That's Isaiah's THE WORLD TODAY JUST NUTS "Hardworking Louisa Loveluck."
The point of the comic?
Moqtada al-Sadr, rotund goon and cult leader, ordered his minions to attack peaceful protesters. He's the Charles Manson of Iraq. On Twitter, Louisa Loveluck entered into a conversation about the coverage. There was an observation that most outlets ignored the attack that left many injured and dead.
Not true, Louisa piped up, REUTERS, AP, AFP and ALJAZEERA covered it!
The problem with that?
She didn't cite her outlet: THE WASHINGTON POST.
She didn't cite it because they didn't cover it. And that reflects back on Louisa. She doesn't just work for THE POST, she is their Baghdad bureau chief. And she didn't cover it.
From the November 30, 2020 "Iraq snapshot," here's what Louisa ignored:
Friday saw an attack on the peaceful protesters in Nassariya. This was an attack, it was not a ''clash.'' The protesters had been in al Haboubi Square for some time. When Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi ordered the Baghdad square attacked and the tents torn down a month ago, he attempted something similar in Nassaiya. It did not fly in the city, it did not fly in the province (Dhi Qar Governorate). Mustafa had to back down and the protesters continued their peaceful protest. As Sinan Mahmoud (THE NATIONAL) observed yesterday, "The coronavirus and violence against demonstrators has seen the moement slow elsewhere but it endures in Nasiriyah."
Friday, they were attacked. The death toll has now risen to 16. With over 80 more left injured that number could continue to increase.
Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr ordered the attack. Dilan S. Hussein (RUDAW) reports that Moqtada told his cult to "clean up the 'atheism' that he said had taken over the city's streets" before sending them out on Friday. They arrived at the square with loaded guns, in four-wheel vehicles and with props.
Basra journalist Mohammed Qasim Tweets:
Moqtada gave the orders and then sicked his rabid cult on the protesters.
This was a planned assault. Not only does the Iraqi government need to disarm his goons, they need to put them on trial. Equally true, it was not necessary for the cult to enter the town square (al Haboubi square) -- where the peaceful protesters were -- and have been for over a year -- in order to get to any destination. They chose to enter that square, they did so with props and they did so with guns. And they chose to enter the square in "four wheel drive vehicles." This was not a 'clash,' it was a planned assault.
A day after the attacks, his goons staged a show of support this weekend . . . in Baghdad. They live in Baghdad. In a slum known as Sadr City. He's their grand hero but they live in a slum. Maybe that should have the cult's first clue that Moqtada isn't so heroic and isn't leading them to a better life? In Nassariyah, the turnout came from those who oppose Moqtada.
On Friday, after they killed and injured, Moqtada praised them on his Twitter feed. RUDAW: "He then took to Twitter on Friday to thank his supporters for mobilizing." Then Tweets like this popped up.
The United Kingdom's Ambassador to Iraq Stephen Hickey Tweeted:
I condemn the violence against protesters in Nasiriya and other cities. There can be no justification for such senseless killing. I call on the Iraqi authorities to protect peaceful protesters from attacks, and to bring to justice those responsible.
The US Embassy in Iraq Tweeted:
The United States condemns the violence against peaceful protestors that took place in Nasiriyah, Dhi Qar today. These unjustifiable acts of violence have no place in a democracy. 1/2
THE BAGDAD POST points out that the United Nations also called out the assault. Sensing the heat, Moqtada has attempted to back pedal. John Davison of REUTERS Tweets:
And he's said to have fled the country, departing the airport in Najaf for Beirut. That is his long-standing pattern -- flee the country whenever he thinks he might be arrested.
TELESUR reports that Moqtada's cult used more than guns -- they also attacked the protesters with knives, batons and stones. And the attack wasn't just in Nassirya.