So much in Iraq does not get covered by the western press. The topics ignored have long included The Disappeared. The western press published an article last week about The Disappeared. We're not applauding that. Why?
As C.I. pointed out Saturday, the article was only published in Arabic:
Meanwhile, the United Kingdom's INDEPENDENT is known for publishing the 'facts' from Paddy Cock-Burn. He's seen as anti-Arab -- for good reason -- and he misses so much. Including this article at the Arab edition of THE INDEPENDENT written by Ghufran Younes. She notes the area near Falluja is infamous for its number of missing people -- missing as a result of the militias liquidation operations in Anbar Province. In June of 2016, Faiz al-Rikan explains, approximately 735 residents were abducted. A man whose three sons, ages 16 to 26, were abducted speaks of his sadness over his missing children. They are among The Disappeared. Since 2017, the High Commission for Human Rights has received complaints of at least 8,615 Iraqis being disappeared. Professor Anas Akram Muhammed sits on that commission and states that a national database is needed to track the disappeared and their numbers. The Commission works with the United Nations Development Program. The Iraqi Center for Documenting War Crimes' Omar al-Farhan states that Iraq is the top ranked in the world when it comes to the number of people who have been disappeared by government forces (including the militias).
It's a major report. It has clear news value -- certainly more pertinent than anything 'Middle East expert' Paddy Cock-Burn has filed recently as he's restyled himself to become a US 'resistance' 'fighter.'
We should all be asking why THE INDEPENDENT has elected to publish this very important article only in Arabic?
Friday evening, it went up at THE INDEPENDENT's Arabic site and it's been talked about non-stop on Arabic social media. But, for some strange reason, THE INDEPENDENT -- a British publication -- feels no compulsion to publish the article in English.
It's no where to be found at their English site -- not in the news of the world and not in Middle East news. Someone needs to answer why that is.
The Arabic speaking world is well aware of The Disappeared in Iraq. A real service would have been THE INDEPENDENT publishing that same story in English.
