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BAGHDAD, June 4, 2005 (IslamOnline.net) – US Apache helicopters have become
a nightmare for Iraqi farmers and villagers who had thousands of acres of their
farmlands destroyed by the flash bombs poured on them almost every day.
“These damned Apaches daily fire their flash bombs, burning vast swathes
of land,” Abu Mohammad, who owns a farmland near the northern city of
Mosul, told IslamOnline.net.
“These bombs remain glowing as they are fired from low altitude with
date palms taking the brunt.”
He said the fireballs, as Iraqis call them, have burnt and razed thousands
of donums of malt and wheat in his Rabiea village.
American attack helicopters usually fired the flash bombs from low altitude,
turning the night sky into morning in search for potential resistance fighters.
The bombs have also scorched thousands of date palms spreading along the riverbeds
of the Tigris and the Euphrates.
Some villagers see the Apache raids as some sort of punishment because the
occupation troops repeatedly accused them of giving resistance fighters safe
haven in their farmlands.
Insomnia
The deafening sound of the Apaches, which hover over the rooftops of Iraqi
houses, has also deprived many Iraqis of a nice sleep since the start of the
US occupation in April 2003.
These rooftops used to be the perfect place for Iraqis in summertime to escape
the stifling heat and moisture at home. They are not any longer.
“My children are panicked by the disturbing sound of the Apaches and
the Chinooks,” Abdel Salam, from southern Baghdad, told IOL.
“Every night I woke up to the sound of these warplanes, reckoning that
a US tank had stormed my home,” added Munir Al-Hamdani.
The hard time given by the US warplanes to civilians make them cheer at the
news of a helicopter crash or downing by resistance fire.
Up to 25 US helicopters and warplanes crashed or were brought down since the
start of the US occupation of the oil rich country.
International human rights watchdogs have frequently said that the indiscriminate
US raids into Iraqi cities have added insult to injury.
Amnesty International in September harshly criticized the US for killing dozens
of civilians in a number of deadly consecutive air strikes into the war-battered
city of Fallujah.
Press reports and medical sources said that women and children were among people
killed in the predawn missile attacks on the resistance hub
