October 13, 2003
The first bomb
It was a matter of timing. An interview had fallen through and we were heading home early. Quick phone call. 30 seconds. Saleh, my translator was just turning round in the front seat of the car to tell me about his daughter’s flu. Then the explosion....
Continue reading "The first bomb"September 21, 2003
The long road to Baghdad
It wasn't the most auspicious of beginnings to my Baghdad posting. The driver woke me at 4 am in the morning shortly after crossing over the border to Iraq, to tell me: 'engine finished. Please hide in boot' - the reason being we were now marooned in the heart of bandit country. I'd already spent a day in Jordan feeling increasingly nervous about returning to Baghdad along a road where several journalists had been robbed. We were rescued not by the passing American convoys, but by the locals. Within half an hour 9 cars clustered around us, with Iraqis, shoes off, crouching over the engine to shout words of encouragement at it and each other. Diagnosis: engine buggered, but we'll give you a ride into town. It seemed like a rather appropriate analogy for the state of the country.
Continue reading "The long road to Baghdad"