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March 16, 2006
Frustration with Kurd leaders spawns riot on anniversary of chemical attack
HALABJA, Iraq (AP) - Thousands of angry Kurdish demonstrators went on a rampage Thursday and badly damaged a monument to 5,000 residents killed in a poison gas attack on the city by the Iraqi army 18 years ago. Police fired live ammunition into the air, killing one person and wounding at least eight, in a bid to stop the mayhem by residents, angry over what they see as the regional government's failure to rebuild the area. The demonstrators marched through the streets of Halabja chanting: "Down, down with the government. In addition to killing an estimated 5,000 residents, Iraqi poison gas bombs left nearly 10,000 wounded and suffering after-affects. The attack was part of a campaign to crush a Kurdish rebellion in northern Iraq Police fired into the air after the riot began at the Halabja Monument in the town centre, while demonstrators threw stones and stormed into the monument. They removed hundreds of pictures of loved ones killed in the 1988 attack. The demonstrators badly damaged the inside of the monument, set it afire and left. The exterior of the 30-metre-tall, triangular structure was not damaged. "This monument has become a symbol for poverty," said an angry demonstrator as he threw large stones, charging the local government is using the memory of the Halabja attack for its own interests. ![]() |