I learned that my friends Sarah Shourd, Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal had been arrested by Iranian soldiers on the border with Iraqi Kurdistan when their faces appeared on the evening news more than nine months ago. My initial shock at discovering they had apparently strayed into Iran while hiking in the mountains soon gave way to a sense of guilt. After all, I was the one who had persuaded them to go to northern Iraq.
I had met Sarah through a volunteer education program for Iraqi refugees in Damascus, where we both taught English. Sarah was smart and passionate, an idealist with an irreverent sense of humor. Her partner Shane, a freelance journalist, was softly spoken but wiry, energetic and inquisitive, with an enviable grasp of Arabic.
I had been to Kurdistan on vacation in 2008. Several Iraqi friends had recommended I go there and I had heard that it was both safe and stunning. When I returned from the trip, I was full of praise for the place. I regaled Sarah and Shane with tales of the breathtaking scenery, ancient cities and hospitable locals. They were sold; one day they'd have to go too, they told me. Sometime last July they raised the subject again. They were planning a trip and wanted to know where to stay and how to get around. Once again, I urged them to go. "You'll have a great time," I said. The last time I saw them was at a party in my apartment. Their friend Josh was visiting from the United States and had come along. They were leaving for Kurdistan in a couple of days and were clearly excited about their trip.
My distress at my friends' arrest has been compounded by the tone of many of the comments posted online beneath news stories about them. So many of the comments seem to express glee that my friends are getting their just desserts in an Iranian jail for being so "stupid" -- over-privileged college kids who thought they could swan around a warzone like Iraq and expect Uncle Sam to bail them out of trouble.
From what we know of their movements that day, it seems that Sarah, Shane and Josh were ill-informed about their precise location. Perhaps they should have planned their trip more carefully. But a lot of the reactions to their fateful hiking trip are based on ignorance.
Iraqi Kurdistan is technically part of Iraq, but in reality, it's entirely autonomous. Iraqis from other parts of the country need permission to go there and I've spoken to many Iraqis who say it's easier to get a visa for Syria. This tight control has meant Kurdistan has escaped most of the horrors that have afflicted Iraq since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. Indeed, I found out online before visiting that Kurdistan had suffered only two significant terrorist attacks since 2004. That's two too many, but pretty good compared to more "orthodox" Middle East tourist destinations like Jordan or Egypt.
The Kurdish Autonomous Region of northern Iraq has functioned as a state within a state since 1991, when U.S. and allied forces established a 'safe haven' for Kurds from persecution by Saddam Hussein. I discovered as soon as I got there that calling the area 'pro-American' could be an understatement. As we entered our hotel in Erbil, one of the main Kurdish cities, we were greeted by a large portrait of President George H. W. Bush and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair with Jalal Talabani and Masoud Barzani, the two main Kurdish leaders. My American travel companion smiled awkwardly as the hotel owner praised the great Bush for all he had done for Iraq while shaking his hand vigorously. "I'm not sure what's worse," my companion said afterwards, "having to apologize for Bush, or accepting compliments on his behalf." But he got used to it. His answer to the question, "Where are you from?" became noticeably more audible as the week went on until, emboldened by grins and compliments, the sheepish mumble he had employed elsewhere in the Middle East became a loud, proud exclamation - "I'm American!".
One of the more memorable internet comments on the 'Iran hikers' asked "Don't these people watch CNN?" That remark says a great deal about the assumptions behind many of the contemptuous reactions to Sarah, Shane and Josh's predicament. It says the Middle East is uniformly dangerous and threatening, a place full of violence and anti-American fanaticism, and we know because we saw it on the news. Happily, a growing number of Americans and Europeans see past this stereotype. During my three years in Damascus, I met Americans of every conceivable background who had come to study Arabic. For all their differences, they shared a desire to know more about the Middle East and the Muslim world. Some of them will end up working in the State Department; others will be lifelong critics of U.S. foreign policy. But their willingness to educate themselves and experience the Middle East first hand is surely a positive thing for the United States, given how inextricably tied our societies are. Sarah, Shane and Josh embody this attitude with their curiosity, desire to travel and passion for languages.
I wish I could turn back time and urge Sarah and Shane to go to Petra, Jordan instead. Or at least tell them to get a detailed map before going off the beaten track. But there is nothing predictable about what happened to them. Their continued detention is a travesty, and they deserve all of our support and sympathy.
Alireza Jafarzadeh: Iran's Seat Does Not Belong to Clerical Rulers
The whole world is dangerous. and it will never come in to peace because the majority don't care.
i don't think you'd show sympathy if your uncle was hit by a car while crossing the streets.
or maybe only if it wasn't Thiland's streets!!
peace is an ideal, not reality. there will always be strife because people just don't agree. maybe one day there won't be wars, but there will always be "police actions" and skirmishes because when ideologies come up against each other and do not agree there will be violence.
it isn't because the majority don't desire peace, everyone does. they will, however, put that desire aside when something more fundamental to them is threatened,
Negative and also incorrect generalization.
More articles soon please.
Thank you Sir
although it might not be the smartest idea to travel to these places it is still up to the individual where they spend thier free time.
while i would not want to travel to iraq right now - even though the natural scenery is beautiful - people do have the right to travel there if they are allowed in.
people do have to keep in mind that going to iraq is somewhat dangerous - it is considered a war zone - even kurdistan as it is part of iraq! but hey - so is mexico and people go there everyday! they just have to be made aware of the dangers.
i've been to Kurdistan several times with my friends. and YES it is safer even than your own countries. and beleive it or not, NO you can't tell the borders around these beautiful mountainous UNMARKED area. and it is definitely NOT a war zone. it could be described as a conflict zone that of course these three americans would not be affected by.
THESE ARE THE FACTS not your claims of knowing how and what it is really like there! (YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT HOW DANGEROUS THAT AREA IS! SO PLEASE STOP YOUR MOCKING OR GIVING FALSE EVIDENCE!)
i can't believe you! either believe the story and do something (based on this humanitarian seek) or go mind your own business.
Have you taken a moment thinking how harsh it must be for them, that these three young people are held in prison since almost a year now not even knowing what they're being charged of and one of them is living in isolation for 23 hours a day? i doubt you did!
enough with your agressiveness and trying to get back at people at every possible chance to point out at them with blame and disgust. Does it really make you feel smart and good about yourselves?!
you make me feel sick
I'll go with propagandizing a failed operation. People who feel guilty don't generally write articles defending the actions they say they're remorseful about. And "kids" that had already lived overseas for an extended period of time would know better.
"Fattal, 28, is from Pennsylvania. Shourd, 31, is from California and Bauer, 27, from Minnesota. All three are graduates of the University of California at Berkeley."
considered flawed. Where was family intervention during this whacky decision? Stop all the KID B.S., they are full grown adults making bad decisions.
I sincerely hope they are eventually released, but it must be acknowledged that they made a very poor decision. Unfortunately, theirs resulted in just about the worst consequence it could have.
I’ve travelled over large parts the Muslim world without incident, but a little common sense is called for no matter where you chose to roam, and these people showed very little of that.
Several governments including the US, Australian, Canadian and UK make a strong distinction between the good security situation here as opposed to the rest of Iraq, but they also make mention of avoiding the border areas of SE Turkey and Iran in particular. There is a risk of land mines and military operations (Turkey and Iran targetting the PKK and PJAK) or as these guys found out, the risk of accidentally straying into a country whose Govt is not friendly towardss the US.
"Fattal, 28, is from Pennsylvania. Shourd, 31, is from California and Bauer, 27, from Minnesota. All three are graduates of the University of California at Berkeley."
Only in America, when an adult gets into legal trouble, does s/he suddenly revert to being a "kid". Pathetic.