Iraqi polit-stooges go apeshit over suicide bomber cartoon

BAGHDAD (AP) — An Iraqi magazine cartoon depicting a female suicide bomber in a pose like the Statue of Liberty, arm raised with a lit bomb fuse instead of a torch in her hand, has angered lawmakers who voted to sue the publication for allegedly damaging the image of Muslim women.

*  Great: but why doesn’t the main-stream-media doesn’t show us the cartoon?

The editors of al-Isbouiyah, or Weekly, say the cartoon is meant to condemn al-Qaida in Iraq and should be protected under freedom of expression laws enshrined in the Iraqi Constitution.

More on page 2

15-year-old female would-be suicide bomber tells her story

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The following is a partial transcript of the video interview, which can be viewed in full, with English subtitles, at the MEMRI link. More on al-Qaeda’s use of children as suicide bombershere.

“15-Year-Old Iraqi Would-Be Suicide Bomber Tells Her Story on Iraq TV,” from MEMRI,  (thanks to Jeffrey Imm) Transcript here at JW


The controversy erupted on Sunday when Parliament declared the cartoon an insult to Muslims, especially women, and voted to sue the magazine for defamation, a crime that carries a penalty of up to five years in prison.

In a statement, the magazine said it had no intention of insulting Muslims.

“It was clear that al-Isbouiyah meant to condemn al-Qaida and extremist groups who use religion to brainwash women and push them to carry out suicide operations that claim the lives of dozens of innocent Iraqis,” the magazine said.

It urged legislators to drop legal moves against the magazine and “establish positive relations with the media.”

Sunni extremists have increasingly turned to women to carry out suicide attacks, partly because they can more easily hide explosives underneath robes and evade searches by male guards.

The cartoon shows a woman standing on a pedestal in the Islamic burqa gown that covers her from head to toe, a bomb in one hand and a fuse in the other. A caption on the bomb says in Arabic: “Terrorism and female suicide bombers.”

Next to the burqa-clad woman, whose eyes are visible above a veil, is an image of the Statue of Liberty, arm raised with her torch in right hand. A caption on the tablet in her left hand reads: “Democracy and Liberty.”

AP writers Sameer N. Yacoub and Saad Abdul-Kadir contributed to this report.

One thought on “Iraqi polit-stooges go apeshit over suicide bomber cartoon”

  1. * Great: but why doesn’t the main-stream-media doesn’t show us the cartoon?

    Perhaps because the article originates with AP, and “AP writers Sameer N. Yacoub and Saad Abdul-Kadir contributed …”

    “al-Isbouiyah” doesn’t seem to exist, apart from in this article – no website, no stories; for
    a weekly, it’s not exactly Time, Newsweek, or Womens Weekly. I’m starting to wonder if
    AP has been had. I’d love to see this toon if anyone can find it.

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