- Title: IRAQ: EID SCENES IN RUINED FALLUJA.
- Date: 21st January 2005
- Summary: (BN14) FALLUJA, IRAQ (JANUARY 20, 2005) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 1. GV: FALLUJA, MOSQUE IN BACKGROUND 0.05 2. GV: LEVELLED HOUSES, EMPTY STREETS (5 SHOTS) 0.32 3. GV: EXTERIOR OF MOSQUE 0.37 4. GV/MV: PEOPLE GREETING EACH OTHER AT MOSQUE (3 SHOTS0 0.55 5. (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SAED MOHAMMED KALIFA, FALLUJA RESIDENT, SAYING: "We returned to Falluja because of Eid, but what Eid? The city is ruined. You cry when you see the condition of the mosques. There is no life, nothing that implies there is a holiday. There is sadness, people are sad." 1.19 6. LV/GV: MAN WRITING 'FAMILY' ON HOUSE TO LET U.S. FORCES KNOW THAT IT IS A CIVILIAN HOME (3 SHOTS) 1.29 7. GV/CU: UM AHMED, FALLUJA RESIDENT, POURING WATER IN HER HOUSE (2 SHOTS) 1.41 8. (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) UM AHMED, SAYING: "We came back and found our house levelled. We are two families in this house. We don't have water, or electricity or petrol. The last Eid, we were mourning and this Eid we are mourning again. Half our men have been killed." 2.03 9. LV: MOSQUE 2.10 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 5th February 2005 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: FALLUJA, IRAQ
- Country: Iraq
- Reuters ID: LVA91TUUX33HPPQ2C2SBMW9HABES
- Story Text: Sombre mood in Falluja for Muslim feastival.
Most of Falluja's residents will not be celebrating
the Muslim feast of Eid Al Adha in the usual way this year.
Following a month-long U.S. assault that began in
November, the living conditions in the city have become
even poorer, with electricity sporadic, municipal water
available only a few hours a day, and many homes levelled
or destroyed during the fighting.
"We returned to Falluja because of Eid, but what Eid?
The city is ruined. You cry when you see the condition of
the mosques. There is no life, nothing that implies there
is a holiday," said Saed Mohammed Kalifa, a Falluja
resident, who had fled the area during the fighting.
The offensive, designed to uproot insurgents from what
had become a guerrilla bastion, was declared a success but
aid workers said 200,000 people fled Falluja before the
assault. The city was estimated to have had a population of
around 250,000 before the offensive. It is not clear how
many people stayed behind during the fighting, although it
is thought to have been around 50,000, mostly in outlying
areas.
An estimate of 1,600 people were killed in the assault
and thousands more injured. The city which was packed with
its residents is now ghost town.
"We came back and found our house levelled. We are two
families in this house" said Um Ahmed.
"The last Eid, we were mourning and this Eid we are
mourning again. Half are men have been killed," Ahmed added
Un Ahmed, like many other Falluja residents does not
water and electricity and other basic services and
communications which were knocked out in the assault.
Iraq's government has said it will pay 2000 U.S. dollars
compensation for partial damage to homes, 4000 U.S. dollars
for substantial damage and 10,000 U.S. dollars to those
whose homes were completely destroyed - far less than
Iraqis say they would need to rebuild their homes.
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