BlogIraq is dead
Iraq nowdays May 16th, 2008Yes. Ahmed (BlogIraq) is dead. He was killed in Baghdad on April 11th, 2008. He went back to Baghdad to take his family out, but he did not have enough time to do so.
He had an appointment that day with a guy he knew. This guy was supposed to get him some documents that prove corruption in some USAID office back in Baghdad. I don't have complete details about it. Anyway, he and the guy bringing the documents were killed at their meeting place in Mansour district in Baghdad.
This is the email he sent me a couple of hours before he was killed:
Hi Abu Aya,
Howz everything?
How is the little Ayotta ?
Things are up and down here in Baghdad. But generally its better than last September when I was here. The nights are much quieter. The explosions are less. Some areas got better and other areas got worse. But still the Sunnis can not go to Shiite places and vice versa.
I gotta go now to get to Mansour to meet the guy I told you about. They have threatened him few days ago and he has vanished since then. Hes getting ready to leave Iraq after we meet today. I think I will leave soon too. I am just waiting to get he new ID for my daughter in a couple of days maybe.
I'll contact you again once I am in Syria.
Take care abu.
Ahmed
His brother in-law found him dead with his friend in Mansour district in one of the small streets there. Thank God his body was found, unlike many of our friends who were killed or just vanished without a trace.
When I first setup this blog for him, he gave me the admin password of his blog and I gave him the password of mine. We agreed that whoever dies first, the other should write about it in his blog. Its just my bad luck that he died first.
I can only think of his 20 months old daughter. Shes about the same age as my daughter, Aya.
May God take revenge of those who killed him and orphaned his lovely daughter.
Mohammed Alani
May 16th, 2008 at 11:47 pm
This is very bad news indeed. My heart is filled with sympathy for his family, his friends, and you. Like you, I hope the criminals who murdered him will receive their own back and worse.
This reminds me of the assassination of Steven Vincent.
May 17th, 2008 at 12:50 am
My condolences to Ahmed’s family, especially his wife and child. This is incredibly sad news. At Iraqi Bloggers Central we are flying our flag at half-mast. Ahmed and I sometimes agreed, and often disagreed, but his passion for his country and for his family was always plain to see in everything he wrote.
Jeffrey Schuster
Iraqi Bloggers Central
*
May 18th, 2008 at 1:05 am
You filthy pig Americans not even in his death can you respect his wishes. Go to HELL with your condolences I hope you DIE you mother fuckers especially you Shuster you had no respect for him when he was alive so stop lying.
Jeffrey — New York Says:
February 18th, 2008 at 5:47 pm
And by the way, look at this ridiculous title on BlogIraqi’s entry: The Iraqi Holocaust?!
Are you fricking kidding me? Holocaust?! It was one strike on a single structure — one out of hundreds if not thousands of strikes during the Gulf war. And it was a shelter that was to be used by high-ranking Ba’ath party members and military officers. It was a WAR. Tell me any military who does not want to take out the miltary leaders of their opponents.
If Americans had known that their were women and children in there, I’m sure it wouldn’t have been struck. One need only look at our targeting practices over the years in general and during Operation Iraqi Freedom back in 2003 in particular.
This is bullshit, Mojo. A single strike is now a holocaust? If that doesn’t tell you what kind of tears these guys are shedding, then nothing will.
I’m really sick of whining, deceitful bastards like these two.
May 18th, 2008 at 3:32 am
Oh my God! My heart goes out to his family. I have young children too, and I knew how hard it must’ve been for him to be separated from his wife and daughter.
May 18th, 2008 at 3:50 am
Mohammed, is there a collection set up for his family, or have you considered starting one?
May 18th, 2008 at 4:24 am
Dear 85.195.123.25,
I still stand behind what I wrote about BlogIraqi’s entry. A single strike does NOT make a HOLOCAUST. To suggest so twists language beyond recognition.
Don’t you think it’s just a little inappropriate to vent your personal hatred of me during the mourning of Ahmed’s death?
If you want, stop by IBC and talk to me there and leave your personal issues with me off BlogIraqi’s pages.
*
May 18th, 2008 at 7:58 am
If you want, stop by IBC and talk to me there and leave your personal issues with me off BlogIraqi’s pages.
you hypocrite. you invite comment? then why did you erase the three posts telling you to fuck off (posted from ‘fuck off’) of on your toxic site trolling for attention from iraqblog’s death you filthy deathchasers..
can you stfu?
nobody wants to hear you now.
show respect.
May 18th, 2008 at 8:15 am
Darmstadter,
Hau ab.
*
May 18th, 2008 at 9:39 am
Mohammed Alani says: “May God take revenge of those who killed him and orphaned his lovely daughter.”
Have you not noticed that “God” has nothing to do with the slaughter? The problem is that Muslims only seem to think about revenge—into eternity.
Perhaps when only one man is left standing there will be peace but, no one is counting on it.
May 18th, 2008 at 9:43 am
My God! I am so sorry to hear this terrible news. May God helps his family… I don’t have words, just sadness and grief.
May 18th, 2008 at 10:20 am
OMG!!!Im in total shock. I dont have any words except may he rest in peace. Allah yuruhma oo yirham kul il 3iraqieen!!!
May 18th, 2008 at 10:53 am
How sad and shocking. Another patriotic Iraqi murdered for seeking the truth. Alla Yuruhma.
May 18th, 2008 at 2:29 pm
Oh My God!
How horrible!! I’m so sad. everyday we hear about an Iraqi person (or persons) killed for no main reason, just because of stupidity of some men think that the world can be changed by violence.
May God bless his soul and give his family the ability to forget the pain. it is so painful..
May 18th, 2008 at 5:47 pm
[…] and Iraqi bloggers are no different. His friend, Mohammed Alani, who helped set up the blog, wrote on BlogIraq: Ahmed (BlogIraq) is dead. He was killed in Baghdad on April 11th, 2008… He had an […]
May 18th, 2008 at 6:20 pm
الى رحمة الله
May 18th, 2008 at 8:08 pm
Alas….Mohammed, this blog must not be silenced and must goes on…
May 18th, 2008 at 9:04 pm
Thank you all for your deep feelings. I am sure that he has touched everyone’s life in his own way.
What hurts me most is that we have been together since we were four years old; we went to school together for about twenty years and even left Iraq together and worked together since then, but I did not have the chance to be in his funeral. This was the only trip that we did not take together because I could not leave work here in Sudan. I should have been there with him.
Kassakhoon,
You are right. His death should not silence his voice, we shall be his voice.
He was killed for seeking the truth. We should not let his death go for nothing.
I do not recall the name of the office he was talking about regarding the corruption cases. I remember him telling me the location of that office in Baghdad. Its a small office that is funded by USAID. This office finances small projects for Iraqis. The few people who managed the office were americans, but the actual staff on the ground is completely Iraqi. The problem is that the monitoring is done by corrupted Iraqis, and about 90% of the projects are false. And the documents that were supposed to be delivered to Ahmed were to prove that many false projects in many conflicts areas in Baghdad were only a scam and some of the money was used to finance terrorists.
As Ahmed said, these terrorist-financing projects were mostly in Adhamiya, Sadr-City, Jamiya St., Shu’la, and few other areas. This office has spent over 250K USD for a single cleaning campaign in Adhamiya, for instance. And, as I have said, the problem is that the people monitoring the execution of these projects on the ground are corrupted as well.
However, the only lead to this case was the guy who was murdered with Ahmed. I will certainly try to find another insider.
May 18th, 2008 at 10:10 pm
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May Ahmed rest in peace and his family find the strength to cope with all this sadness and loss.
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May 18th, 2008 at 10:36 pm
Mohammed Alani , What hurts me most is that we have been together since we were four years old
i am so sorry for your personal loss of deep friendship and companionship.
it appears the continued hidden process of using the USAID office operating in a corrupt function is vital for some..and worth killing for. i wonder if the americans working at this office will investigate these tragic deaths and the corruption they were trying to uncover.
whistleblowers, especially those uncovering government related fraud, are always at risk. Ahmed was very brave and honorable to put his life at risk in this way for his country. my heart goes out to his family.
May 19th, 2008 at 12:17 am
I’m really sorry to hear about that. My thoughts go out to all of you. The fact that people will kill in order to keep their pockets lined is… disappointing, but no surprise.
Good luck.
May 19th, 2008 at 1:24 am
God bless Ahmed and his family. This is tragic news indeed.
May 19th, 2008 at 8:36 am
Jesus Christ!! I am so shocked!!
I kept checking his blog for the last two weeks and there was no new post! I thought of every thing but the death possibility!
He was really a genius writer.
May God rest his soul in peace and strengthen his family
:’(
May 19th, 2008 at 9:00 am
Poor man. He seemed to be a reasonable and well-informed person. We need more like him in the world, not less. Rest in peace.
May 19th, 2008 at 9:26 am
I am very sorry to learn of the death of BlogIraq. I only recently learned of his blog, and I had not yet left him a comment. His words were those of a good, brave, and caring man. I would like to convey my condolences and best wishes to his family.
May 19th, 2008 at 9:44 am
This is a terrible tragedy to befall a real life hero. I wish I had gotten to know him better. Now it is too late, except through his wittings. Rest in Peace.
Please help his daughter grow up in a better world than this!
May 19th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
I’ve been a reader and subscriber for the past several months, but haven’t commented until today.
I’m so sorry about BlogIraq. I hope that his family will be okay, and that his daughter will learn about her brave father.
May 19th, 2008 at 6:51 pm
My sincere condolence to his family and his blogger friends. He will be in my thoughts. Will it be possible for you to post a photograph of him on the home page, please ?
May 19th, 2008 at 11:53 pm
I am sadden by BlogIraq’s death and join his family and friends in their grief. Ahmed was a brave man and a true patriot who gave his life for the hope of a better Iraq for his baby daughter to grow up in. I only occasionally visited BlogIraq and now wish I had spent more time here. I pray that his orphaned daughter will be well looked after by Ahmed’s family and friends.
May 20th, 2008 at 7:11 am
Well at least he died blogging,in the USA they stick you in nursing home and they torture you with drugs as they take all your money and you die slowly! You don’t believe come and seee for yourself www.ElderAbuseHelp.Org
Life is hell for those left behind…….May you bask in Allah’s glory
May 20th, 2008 at 7:28 am
To Ahmad, the writer of this blog, Salam and Rest In Peace friend. You showed the dignity of a people that have been bombed, invaded and tortured by a giant who is merciless. All I can say is that I hope someday that murderer called the USA will suffer on its soil what you the heroic people of Irak have suffered after 17 years of continuous bombings and invasion. Only then will they know what horror they have brought upon the poor of the ‘underdeveloped 3rd world’ as they call us in Latin America, Asia or Africa. Thanks Ahmad and may your memory nor the memory of the atrocities against Irakis be forgotten.
May 20th, 2008 at 10:30 am
An American writes “Have you not noticed that “God” has nothing to do with the slaughter? The problem is that Muslims only seem to think about revenge—into eternity.”
Perhaps he could explain why both Afghanistan and Iraq were invaded on the back of 9/11 resulting in the deaths of millions of people.
I’m so sorry to hear about Ahmed’s death, perhaps not unexpected though , it’s the American and Zionist way to silence all voices of truth.
May 20th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
[…] BlogIraq » BlogIraq is dead (tags: Blog Iraq) […]
May 20th, 2008 at 11:38 pm
The only way to prove me wrong, is after kicking the Mehdi militia’s a*ses, Badr people should be next, and that is not going to happen.
as far as conspiracy theory’s goes he was behind this.
in his last article he is trying to proof or disproof the reasons he sees badr has for attacking the ‘al hakim’ provinces, as a political game. A point in case appearing wether hakim or maliki decides over the ’saddam’ share.
it has all the looks maliki’s government turned from a collaborative government to an outright repressive of its own accord already. That was somewhat obvious ever, (involvment badr in sectarian violence in baghdad, nightly execution of saddam, etc.) and would at last have become evident when usia leaves.
May 21st, 2008 at 12:21 am
So very sorry to hear of your loss. I hope the truth comes out….. soon. about everything.
CMAR was banned from this blog, so it is very inappropriate and disrespetful for him to post here.
May 21st, 2008 at 11:18 pm
May his soul rest in peace :***(
ra7mato Allah 3aleh, 3a`6ama allaho ajrakom o `3afara limayyitikom o 2a7sana 3aza2akom…
May 22nd, 2008 at 12:23 am
Alah yir7ama, maybe his soul rest in peace, and long live the struggle, he is dead but his spirit is still with us all and his sarcfice for justice is never forgotten!!
May 23rd, 2008 at 3:18 am
I’m so sorry for your loss, M and to his family my condolences. Allah yirhamu wa yirham al jamee. So, he’s the first Iraqi blogger to go? So Sad.
May 24th, 2008 at 3:49 am
May Ahmed rest in peace, may his soul be received in eternal joy and peace. A just man, a brave man, an honest man - the loss of such a man is a loss both to his country and to the world
May 28th, 2008 at 6:32 am
I haven’t shared my thoughts on Ahmed’s passing. The grief is still too raw. I miss Blog Iraqi. He was so wise and sensible. He wasn’t angry or bitter with a chip on his shoulder, and he never stopped hoping for a better Iraq. Even when he disagreed with you, it was in a sensible and sweet matter.
One example is when I asked him if he would unambiguously condemn all attacks against the ISF. He said that attacks were generally wrong, but not always . . . because of sectarian and partisan sectarian infiltration of parts of the ISF. He responded so nicely, I couldn’t help but agree that he had a sensible point.
That is what I liked about him . . . he wasn’t emotional or angry . . . he wouldn’t yell past you . . . he would talk to people reasonably and gently explain his perspective. This is called culture . . . and Ahmed had it in droves.
He also loved his Iraq, and gave up his life to fight corruption in his beloved motherland. How many of us would do the same?
As long as Iraq has sons like Ahmed, it has hope. Ahmed, I wish you could come back to us. But you are home now . . . with Moses, Isha, Mohammed, Abraham, and all the many who have come before. You have earned your rightful place with our divine father in bliss and peace infinitesimally beyond our comprehension.
All I ask is that you gaze down at all of us and smile.
Your friend,
Anand
May 31st, 2008 at 9:45 pm
My condolences. for the longest time I’ve had this blog in my favourites’ list confusing it with another Iraqi blogger who hasn’t posted on her site since 2006. Anand, your friend was the salt of the earth and one way or another, his life and the way he lived it will be continued by someone whom he inspired. That will be his legacy..
I am sorry that you are hurting so much, perhaps the writing about him will help you process,
peace,
Ingrid
June 2nd, 2008 at 2:01 pm
[…] The Treasure of Baghdad is an Iraqi blogger that I read. May 18th was a sad day for this blogger. Here is why. My sympathy goes to Treasure of Baghdad for his […]
June 5th, 2008 at 12:18 pm
Due to his family’s request, I can not reveal his full identity, nor his picture until his family leaves Iraq.
Thank you all for your kind words. He was all that and more.
June 5th, 2008 at 4:17 pm
I went on holiday the day before Mohammed Alani posted this sad report of Ahmed’s death. I have only just seen it. In adding my own sympathies, I found Ahmed’s comments in “About Me” to be especially poignant. They said- “There isn’t that much to tell about myself. I am just an Iraqi person who managed to flee my country. I love my country so much and I wish I could go back.”
Our feelings have also to be with Mohammed, who both set up this blog and then has had to undertake its completion.
June 6th, 2008 at 8:59 am
To M. Alani and Ahmed’s family and friends:
I’m sorry to read of your loss. I had not checked BlogIraq for some time, because I had noticed there had not been updates in some time.
May Ahmed rest in peace…and may God protect his family!
June 11th, 2008 at 11:49 am
My deepest sympathies lie with Ahmed’s family and young daughter. I hope for their safety and believe Ahmed to be an honest and caring person worthy of the highest respect.
May he rest in peace.
August 3rd, 2008 at 4:04 pm
oh my god , i feel so sorry , i can’t believe that .. i am speechless, may god bless his soul, and gives his family patience to tolerate ..
الله يرحمه و يحفظ عائلته و يحميهم من كل شر .. و ادعو معي تزول هذه الغمة عن بلدنا و نرجع نعيش بامان
Sunshine
October 31st, 2008 at 3:31 am
[…] endless violence in Iraq continues. One recent victim was Iraqi blogger Ahmed from BlogIraq. His friend Abu Aya […]
December 17th, 2008 at 12:48 am
I came across this blog while browsing through the “Iraq Blog Count”. this is sad, tragic and I can’t comprehend my sadness for the loss. May God rest his soul and give his family strength