June 12, 2007
The Iraq war and the electronic trenches
Videos posted on the internet by U.S. soldiers in Iran include the now typical array of cellphone images of explosions and shouting, of young men, fuelled by adrenalin, swearing and laughing in almost every excerpt, reports cbc.ca. There are also images of animal abuse by soldiers.
And coming from the other side, U.S. troops are watching Juba videos on the Internet from their Iraqi bases. Some are even posting video replies — images of helmets with bullet holes in them, a retaliatory "You didn't get me, I'm still here"taunt. Juba might be called the Bogeyman of Baghdad. He's a star of the insurgent videos, a sniper who likes to boast electronically of his accomplishments.
According to ifilm, Juba is probably a compilation of many snipers. His targeting and shooting of U.S. soldiers is meticulously and melodramatically recorded on camera. Each propaganda posting is accompanied by swelling music, elaborate graphics and enough footage of soldiers crumpling to the ground to send the signal that Juba is watching and waiting.
This is the modern equivalent of First World War soldiers barking threats at each other across the trenches.
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