Hugh has been in touch -
He says:
"Here are some more images from Baghdad.
Again, no works of art here - just snatched images on a rushed trip to do some interviews at the 'Thieves' Market', off Tahrir Square. Tahrir means Liberation - the square commemorates the end of the monarchy and the establishment of the Republic of Iraq in 1958. When will you hear the interviews? Not sure. Maybe on PM later in the week.
It's called 'Thieves' Market' because it's where, supposedly, burglars used to sell their loot. Now it's a ramshackle collection of shops and stalls in alleyways and along the pavements. The section I visited - for all of 15 minutes - is mostly shops and stalls selling electronic stuff, from satellite dishes and decoders to mobile phones. Oh, and loads of fake DVDs.
When I said, "Marhaba, ana sahafe min 大象传媒, Britannia" ("Hello, I'm a journalist from etc.."), this man selling watches said, in a loud voice, "Good Britannia, good!".
Friendly greetings from the cable guys.
More cables and connectors for satellite TV. And another big grin. His friends out of shot are teasing him about having his picture taken.
Slow hot lazy afternoon, watching the world go by. About 35 centigrade I guess (95 F).
Those kind-faced traders feel a bit safer now, thanks to the concrete blast wall that protects them from passing bombers. This is the kind of thing they've had to endure as they make their living:
June 14th, 2004: at least 11 people died when three 4x4 vehicles were blown up as they were passing through Tahrir Square.
Oct 24th, 2005: an suicide bomber blew up his car in Tahrir Square Sunday, killing four people.
May 7, 2005: A car bomb blew up on Baghdad's busy Tahrir square Saturday, killing 17 and wounding more than 30 people."
Oh and Hugh adds that he's put answers to some of the questions about the last photo into the comments section with it.
RSS feed
Email us
Listen to PM
Again, thanks to Hugh for making this 'story' real. Was spooling through with interest until I saw the blast wall and that really made me sit up. Hugh's pieces, whether on air or frog, really bring things home.
uHugh:
When will you get that book written?
Amazing, though, that they can still have goodwill towards things British, isn't it?
Hugh has responded to previous comments here
Hugh you always seem to give such a real sense of what things are like, even if you're only there for 15mins. Do many journalists get out and about in Baghdad now or is this snatching a few minutes where you can? How much protection do you have to have?
Hi Hugh!
Some
Report: Chinese Military Hacked Into Pentagon Computers
Stole highly classified music, games, X-rated movies.
Military鈥檚 Stats on Iraq Sectarian Violence Don鈥檛 Include Shiite-on-Shiite or Sunni-on-Sunni Attacks
鈥淭oo complicated,鈥 says Pentagon spokesman.
Fake Osama Bin Laden Slips By Security at Asia-Pacific Summit
Delivers two speeches before he's discovered.
Always goot to hear from Hugh the Hack!
Salaam/Shalom/Shanthi/Dorood
ed