Terrorists' attacks have economical, emotional impact in Bahrain
By Steve Liewer, Stars and
Stripes
Ali |
MANAMA, Bahrain — One dusty block from the Navy’s Middle
East stronghold, Sameer Ali and a dozen of his friends crouch under the thatched roof of a
makeshift cab stand.
Fifteen hours each day they wait, standing guard over their fleet of
white and orange taxis. They hope to grab a fare if a sailor needs a ride to the mall.
Sure, they compete for business.
But they also lean back, talk politics, and share a communal meal
three times a day.
These fellows are family.
Terror brought tough times to Sameer’s cab stand. Few sailors
venture far outside the Navy’s walled Administrative Support Unit these days.
The last ship pulled up anchor Sept. 11, the same day terrorists
slammed jet airliners into the twin towers of the World Trade Center and the Pentagon,
killing more than 6,000 people.
“We are very sorry for what happened,” said Saleh Jumma,
43, who, like most of the drivers, belongs to Bahrain’s minority Shi’ite sect.
Jumma |
“We don’t like these things to happen against innocent
people and civilians. This is against our religion. Everyone has the right to live their
own lives and enjoy their own happiness.”
Since the attacks, tension hangs as thick as Bahrain’s summer
heat.
The Navy imposed a 10 p.m. curfew and banned visits to the Muslim
nation’s few bars.
Sailors must work extra hours patrolling the base’s gates.
With no ships in port and sailors hunkering in their barracks, hardly
anyone needs a taxi these days.
Saleh estimates the cabbies have lost 70 percent of their business.
“There are no ships, no visitors,” said Hassan Ali, 41.
“Our income is not even reaching half of our expenses. We are talking about ourselves
but, in general, the whole market of Bahrain is affected.”
Yousif |
“We are very concerned,” Sameer said. “Whenever even
small events happen against the United States around the world, we are the ones who are
suffering.”
Bahrain is an island nation of 645,000 residents, 3½ times the size
of Washington D.C., connected by a 14-mile causeway to the Saudi Arabian mainland.
The former British colony has long counted itself among
America’s closest allies.
The genial Bahrainis practice a particularly tolerant brand of Islam,
and they welcome more than 228,000 foreign residents from places like India, Pakistan, the
Philippines, Great Britain and the United States.
Despite the foreign presence, violent Islamic fundamentalism has
never taken root here, even after the divisive Persian Gulf War.
That is why it irks the cabbies that the Navy has warned sailors away
from Bahrain’s rural villages and mosques.
“The U.S. military is here for a very long time, 50 years,”
Saleh said, “but nothing has happened against any citizen of the United States.
People walk around freely, wherever they want.”
Still, the Navy has plenty of reason to be cautious. The 1996 Khobar
Towers bombing, which killed 19 American servicemembers and injured hundreds more, took
place just across the causeway in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia.
Sameer said America’s alliance with Israel during the past year
of fighting with Palestinians has divided Bahrainis.
Many of them — including the cabbies — think the United
States has not recognized the justice of the Palestinian cause.
While they were as horrified as most Americans over the attacks on
the Pentagon and World Trade Center, they believe the U.S. government ought to consider
how its friendship with Israel inflames many Muslims.
They believe that friendship creates a climate in which terrorism
thrives.
“The U.S. should look for what is the real reason for the
attacks,” Saleh said. “It’s very clear.”
They believe President Bush is focusing too much attention on bin
Laden, a man they believe lacks the resources to mount such monstrous attacks by himself.
They fear the U.S. will spark a war in Afghanistan that will kill
innocent Afghans while doing nothing to stop terrorism.
“The innocent [Afghani] people are not concerned,” Sameer
said. “The reaction against the solution of the U.S. will be bad.”
Still, the cabbies do not fear that military base down the block from
their taxi stand presents a ripe target for terrorists, one that could pose a threat to
the men and their families.
“Bin Laden is not going to attack Bahraini people,” Saleh
said. “[He] is not going to be against anyone in Muslim countries.”
And despite their differences with the U.S. government, they do not
hesitate to invite two American visitors to kneel with them on a plastic tarp under their
lean-to and share a lunch of curried rice with shrimp washed down with Diet Pepsi.
They have met thousands of Americans in their many years of
taxi-driving, and their feelings couldn’t be warmer.
“We know the people of the United States. They are simple
people, generous people, and they are very friendly,” Sameer said. “They are
very welcome here.”
Back to September stories
Page Two news roundup
Stories from August, 2001
Stories from July, 2001
Stories from June, 2001
Stories from May, 2001
Stories from April, 2001
Stories from March, 2001
Stories from February,2001
Stories from January, 2001
Stories from December, 2000
Stories from November, 2000
Stories from October, 2000
Stories from August and September, 2000
Stories from June and July, 2000
Home |
