Rudyard Kipling"
“When you're left wounded on Afganistan's plains and
the women come out to cut up what remains, Just roll to your rifle
and blow out your brains,
And go to your God like a soldier”
General Douglas MacArthur"
“We are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.”
“It is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it.” “Old soldiers never die; they just fade away.
“The soldier, above all other people, prays for peace, for he must suffer and be the deepest wounds and scars of war.”
“May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't .” “The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.
“Nobody ever defended, there is only attack and attack and attack some more.
“It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.
The Soldier stood and faced God
Which must always come to pass
He hoped his shoes were shining
Just as bright as his brass
"Step forward you Soldier,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?"
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't
Because those of us who carry guns
Can't always be a saint."
I've had to work on Sundays
And at times my talk was tough,
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.
But, I never took a penny
That wasn't mine to keep.
Though I worked a lot of overtime
When the bills got just too steep,
The Soldier squared his shoulders and said
And I never passed a cry for help
Though at times I shook with fear,
And sometimes, God forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around
Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here,
Lord, It needn't be so grand,
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand."
There was silence all around the throne
Where the saints had often trod
As the Soldier waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.
"Step forward now, you Soldier,
You've borne your burden well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."
The situation of Yezidi survivors of the Islamic State’s genocide in Iraq
Wednesday, May 25, 2022
Robert Spencer : “I have taken on the role of father and mother to my younger sisters,”
says Yezidi survivor “Hala Safeel,” who lives with her family in a camp
for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.
Hala Safeel
Hala Safeel fled from the grip of the Islamic State (ISIS), , which
committed genocide against her Yezidi people, four years ago, after she
suffered through three years of ISIS captivity. But she is still living
through the period of imprisonment, as the fate of her parents and three
of her siblings is still unknown. Safeel says: “Despite everything, and
despite what I have been through, I see myself as strong and
courageous, and will defend my rights and the rights of all Yezidi
survivors until justice is done.”
Hala is not the only one who is trying to discover the fate of her
loved ones. She rarely encounters a Yezidi citizen who has not lost a
loved one, despite the fact that seven years have passed since her
kidnapping by ISIS.
Hala describes the situation of the Yazidi survivors as tragic. The
Yezidis have not yet found support from the Iraqi government and have
reintegrated into Yezidi society again. Yezidi survivors face
difficulties in accessing employment opportunities and the economic
situation is poor.
Despite suffering in ISIS captivity, Hala encourages other survivors
to work, to participate in activities and to stay strong, and she says
that she aspires to a bright future and is working to achieve her goals
by attaining justice for herself and all other Yezidi survivors.
Zidan Ismail is a Yezidi activist from Iraq who has written
opinion articles on Jihad Watch. He is an interpreter and translator for
legal language at the Ahmet Yildirim law office in Hanover, Germany.
