Associated Press
December 15, 2004

HENDALA, Sri Lanka - Day after day, locked in a cement
room somewhere in Iraq, the hooded men beat him. They
warned him he would be beheaded. "Ameriqi!" they
screamed at him, even though he comes from this poor
Sri Lankan fishing village and has never been anywhere
near the United States.

But Denesh Dharmendra Rajaratnam, a truck driver who
had hoped a couple years work in the Middle East would
lift his family into Sri Lanka's middle class,
couldn't convince his kidnappers otherwise. He's a
particularly dark-skinned man from a region where most
people are dark-skinned. So his virulently
anti-American kidnappers were positive they had
something else: a black American.

"Two men wearing black beat us with wires and poles
and asked if I was a black American," said Rajaratnam,
who made it home Sunday after 46 days held captive by
Iraqi militants. "I told them I was Sri Lankan but
they didn't believe me and hit me harder and accused
me of helping America."

He wasn't alone. A fellow truck driver - a Bangladeshi
man - was taken captive with him. Three Iraqis and two
Egyptian hostages later joined them. All were
questioned, and all were beaten.

"We were unfed and without water," he said in an
interview in his small wood, tin-roofed home outside
Colombo, Sri Lanka's capital. "I wasn't sure how many
days it went on since I didn't know the difference
between night and day."

The Egyptians were beheaded, and the Iraqis shot dead.

One day, four hooded men, one holding a video camera,
dragged the two truck drivers out of their makeshift
prison cell and told them to put on their flak
jackets. A banner was hung above them, and armed men
stood beside them. The group called itself the Islamic
Army In Iraq.

"I was terrified, I knew this was what happened before
a beheading."

Told to give a message to his family, he addressed his
wife, Rita.

"I will return someday," he promised her, unsure if he
was telling the truth.

Militants have waged a brutal campaign of
hostage-takings, beheadings and bombings trying to
force the Americans to leave Iraq.

There are now at least seven foreign hostages held
there. More than 170 foreigners have been seized; over
30 were later slain, including at least three whose
kidnappings were claimed by the Islamic Army in Iraq.

But things were supposed to go very differently for
Rajaratnam.

He took the truck-driving job because he hoped he
could save enough of his pay - US$204 a month - to
send his three young sons through school.

So in June, 2003, he signed a two-year contract, left
Sri Lanka and flew to Kuwait. For more than a year, he
drove a truck in the tiny oil-rich kingdom.
Eventually, he was promised more money. All he had to
do was drive into Iraq.

A few days later, workers loaded his truck with boxes
labeled "U.S. Army," destined for an American military
base in Baghdad. At the border, he was given a helmet
and a flak jacket. Border officials had one piece of
advice: drive fast.

Fifty kilometers (30 miles) later, it was over.

Along an empty stretch of highway, when the truckers'
two-car security escort had drifted away, two unknown
cars suddenly swerved in front of the trucks, forcing
them to stop. About 10 heavily armed men poured onto
the road.

"I froze," said Rajaratnam, his eyes still reflecting
the chilling experience. "They immediately started
shooting at the truck tires."

"I was dragged out, handcuffed, slapped, kicked and
beaten in the chest," he recalled. He watched as a
kneeling militant fired rockets into the trucks, and
as they exploded in balls of flames.

Rajaratnam was blindfolded and forced into the trunk
of a car.

Hours later, he was dragged out and pushed into the
cement room where he'd spend much of the next 46 days.

Those days were a blur of beatings, questioning and
threats. New teams of militants came and went.

A few weeks into his confinement, though, an
English-speaking woman - he thinks she was Iraqi -
came to question him.

She was kinder than the others, and seemed to
understand he wasn't American.

Suddenly, things changed.

He and the Bangladeshi driver, Abul Kashem, were given
bread, tomatoes and onions, and even "Miami" brand
cigarettes.

The men were assured they would eventually be
released, though Rajaratnam said: "We weren't sure
that we'd see the light of day again."

A few days before they were freed, the truck drivers
were even allowed to walk around the building where
they were held.

The militants warmed up to them, showing them video
footage of American targets and ambushes. And they
showed him how to play computer games.

"They even taught me to play solitaire!" he said.

After weeks of backdoor diplomacy, the two men were
freed. Sri Lanka insists no ransom was paid.

On Dec. 5, the pair were driven to an isolated spot
and two hooded militants handed them over to a lawyer.

On Sunday, he made it back to his family.

"I feel as if I died and have been reborn," he said.

So much for Arab unity!!!!! The Iraqis are know beating Egyptians !!!!

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Originally posted by multisphinx:
[ And I have even seen photographs of Iraqis who would be lost in a crowd in Africa.

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i didnt get that what do u mean.[/B][/QUOTE]

What I mean is that I have seen photos of Iraqis in magazines and the Internet who would not be noticed--as an European or Chinese person would--in a crowd ,say, in Khartoum, Sudan or Bamako, Mali, etc.

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Black soldiers are a particular target. 'To have Negroes occupying us is a particular humiliation,' Abu Mujahed said, echoing the profound racism prevalent in much of the Middle East. 'Sometimes we aborted a mission because there were no Negroes.'

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Originally posted by lamin:

What I mean is that I have seen photos of Iraqis in magazines and the Internet who would not be noticed--as an European or Chinese person would--in a crowd ,say, in Khartoum, Sudan or Bamako, Mali, etc.

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There are quite a few black Iraqis in Basra...

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From an interview with an Iraqi insurgent:

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Black soldiers are a particular target. 'To have Negroes occupying us is a particular humiliation,' Abu Mujahed said, echoing the profound racism prevalent in much of the Middle East. 'Sometimes we aborted a mission because there were no Negroes.'

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You've heard the saying "in war, the first casualty is usually the truth." I'd take that article, quote and all, with a grain of salt. It could be true, but given the circumstances, it could just as well be propaganda.

"Sometimes we aborted a mission because there were no Negroes."

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Originally posted by rasputin:

the Arabs have been the primary purveyors in the slave trades for millenia,&they need to own up to it.&&apologize&pay reparations for it.

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...Or could the story of black Iraqis be more complex than just importation as slaves from Africa?

I've seen pics of dark-skinned, wooly haired *Afghanis* even. Though the importation of slaves from Africa is a fact, it's also plausible that much of the "africoid" and the more prominent "mixed" population in the Near East are the descendents of early africoid populations in the area, just as many people in India are the descendants of dravidian + "aryan" invaders, and S.E. asians, thais & philipinos & such, are the result of a mix of earlier and invading populations.

...Or were the aboriginal people of Arabian peninsula simply wiped out? (...or driven far south to places like Yemen & back into Africa?)

More likely a lot of blending occured...probably since first contact.

I once read that the "black" people in India were the result of the importation of slaves from Africa, which to me sounded quite suspect. We know now that they're descendents of early "black" folk there, the Dravidians.

Similarly, I think the story of Arabia is more complex than it seems...

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Also, when you talk of "blame" for slavery, you have to keep in mind that it wasn't "raids" that brought most Africans into slavery, but Africans selling Africans instead. You don't get the millions of people imported to the west (not to mention the numbers that didn't make it through the middle passage), via raiding.

Most slave trafficking was likely the result of inter-African warfare and profiteering. I don't know much about the arab slave trade, but I bet its foundation was the same thing: African vs. African.

...Emphasizing the point that our values are what get us into trouble, and only our values can save us.

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Originally posted by sunstorm2004:
You've heard the saying "in war, the first casualty is usually the truth." I'd take that article, quote and all, with a grain of salt. It could be true, but given the circumstances, it could just as well be propaganda.

"Sometimes we aborted a mission because there were no Negroes."

That part in particular sounds like b.s.

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Well according to a segment I recently saw on CNN about the "Tsunami Relief Effort" in S.E. Asia.

Some of the lowest contributing countries are Middle Eastern countries, contributing roughly between 30 - 50 million in aid!

This is also ironic, considering some of those S.E. Asian countries are heavily Muslim. Particularly "Indonesia", actually Indonesia has the highest Muslim population in the world at the moment.

And according to some Middle Eastern columnist, and news organizations. The reason for these low contributions, is because of the racism that has taken over much of the middle east.

We also have to remember quite a few of these countries are *Oil Rich* And if the Rulers/Leaders of these countries refuse to give they're over flowing wealth to they're fellow economically challenged country men. Then you can't expect them to give it away to other countries, weather they are Muslim, or not!

P. S. Another interesting article I came across, demonstrates some of the absurd reasons, some people claim for the disaster in South East Asia!

Saudi Cleric Blames Gays, Sin For Tsunamis
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/po/20050107/co_po/saudiclericblamesgayssinfortsunamis

Thu Jan 6, 7:40 PM ET

Ben Townley, Gay.com U.K.

SUMMARY: A Saudi professor and Islamic cleric has drawn links between Indian Ocean tsunami disaster and what he terms "sexual perversion."

In comments that have angered gay rights groups and liberal Muslims across the world, a Saudi professor and Islamic cleric has drawn links between Indian Ocean tsunami disaster and what he terms "sexual perversion."

In an interview translated by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) Web site, Sheik Fawzan Al-Fawzan said that the disaster was a result of "stupid people" going against God's word in the area.

Transmitted on Saudi television, he included people who took part in "fornication, homosexuality, usury" and "corruption" in his damning diatribe, calling on people across the world to "atone for their sins."

"These great tragedies and collective punishments that are wiping out villages, towns, cities and even entire countries are Allah's punishments of the people of these countries, even if they are Muslims," the professor at Al-Imam University said.

He said that the timing of the disaster -- just a day after Christmas -- was a "sign from Allah."

"It happened at Christmas, when fornicators and corrupt people from all over the world come to commit fornication and sexual perversion," the MEMRI Web site reports him as saying.

The disaster devastated the coastlines of nearly a dozen countries in the South East Asia and Eastern Africa region, with Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand hardest hit.

So far, the number of dead has hit 140,000, with many still missing and presumed dead.

The disaster has brought massive donations to aid relief charities, with the U.K.'s general public donating more than £70 million and the government promising to match the total sum.

The professor-cleric said the world must now ask forgiveness.

"We must atone for our sins, and for the acts of the stupid people among us and improve our condition," he said. "We must fight fornication, homosexuality, usury, fight the corruption on the face of the earth, and the disregard of the lives of protected people."

The comments come after a year of gay Muslim groups working to improve awareness of their religion, and to push for more acceptance.

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And according to some Middle Eastern columnist, and news organizations. The reason for these low contributions, is because of the racism that has taken over much of the middle east.

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I'm not buying that. For one, mideast leaders are notoriously disconnected from the populations they rule -- so why would their "low contribution" reflect some popular racism?

I think that's just more propaganda.

Like: "The U.S. attack on Iraq and Israeli occupation of Palestine has a racist tinge to it, so let's compensate for that by painting the Arab world as racist."

Blame your victim to cover up your own guilt...

Of course, just like other peoples, there are plenty o' arabs that are racist. But why are we hearing about it *now*? And who are we hearing it from? Angels? Nope.

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Speaking of South East Asia, fornication, racism, and Arabs: I've read that thai hookers typically won't entertain arabs...

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Black soldiers are a particular target. 'To have Negroes occupying us is a particular humiliation,' Abu Mujahed said, echoing the profound racism prevalent in much of the Middle East. 'Sometimes we aborted a mission because there were no Negroes.'

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It's important to note that from about the '60s through 9/11, there was a certain degree of political alignment between U.S. blacks and their "fellow oppressed people of color" in the Arab world.

...Moammar Khaddafi, for example, contributed millions to the Nation of Islam -- the U.S. organization that easily brought together the Million Man March on washington... (Yes, I know, Khaddafi's not an Arab, but you get my point...)

And during the first gulf war, I saw graffiti in the Bronx & Brooklyn that read "love saddam black people". There was also the reggae song "rudeboy saddam". In hip-hop, KRS one declared that Arabs & Africans are "brother & sister". Even now, I've spotted some rapper on a cable show refer to their group as Taliban (lol) and another call himself "Bin Laden"!

..So perhaps by pointing out Iraqi anti-black racism, propagandists are trying to ward off any political empathy among blacks in the military for the Iraqi insurgents they're facing. (...The sort of racial political stuff that complicated things in vietnam...)

Who knows? Anyway, that part sounds like b.s. to me, & obvious b.s. at that.

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Originally posted by sunstorm2004:
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..& oh yeah -- regarding the quote above about Iraqi insurgents targeting blacks specifically:

It's important to note that from about the '60s through 9/11, there was a certain degree of political alignment between U.S. blacks and their "fellow oppressed people of color" in the Arab world.

...Moammar Khaddafi, for example, contributed millions to the Nation of Islam -- the U.S. organization that easily brought together the Million Man March on washington... (Yes, I know, Khaddafi's not an Arab, but you get my point...)

And during the first gulf war, I saw graffiti in the Bronx & Brooklyn that read "love saddam black people". There was also the reggae song "rudeboy saddam". In hip-hop, KRS one declared that Arabs & Africans are "brother & sister". Even now, I've spotted some rapper on a cable show refer to their group as Taliban (lol) and another call himself "Bin Laden"!

..So perhaps by pointing out Iraqi anti-black racism, propagandists are trying to ward off any political empathy among blacks in the military for the Iraqi insurgents they're facing. (...The sort of racial political stuff that complicated things in vietnam...)

Who knows? Anyway, that part sounds like b.s. to me, & obvious b.s. at that.

[This message has been edited by sunstorm2004 (edited 07 January 2005).]

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Keino:
I think it is BullSpit! Why would the Iraqis abandon a mission because there were no black/negroes? This is nonsensical in the atmosphere of war and I am 100% sure that statement is propaganda!

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For the sake of the Iraqi insurgents, it had better be b.s. If they abandoned a mission simply because, there were no black American targets, then they are certainly lending credence to any view that they are being "civilized" by foreign troops. What would even be the point of taking up arms? All they need to do, is inform the U.S. government and military that they are willing to lay down their arms, as long as the "black" army personel weren't involved. They would have made the U.S. mission far more easier, and less bloody.