We have to be strong to prevail, says Iraqi envoy

KUALA LUMPUR: Iraqi Ambassador to Malaysia Kais S.A. Al-Yacoubi is a picture of frenetic activity with his country the target of a US-led war.  

At the Iraqi Embassy here yesterday, he was answering telephone calls while monitoring the latest developments in his homeland on satellite television.On the screen were scenes of Middle Eastern journalists of the Qatar-based Al-Arabia network delivering up-to-the-minute reports on the war. “Yes, I am sad because I have parents and other family members living in uncertainty in Baghdad, but this is not a time to sink into sadness. We have to be strong to prevail.“Everyone in Iraq – men, women and children – is capable of carrying arms to defend the country, and fight we will,” he said yesterday.Earlier, at around noon, Al-Yacoubi called his parents, who spoke about hearing the sound of bombing but told him that downtown Baghdad had yet to come under attack. “We are also waiting for updates on the exact locations hit by the strikes. I am in constant communication with the Foreign Ministry in Baghdad.“We don’t trust the Americans at all. (United States President George W.) Bush is contradicting himself – in the beginning, he told his people that the war would be short but now he is telling them to expect a long war,” said Al-Yacoubi, whose office is just a street away from the US Embassy in Jalan Tun Razak.The American embassy, with police vehicles stationed at the guarded and locked entrance, looked quiet from the outside, while the Iraqi embassy had its doors open to newsmen interested in finding out how Iraqis here were coping. Al-Yacoubi said the Iraqis in Malaysia knew what to expect. “Life goes on. It is very important that we continue our daily activities and have the strength to carry on,” he said.