeted Iraqi Muslim Shiite pilgrims heading on foot towards the Iraqi city of Karbala to visit the Holy Shrine of Al Imam Al Hussein. May be in Iraq the rule is there's no rule. So I guess that I'll answer anyone who asks me how the security situation in Baghdad is "Fluctuating. No war but at the same time no peace !". With my love. Yours forever, Lubna.