Attacks and Evacuation

March 2004 - We didn't know what to expect. The tension increased by each day. The events in Falluja with the Blackwater guys were fresh in our minds. The Coalition (= ambassador Bremer) closure of the Muqtada Al Sadrs newspaper had stirred up n a general unrest not only in Baghdad but in most of central and Southern Iraq. Attacks were reported in several areas like Al Kut, Nassiryah and Najaf.

In the Green Zone rumors of imminent attacks coming from the river had us all revising our security measures and starting to plan possible escape routes.

I was alone in the building with the five bodyguards. The rest of the staff was outside Iraq and I had ordered them to stay out until we had a better overview of the situation. I had moved from my top floor bedroom to the ground floor together with the bodyguards in order for us to react as fast as possible in the event of an attack. The Coalition JOC considered an attack by Mahdi forces imminent, so we had to do our planning. Apart from packing a bag with the absolute essentials passport, money and rations, we all had our guns ready and with extra magazines. The Body armour we would wear during trips out side of the zone became our second skin in earnest those days.