Aid worker diary: Into Iraq

Aid worker diary: Into Iraq

Fiona Callister, of Cafod, is among a host of aid workers organising relief efforts in the Gulf. Here she describes her team's first trip across the border into Iraq.

En route toward Basra:
The night before travelling into Iraq was fairly much sleepless. Although I had accepted from a rational point of view that the journey would almost certainly be incident free, emotionally my head needed time to work things through.

So at 3am I was wide awake doused in lavender oil and counting sheep in a vain attempt to get some much needed sleep.

I'm sure to the seasoned aid worker I must sound like a complete Jessie - I've only been working for Cafod for a year. But all the training I've been given tells me that it's when you become complacent about security that things go wrong.

Mines are a hidden threat

The drive from Kuwait City where I am based to the border at Umm Qasr is through featureless desert with the occasional herd of goats dotting the landscape. You have to pass through three checkpoints manned by Kuwaiti or British soldiers.

The difference between the Kuwaiti and Iraqi sides of the border is immense. You pass immediately from a blank canvas of desert into low-level mayhem. The neat housing of Kuwait City and suburbs is replaced by tumbledown shacks with roofs made from oddments of sheet metal. I had not expected Iraq to look like this. It is, after all, an oil rich country. But I am reminded of the shanty towns I've seen in Africa.

Clamour for food

A sign at the border crossing states "Please do not feed the kids" which raises a wry smile until you cross and discover exactly why its there. Small groups of children step into the path of any passing car in the hope that they contain food, gesturing at their mouths.

The journey through the border town of Umm Qasr is a heart-in-mouth experience. If we stop the car then it will immediately become surrounded by children and it will be impossible to continue. So we drive through with enough speed to keep moving but slow enough to be able to do an emergency stop.

RELIEF EFFORTS

Fiona is a press officer for the Catholic aid agency, Cafod

She is part of the agency's emergency response team

She is based in Kuwait City, from where her team makes forays into southern Iraq

Aid worker diary: Waiting game

Our destination is a satellite town of Basra called Az Zubayr. Reports from the town of 250,000 are not good - looting is reportedly rife but it is viewed secure enough for aid agencies to visit.

It's about an hour's drive from the border and on either side of the road are the remains of burnt-out tanks and jeeps. Our translator tells us that many of them are still there from the first Gulf war.

Other remnants from both wars lying hidden are landmines and unexploded bombs. These are virtually impossible to spot, so the first indication of their presence is when they go off. The number one rule when driving in Iraq is to stick to the tarmac road because your life may depend on it.

This can be very frustrating when you need to do a U-turn on a road with a central dirt track and also means that any "comfort stops" have to be made on the road, throwing modesty to the wind.

---

Send us your comments using the form below: