Iraqi Police Sympathize With Resistance

By SCHEHEREZADE FARAMARZI
Ass Press Writer  

BAQOUBA, Iraq (AP) -- Iraqi police say they are underpaid, poorly armed and lack equipment to protect themselves from increasing attacks by insurgents. Frequently branded as collaborators with the U.S. occupation, many police resent the Americans and some even express sympathy for the guerrillas.

The recent surge in attacks on Iraqi police followed a decision by the U.S. command to aggressively pursue insurgents before they can strike. Nine police were among the 12 Iraqis killed in car bombings last weekend at police stations in Baqouba and nearby Khan Bani Saad. Two senior police commanders were killed last weekend in Mosul and a town south of Baghdad.

American officials expect attacks to increase against Iraqis working with the coalition as the U.S.-led administration begins handing power to local leaders. Culture clashes between Iraqi and American forces only exacerbate a climate of bitterness and distrust.

About a dozen Iraqi policemen who spoke to The Associated Press on Wednesday said they were not deterred by the bombings and would continue working for the police force.

Still, they expressed resentment toward the Americans, who are better armed and less vulnerable to attack. Several policemen referred to the resistance against the Americans as a jihad, or holy war, and said Iraqis had a legitimate right to fight occupation.

"Take a look at the American bases," said Lt. Miqdad Thamer, 25, in Baqouba. "They are hiding behind barricades while we are here in the streets with not even guns to protect ourselves.

"We are getting attacked because they think we cooperate with the Americans. This is not true. We are trying to bring security to the city."

Traffic officer Salman Khaizaran said attacks will continue - against Americans as well as Iraqis - so long as U.S. troops remain. "If they want the attacks to stop, they must leave the cities and hand over security responsibilities to us."

A reporter in the city of Fallujah spoke with a police captain in the U.S.-appointed mayor's office, who said his force was helping with security even though it did not endorse the U.S.- led coalition. The captain said everyone involved with the resistance "is a proud Iraqi fighting for his nation."

Outside the bombed-out police station in Khan Bani Saad, a group of police said they would not notify the Americans if they knew of an imminent attack against the coalition or identify an attacker - a sentiment also expressed by police in Baqouba and Samarra.

"We would stop it if we know it will be carried out in the city, because we don't want the Iraqi people to get hurt," said Salman, an officer who refused to give his last name. But he would not report or stop an attack elsewhere, he said.

"We are not spies," said his colleague.

"I wouldn't tell," said another policemen.

"I wouldn't tell on a Muslim," Salman added.

Chief U.S. administrator L. Paul Bremer has praised the dedication of the Iraqi police who remain on the job despite the growing threat of guerrilla attack.

Yet many police said they are uncomfortable with some of their duties, particularly going on raids with U.S. soldiers. Lt. Thamer, of Baqouba, said he and his men resent the way Americans burst into homes and turn over furniture, bullying innocent occupants and searching and pushing around women.

He described one raid that found a man in his underwear. When an Iraqi policeman fetched the man's trousers, a U.S. soldier told him not to interfere and to "go away."

"Why make him walk into the street dressed like that and humiliate him?" asked Thamer, who added that when he goes on raids, he tries to show fellow Iraqis that he is not happy about it.

"I feel anger. Because I cannot make the Americans understand that this is the sanctity of the home, and I cannot justify the Americans' action to the people. I am in a very difficult situation and suffer tremendously because of that."

At the same time, Iraqi police complained that Americans did not include them in planning the raids, withholding information on which houses would be targeted until the last minute.

"They don't trust anyone who doesn't want to be like them," said Lt. Abbas Adnan, 24, in Baqouba.

Even worse than feeling the Americans do not trust or respect them, some police said, is being branded as traitors and collaborators by other Iraqis.

Part of the reason is that people "see Americans coming into our building, talking to us and they see us on patrols with them," said policeman Odai Hanoon, 21, in Khan Bani Saad.

Thamer said some of his relatives and members of his tribe severed relations with him, and even his parents are not happy with his job.

"I am doing this for my country," said the lieutenant, who said he could not imagine quitting. "It's difficult to give up something that you worked so hard for. I love being a policeman."

He also continues to work for the money, he said, treasuring a good job in a country where most people are unemployed or underpaid. A police officer gets $150 a month, while an ordinary cop gets $100.

Police salaries are somewhat higher than those of teachers and other civil servants - professions earning far more than under Saddam Hussein. But the risks to police are much greater than during Saddam's dictatorship, when Iraqis feared all authority.

Other police complained their pay is too low for the job they are expected to do. They said they were not given winter uniforms, having to wear their summer ones even though temperatures are in the 40s at night. They complained about lack of proper weapons and about obsolete equipment, including cars.

Several police said they were much happier under Saddam.

The only officer who spoke positively about the Americans was 1st Lt. Fadhel Faraj, 29, in charge of the Khan Bani Saad police station.

"We don't cooperate with the Americans as occupiers but as people who are helping us. They are building our country," he said, standing by a crater left by the car bombing.

Besides, he added: "The same people who are attacking the Americans are attacking us."

Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved.