Gays In Iraq Terrorized, Raped, Murdered

While allegedly protected by the same laws and invested with the same legal rights as other citizens in Iraq (why does that sound so familiar?), gays in reality face a very brutal reality. As CNN is somewhat belatedly reporting - gay sites have been discussing the sad reality for months and years - being gay exposes one to being terrorized, subjected to brutality and killed. Such are the fruits of religious fanaticism and the non-stop hatred of religious fundamentalists. For a glimpse of what the most extreme Christianists would mete out to gays, one need look no further than Iraq. The hatred is the same and only the degree of physical violence differs. Spiritually, murder occurs daily at the hands of both Islamic fundamentalists and Christian fundamentalist. Just as the "Godly Christians" who have blindly supported the Chimperator have been utterly silent about the slaughter of Iraqi women and children, they have likewise not uttered a sound over the killing of gays. Personally, I suspect that they condone the murder of both groups. WWJD? Here are some highlights from the CNN story:

*
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Kamal was just 16 when gunmen snatched him off the streets of Baghdad, stuffed him in the trunk of a car and whisked him away to a house. But the real terror was about to begin. The men realized he was gay, Kamal said, when he took his shirt off and they saw that his chest was shaved.

*
"They told me to take off my clothes to rape me or they would kill me immediately. This moment was the worst moment in my life," he said, weeping as he spoke of the 2005 ordeal. "I was watching them taking off their clothes, preparing to rape me. I did not know what to do, so I started shouting loudly, 'Please do not do that! I will ask my family to give you whatever you want.' " He was held for 15 days, released only after his family paid a $1,500 ransom. He was raped every day. Only once, he said, was he allowed to talk to his family during captivity.

*

Since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003, the situation for gays and lesbians in Iraq has deteriorated. Ridiculed under Hussein, many now find themselves the targets of violence, according to humanitarian officials. Lesbians are also victims of harassment and violence, but not nearly as often as gay men. It's unknown how many homosexuals have been killed by militias in the lawless streets of Iraq's cities, but some Web sites post pictures of Iraqis they say were killed for being gay. One photo . . . . shows a group of men standing around three male bodies sprawled on a street, blood pouring from their heads.

*

A U.N. report on human rights in Iraq reinforces the accusations of violence. Although gays are supposed to be protected by law in Iraq, it says, they face extreme brutality. "Armed Islamic groups and militias have been known to be particularly hostile toward homosexuals, frequently and openly engaging in violent campaigns against them," the report said, adding that homosexuals have been murdered. "Militias are reportedly threatening families of men believed to be homosexual, stating that they will begin killing family members unless the men are handed over or killed by the family," it said.

*
Both men hope to escape Iraq. They say their ideal destination would be San Francisco, California. For now, both of them keep their feelings secret. Kamal is still tormented by what happened to him nearly three years ago.