Life in Iraq getting harder
Violence in Baghdad, the Iraqi capital, has increased since the American military withdrawal in 2011. Across the city residents suffer the consequences of systemic corruption, the absence of government services, and car bombings so common that they often go unreported. Much of the violence is sectarian, with Sunni extremists targeting areas populated by Shia. One especially […]Violence in Baghdad, the Iraqi capital, has increased since the American military withdrawal in 2011. Across the city residents suffer the consequences of systemic corruption, the absence of government services, and car bombings so common that they often go unreported. Much of the violence is sectarian, with Sunni extremists targeting areas populated by Shia.
One especially hard-hit neighbourhood is al-Jdeida, or “New Baghdad”. Built as a new, idyllic residential area in Saddam Hussein’s time, it is now home to some of the city's poorest. Andrew White, an Anglican priest who lives and works there, says Sunni militants regularly attack. A local Iraqi woman who works for Mr White says she knows of a 12-year-old boy who received $15 from militants to plant a bomb; he was later arrested.
