Ten years after the US-led invasion of Iraq, former Dutch Ambassador to that country Robbert Gabrielse tells Patrick Cooke about life during some of the worst years of sectarian strife.
From his spacious office overlooking Ta Xbiex marina, the only explosions Dutch Ambassador to Malta Robbert Gabrielse hears these days come from festa fireworks.
But from spring 2007 to summer 2009 he was Ambassador to Iraq; a country that was imploding in the aftermath of the US-led invasion that had toppled dictator Saddam Hussein in 2003.
“The main danger for us was not attacks from the streets but incoming rockets, mortars and bullets. Mostly they would be trying to hit the American Embassy or the British Embassy nearby, but they could land anywhere. This happened every day, especially in 2007.”
The Ambassador was approached by The Sunday Times to speak about his experiences to mark the 10-year anniversary of the March 2003 invasion. He was at pains to point out that although his job was not without dangers, ordinary Iraqis were much more at risk.
The Dutch Embassy and official residence during Mr Gabrielse’s tenure was a safe house in Baghdad’s Green Zone – the heavily fortified area of the city where the Coalition Provisional Authority and many government buildings and diplomatic missions were located.
Mr Gabrielse’s predecessor had moved the mission from its original premises outside the Green Zone after it was damaged in a rocket attack.
It was believed to have been purposely targeted, as the Netherlands had more than 1,300 soldiers in Iraq from 2003 to 2005, ostensibly for peacekeeping following the removal of Saddam.
When projectiles were fired into the Green Zone, a deafening alarm was triggered by an American defence system.
“We just had a few seconds to find a safe place. In my office I had to climb inside a small concrete shelter that was open from two sides. If I couldn’t reach it I had to lie on the floor.”
Unlike the Americans, who travelled outside the international zone in huge, heavily armoured convoys, Mr Gabrielse purposely adopted a low-key approach with just a few cars and “very professional security people” so as not to alienate the population.
Although there was a sense of safety in the Green Zone, with relatively few ordinary Iraqis living or working there “it lacked the normality of a city.”
Even outside the Green Zone, “people just went out to do the necessary things, like shopping or going to school or work. It was much more risky than for us, of course.”
For Iraqis who worked in the international area but lived outside, there was even more danger.
“They were targets for the extremists. They had to go through the checkpoints on their way in and out every day. Some hid their faces but others did not.”
Seven Iraqis worked for the Dutch Embassy during Mr Gabrielse’s term.
“They were a source of information about what was happening in the places we couldn’t go. We travelled out of the Green Zone but it was too dangerous to stop and talk to people. They would tell us about the attacks, what was happening in the mosques... horrible stories.”
The Ambassador’s secretary was grazed by a stray bullet, while her husband was hit by a bullet in the leg.
No one who worked for the Embassy lost any immediate family members, but “probably everyone in Iraq lost someone from their extended family.”
Although Mr Gabrielse felt that most Iraqis – particularly Kurds and Shias – were glad to see the end of Saddam Hussein’s “brutal dictatorship”, they quickly became frustrated by the insecurity, disruptions to the water and electricity supplies and slow pace of reconstruction.
“Expectations were high because it was a very short war. Then it started. A lot of extremists from whatever side had an interest in it not being a success. They knew if the rebuilding was successful their support would diminish.”
“You could also question if the coalition had a good plan for rebuilding. It was easy to win the war but much more difficult to win the peace.”
Mr Gabrielse suggested that it was a mistake by the coalition to dismiss everyone associated with the previous regime.
“The top layers had to be removed. But you cannot remove everybody. You can argue it was not wise to disband the whole army, for example. That left lots of frustrated young men with no income.”
Security began to noticeably improve in 2008 as the full effects of the American surge in troop numbers took hold, coupled with the arming of Sunni tribal militias to battle extremists in the West and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s decision to crackdown militarily on Shia extremists in the south.
This was followed by an election in 2009 when the extremist factions lost heavily.
“The people spoke and they were extremely brave to vote in such numbers despite the dangers.”
Perhaps the best example of the Iraqi bravery that Mr Gabrielse so admired was the 14-year-old who arrived at the former Embassy premises in the Red Zone one day speaking fluent Dutch.
After receiving a phone call from security guards at the building, the Ambassador had the girl brought to the Green Zone.
It transpired that she was a Dutch-Iraqi who had been brought from the Netherlands for an arranged marriage in the south but had escaped and fled all the way to Baghdad on her own.
After doing all the necessary checks, Mr Gabrielse personally escorted her out of the country and she was returned to the Netherlands and legally removed from her parents’ custody.
Four years later, is Mr Gabrielse hopeful about the future of Iraq?
“Yes. Extremists are still present unfortunately but in all the Iraqis I spoke to when I was there, there was a strong urge to be a normal country and to re-establish their great civilisation. The will is there.”