iraq
Farahkchi Pride
I know one gay guy. I met him about eight years ago at the Baghdad fine arts college. It's weird because he is married and has very cute twins, but all his friends know he is gay.
Weapons Of Mass Bewilderment
The infamous battle of the Baghdad airport took place in the first week of April 2003. It was the final battle of the "official" conquest of Iraq.
Shhhhh!
"Sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll" is a Western concept. In Iraq, it's more about the lack of these things. Nightclubs don't exist, sex is sacred and private, and you'd have a better chance seeing two people making out in the street than you would of...
Third Ass From The Right
Iraqis, after living for decades under an oppressive totalitarian regime in which one offhand remark could ensure a quick trip to the gallows, have mastered the art of the whispered political riff.
Baghdad Brothel
Allah never smiled on street walking. Under Iraq's former Baathist regime, being a prostitute was seriously risky business.
You Can't Go Home Again
Mostafa Alshawi fled from Iraq to Sweden with his family when he was three. 20 years later he returned to his home country. He's a proud member of the Shia Islamic clan of the fishermen in Iraq, and in Sweden he is enrolled in the Police Academy.
Insurgent Vs. Insurgent
Abu Omar cleans his machine gun with an old checkered Arab headdress that he also uses to conceal his identity when he's fighting on the streets. But this insurgent hasn't fought the Americans in two weeks.
Little Iraq
I have two cousins that live in Iraq. Sara is 15 years old and Dani is 13. They both live in the al-Yarmouk district of Baghdad, which locals have christened "the streets of death" due to the constant attacks and random violence that plagues the area.
I Was Uday Hussein
The hand that rocks the oil pumps controls the world. Between 1979 and 2003, that hand was Saddam Hussein's. He would also use it to sign death warrants on dissenters, to murder his own countrymen, and to plot disastrous wars with neighboring countries.
Goal!
Iraqi people have always really liked soccer. In any neighborhood you go, you'll find kids and men alike playing the game passionately, as though great kingdoms depend on the outcome.
Saddam H. Christ
Dr. Najeeb Al-Nuaimi was a lead lawyer on Saddam Hussein's final legal defense team. Al-Nuaimi first came to prominence defending Guantánamo Bay inmates, and recently this renowned human rights activist of the Arab world sat down to talk to us.