MOSUL, Iraq, 26 October 2003 — Dressed in shorts and T-shirts, US soldiers in the 101st Airborne Division waited restlessly in the briefing hall of their base in northern Iraq for an evening lecture on the customs of Ramadan. After accusations of cultural insensitivity, the US military has prepared all its troops in Iraq for the Muslim holy month which is expected to start today with the sighting of a new moon.
“Okay, who here knows what Ramadan is?” asked Army Chaplain Lt. Col. Chester Egert to kick off the session. His question was met with silence. But the soldiers listened carefully when told about the traditions of Ramadan, a month in which Muslims are forbidden from eating, drinking and smoking from dawn to sunset.
During a 40-minute lecture, the soldiers were encouraged to think twice once Ramadan begins before taking swigs from bottles of water in front of Muslim workers, and to try to go through the day without smoking.
“What we’re trying to do in these classes is make people conscious,” Egert said after the talk. “The probable feeling among a lot of soldiers is: ‘It’s your choice and it doesn’t impact on us.’ But this will be interpreted as an in-your-face attitude and it might provoke a reaction.”
Iraqis have often accused US soldiers of disregarding their religious and cultural traditions. The arrests of imams, or Muslim prayer leaders, and body searches of women have provoked angry demonstrations.
On Tuesday, a huge crowd protested in Baghdad after US soldiers detained a woman who refused to let a sniffer dog search her handbag which she said contained a copy of Qur’an. Dogs are considered unclean, disease-spreading animals in Muslim culture.
Some residents in Mosul said there could be problems if soldiers were not careful about their behavior during Ramadan. “The important thing is cigarettes,” said Ibrahim Fethi, 28, an Iraqi security guard. “Before, if you were caught smoking you would be arrested and imprisoned until the end of Ramadan.”
After the lecture, US soldiers said they wanted to show Iraqis respect during the fasting month. “It probably won’t be too difficult to follow the customs. I might even give the fasting a try for a day,” said Sgt. Allen Johnson, 22, from California.
Brig. Gen. Frank Helmick, the 101st Airborne Division’s assistant commander for operations, said his troops would try to maintain a respectful distance from mosques and shrines during Ramadan. “Where possible, we will also avoid eating or smoking in front of Muslims,” said Helmick. “But we also request that Iraqis do not fire their weapons during Ramadan.”
In Baghdad, a midnight-to-4:00 a.m. curfew is to be lifted to allow city residents to follow the usual nighttime tradition of visiting relatives and friends. The US-led administration plans to give the thousands of civil servants on its payroll a $60 Ramadan bonus. “Whatever the leadership of the country, they must always respect this month,” said Sheikh Hamed Al-Molah, imam of a mosque in Mosul. “If it happens this year too, then things will be peaceful.”
