tribal feuds spread fear in iraqs basra
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today
Arab Today, arab today
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today

despite years of regular clashes

Tribal feuds spread fear in Iraq's Basra

Arab Today, arab today

Arab Today, arab today Tribal feuds spread fear in Iraq's Basra

An Iraqi soldier checks a driver's documents at a checkpoint in northern Basra.
Basra - Arab Today

Daud Salman and his family stayed put in their Iraqi village despite years of regular clashes between tribes, but when a stray bullet wounded his son, it was time to move.

In the north of Basra province, "bullets talk," he said.

Feuds between the region's half-dozen tribes often flare into pitched battles with assault rifles and machineguns, killing bystanders and driving a never-ending cycle of revenge attacks.

Security forces, fearing reprisals, rarely intervene.

The region near Iraq's southern border with Kuwait has long been the scene of inter-tribal battles over business disputes, questions of honour or even football matches.

But with security forces deployed to the country's north to battle the Islamic State group (IS), Basra residents caught in the crossfire say they feel abandoned.

"Peaceful families that have no weapons can't live," said Daud, 41.

The clashes have transformed residential areas into battlefields, he said.

It was during yet another gunfight that Daud's son Ali, 15, took a bullet to the shoulder as he stood in front of the family home.

That finally prompted the family to move to Basra city, away from the tribal areas.

Residents of the province's north say security forces are powerless to halt the clashes.

In the absence of heavily armed military and federal police forces, "local police are reluctant... to get involved in these battles because there is nothing to protect them," said provincial council member Ghanem Hamid.

Even in situations where they could prevent the violence, police officers -- many of whom hail from the tribes involved -- hesitate to intervene for fear of later reprisals.

Haydar Ali, a 34-year-old engineer, suggested deploying soldiers and policemen from other provinces "who have no social relations or tribal ties that could affect their role".

Residents have called on security forces to confiscate weapons, but regular raids have had little impact on the vast numbers of arms circulating in the province.

Tribes in Basra, the only province of Iraq with access to the sea, obtained a glut of weapons when the army of the late Saddam Hussein withdrew from Kuwait in 1991 in a hasty retreat.

They further boosted their stockpiles following the US-led invasion in 2003, said Sheikh Abbas al-Fadhli, who advises the provincial governorate on tribal affairs.

The tribal disputes have a direct impact on Basra's economy.

Clashes in the oil-rich region, a base for several foreign companies and oil refineries, have caused many to suspend operations, said General Jamil al-Shomary, an army commander in Basra.

"A tribal fight can close down roads for three or four days," preventing people from reaching work, he said.

"There have even been attacks against oil companies."

- 'Condemned by society' -

Ali said putting an end to the violence would also require a change in mentalities.

"Criminals and people who provoke tribal clashes need to be condemned by society before they're condemned by the courts," he said.

Teacher Saadoun Jassim al-Ali, 46, blamed "lawlessness and impunity" that had allowed instigators of clashes to remain at large.

Sheikh Mohammad al-Zidawi, an elder of the Bu Zayd tribe, said "the wide availability of weapons" was to blame.

He is a member of a committee set up to mediate between tribes.

In 2017, "it resolved 176 tribal disputes, including some that had lasted 15 years," he said.

The committee organises meetings between dignitaries from tribes involved in disputes.

Families of slain tribal members spend hours wrangling over the "blood price" -- financial compensation for their bereavement -- or the banishment of certain tribal members.

Kirk Sowell, a political risk analyst who publishes Inside Iraqi Politics, said the Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary coalition set up to fight IS was complicating matters.

"Many of the myriad of Hashed groups are turning into local mafias," he said.

"Basra has both a major tribal violence problem and (a problem with) organised crime."

 

Source: AFP

arabstoday
arabstoday

Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

tribal feuds spread fear in iraqs basra tribal feuds spread fear in iraqs basra

 



Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

tribal feuds spread fear in iraqs basra tribal feuds spread fear in iraqs basra

 



GMT 04:22 2017 Tuesday ,26 December

Israel in touch with '10 countries' over embassy moves

GMT 19:43 2017 Friday ,06 October

Employee safety top priority at Khalifa Port

GMT 16:19 2017 Friday ,28 April

ISIS Suspect Arrested in Western Germany

GMT 12:57 2017 Monday ,11 December

50 Students Poisoned by Contaminated Well Water

GMT 16:31 2017 Thursday ,10 August

Palestinians will discuss decline of aids

GMT 21:15 2017 Saturday ,04 March

Obama never ordered surveillance on any US citizen

GMT 10:00 2017 Thursday ,09 March

Russia ‘can be good friends with GCC’

GMT 02:13 2017 Wednesday ,22 February

Russian helicopter crash kills 19 in Siberia

GMT 13:23 2017 Tuesday ,05 December

Lebanon PM Hariri rescinds resignation

GMT 00:39 2017 Tuesday ,05 December

Gunmen kill cleric in Aden, southern Yemen

GMT 11:43 2016 Thursday ,24 November

Will learn from Euro exit

GMT 06:56 2017 Tuesday ,17 October

US ‘not taking sides’ between Iraqi forces, Kurds

GMT 19:59 2017 Thursday ,16 February

Syrian opposition's chief negotiator arrives in Astana

GMT 15:41 2017 Thursday ,29 June

US sets new visa rules for 6 mainly Muslim nations

GMT 19:31 2017 Saturday ,11 February

Earthquake Hits Taiwan

GMT 15:30 2017 Monday ,27 November

Syrian government will not join peace talks on Monday

GMT 16:20 2017 Tuesday ,31 October

La Rochelle survive red card to down Toulouse

GMT 20:33 2018 Tuesday ,16 January

Bahraini official receives UAE Ambassador

GMT 22:40 2018 Monday ,08 January

Bahrain to host first Baby Games
Arab Today, arab today
 
 Arab Today Facebook,arab today facebook  Arab Today Twitter,arab today twitter Arab Today Rss,arab today rss  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday
بناية النخيل - رأس النبع _ خلف السفارة الفرنسية _بيروت - لبنان
arabstoday, Arabstoday, Arabstoday