18 - 24 October 2001
Issue No.556
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Al-Ahram Weekly Online 18 - 24 October 2001 Issue No.556 |
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War diary
Sunday 7 October
My cell phone rings, rousing me from an uneasy sleep. "It's started," says my brother. His daughter is expecting a baby any time. "Are you at the hospital?" I ask. "No," he says. "I mean the war. Aren't you watching the news?" I hate admitting that I have been caught napping. "Look at the green square on the screen," my brother says. "That's Kandahar. Call me when you wake up -- no, wait: turn to Al-Jazeera." I fiddle with the remote control and Osama Bin Laden is suddenly staring me in the eye. He looks cold, sad and inspired, but ill; he seems out of breath. Maybe the transmission is poor. Three cronies flanking him speak in turn. It is obviously a staged performance, and a masterful one. It is hard not to be moved by his speech. He is in prophetic mode and his espousal of the Palestinian cause is calculated to increase his popular appeal exponentially. When George Bush addresses the nation, later, he seems clumsier than ever in comparison.
I watch television all night, dividing my attention between Al-Jazeera, TV5 and CNN. Still, I cannot understand what warrants the use of such a formidable arsenal against Afghanistan. Poor President Musharraf is in a catch-22 situation: doomed if he accedes to US demands and doomed if he doesn't. He tries to keep a stiff upper lip, but perspiration is visible on his brow.
Finally they trot out the senile former king, who, with the assistance of the dismal Northern Alliance, is presented as an alternative preferable to the Taliban. The farce is complete. It is time to catch a few hours of sleep.
Monday 8 October
Before leaving for work, I watch the results of the night's attack. The desert has been bombed heavily, but to what purpose? It seems hard to say. The "before and after" views are little different. I take a taxi to work. "What did you think of Bin Laden?" asks the driver. "What about you?" I retort prudently. "He is our hero," he says. "He will put the fear of God in the Americans yet. They are a depraved people who do not believe in justice. They threaten the Muslims instead of solving the Palestinian problem. If they want peace, they have to stop Israel. Now they are the ones suffering; but they have done far worse to us. You are a journalist, you should know: what do I have to do to join the Taliban?" I advise him to look after his wife, children and taxi. He shakes his head bitterly.
There is a great deal to be done, but I linger in the layout room, where the television is on. Expert after expert spouts wisdom about "Eezlaarm" and what a peaceful religion it is, but no one wonders why such peace-loving people agree to transform themselves into living missiles to get their message across.
Bush, members of Congress and cheerleader Blair are all embarrassingly emphatic, falling all over themselves to convince the world that they are waging a war against terrorists who just happen to be Arabs and Muslims, but that they have nothing against the Arab world -- on the contrary. Blair himself is a regular reader of the Qur'an as well as the Bible. Aren't we impressed? What better proof do we need? And don't forget the packages of food raining down on the Afghans together with the bombs. We kill them, but we give them bakshish too, in the consecrated tradition.
Many letters to the editor tell another story. Several elaborate on a favourite theme: "You hate us because we are good and you are evil;" "you hate us because we are rich and you are jealous." They remind us spitefully that America is our benefactor. Where is our abject gratitude? We can't depart from our scripted role now. How the mighty fall!
A Russian plane out of Tel Aviv explodes over the Black Sea. More terrorism? Or the Russians shooting themselves in the foot? No one wants to say. Whatever the outcome, someone is bound to be acutely embarrassed.
Tuesday 9 October
The American public has something else to feed its fear on: germ and chemical warfare. A fatal case of anthrax has been detected in Florida. I call my daughter. "How far is Boca Raton from where you live?" As usual, she tries to reassure me, but I can hear fear in her voice. "I wish I could wake up and find that all this has been a nightmare," she says.
Bin Laden is as elusive as ever and the stock market is down. So is air travel, regardless of Bush's personal reassurances. He seems worried about public opinion, and he should be. Many Americans want revenge; the rest of the world believes he is overreacting. This is special kind of war, he keeps saying. There is a great deal of talk about targeting infrastructure, not innocent civilians. Too bad for the UN workers, but what are four people compared to 6,000? When the chips are down America behaves in a very conventional way. It has no compunction about hitting on the weak. One cannot help thinking of Israeli aggression against the Palestinians.
Intense, round-the-clock bombardment of Taliban strongholds continues. No less is required, it seems.
NATO AWACs will patrol US airspace. They'll be safer, that's for sure; let's hope they don't shoot down passenger planes by mistake.
Two more cases of anthrax at the same Florida company make the headlines. The disgruntled director appears on Larry King Live, asserting that he is the victim of a terrorist attack.
Wednesday 10 October
There are many civilian casualties but no apologies for the "collateral damage." The Afghans will have to do better to match the numbers of the WTC attack.
My brother's daughter gives birth. It's a girl. Welcome to the war, little one.
Thursday 11 October
It's been a month since the WTC attack. Memorial services are held in the US and England. A great debate rages concerning messages Bin Laden could be sending his associates via his appearances on Al-Jazeera. Does drinking a glass of water mean that a Great Attack will come from the sea? At 4am Cairo time, Bush holds a press conference. It is confusing, to say the least. More terrorist attacks are imminent. People should go about their usual business, yet remain in a state of alert. What does a state of alert imply? He can't say. Maybe they should look both ways before crossing streets. Bush calls Bin Laden "the Evil One." Deliver him to us or else, he warns. He reminds me of a Sunday school teacher haranguing mentally challenged pre-teens.
Friday 12 October
Bush's performance is aired again. In case someone missed the message, "the US will prevail."
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