Patrick Mooney Posted 14 April , 2003 Share Posted 14 April , 2003 "Pals" I have just received word that my Brother is now stationed in Kut as part of the US Marine Task Force which is securing the area. I have asked him for an update on the city and the CWGC cemetery, as it seems that the Ba'athist had located their HQ in proximity to the site. He has promised to send me a report and digital photos as soon as they have their satellite e-mail link established. Also, as an Itelligence Officer, he travels up to Baghdad often to confer with others, so he will look into the situation there as well. As soon as I have details and photos I will post them here. Cheers, Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon_Fielding Posted 14 April , 2003 Share Posted 14 April , 2003 I'm sure I speak for many when I say that we'd really appreciate that Patrick. Thank your brother in advance and tell remind him to watch out for himself! Let's hope the peace can be won as quickly as the war... Best wishes Simon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Hone Posted 21 April , 2003 Share Posted 21 April , 2003 How many CWGC cemeteries are there in this area? One of our old boys, Gunner James Sykes, RFA, is buried at Amara War Cemetery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Denham Posted 21 April , 2003 Share Posted 21 April , 2003 The following is the current list of CWGC cemeteries & memorials in Iraq. Alwiya Indian War Cemetery Amara (Left Bank) Indian War Cemetery Amara War Cemetery Baghdad Civil Cemetery Baghdad (North Gate) War Cemetery Baghdad (North Gate) (Khanaquin) Memorial Basra (Tanooma Chinese) Memorial Basra (Makina) Civil Cemetery Basra Cremation Memorial Basra Memorial Basra War Cemetery Habbaniya Memorial Habbaniya War Cemetery Karbala Isolated Grave Kut War Cemetery Mosul War Cemetery In addition CWGC look after Basra (Makina) R.A.F. Cemetery by agreement although it contains no WW1 or WW2 war graves and Basra Indian Forces Cemetery which solely contains Turkish casualties. There are a few sites which still contain burials but which have been abandoned as unmaintainable and the names now appear on the memorials (ie Khanaqin War Cemetery, Samarra Indian War Cemetery, Mosul PoW Cemetery, Mosul French Dominican Church & Basra Jewish Cemetery). These sites were abandoned long before the conflicts of the past decade or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Denham Posted 21 April , 2003 Share Posted 21 April , 2003 As there has been a thread on the Forum concerning Isolated Graves lately, the details on the one mentioned above are..... Major Saiyid Wasiul Hasan Askari MZ/8318 Indian Army Medical Corps Died 21.10.43 Age 40 Serving with the 22 Indian Convalescent Depot Karbala is a sacred city to the Shia Muslims and is the site of the stoning to death of the Prophet Hussein. Burials here are believed to be especially sacred. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick Mooney Posted 21 April , 2003 Author Share Posted 21 April , 2003 Pals, I have finally heard from my brother as mentioned earlier in this thread regarding the status of Kut Cemetery. The cemetery suffered considerable damage and the location of an Iraqi HQ immediately adjacent to the site was primarily responsible, though it appears that NO graves were disturbed other than broken stones, etc. His unit, Task Force Tarawa, comprised of 2nd and 8th Marine Regiments, is undertaking the clean up, and restoration of Kut CWGC Cemetery in honor of their fellow Warriors who made the ultimate sacrifice. He has enclosed a number of digital photographs, including some showing the damage and graffitti done to the site. I will begin posting those photos here for all to see, as soon as I can figure out how to post a photo! Stand by for the photos... Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick Mooney Posted 21 April , 2003 Author Share Posted 21 April , 2003 Pals, OK...here goes. With the aid of our brilliant technical wizard and forum master, I will attempt to post the photos...I will do so two at a time. The photos show the CoS of Task Force Tarawa, Colonel Smoot, inspecting the cemetery to assess the needs for repair. Knowing my organization, the US Marines will leave the Cemetery in Spit-polished, blanko'ed perfection...and will be honored to do it. Semper Fidelis, Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drummy Posted 21 April , 2003 Share Posted 21 April , 2003 Patrick, Great news to hear the troops out there are looking after the war cemetery and doing what they can to tidy it up. Looking forward to seeing the pics of the cemetery. I am sure I am not alone in wanting our thanks to be passed onto the troops engaged in this task. All the best Neil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick Mooney Posted 21 April , 2003 Author Share Posted 21 April , 2003 OK - here are two more... Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick Mooney Posted 21 April , 2003 Author Share Posted 21 April , 2003 Here goes the final two... I hope to be able to provide updated photos as the clean up progresses. Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kate Wills Posted 21 April , 2003 Share Posted 21 April , 2003 Patrick, Thankyou very much for enabling us to take a look at Kut (how many of us have ever been there or are likely to?). It is very gratifying to know that these long-dead men who fell so far from home are not neglected. Heaven knows the coalition forces have enough work on their hands in reviving some form of normality to the Iraqi people. Please send our very best wishes to the Marines, and especially to your brother Michael. Kate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Denham Posted 22 April , 2003 Share Posted 22 April , 2003 Well done with the photos. It is good to see that there is relatively little damage - less than one would have expected. A good gardener could make a big difference by the look of it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick Mooney Posted 22 April , 2003 Author Share Posted 22 April , 2003 Terry, So true - A good gardener will make a world of difference, but unfortunately these are Marines...their idea of gardening would make the CWGC shake their heads in wonder. I heard today from my brother and he said that when volunteers were requested for extra duty to clean up and square away the cemetery, they were flooded with names and had to set up a rotating duty roster for the brigade. The first thing they did was scrub away all the graffiti that had been scrawled about, as "This is hallowed ground - it will not be defiled." We are quite proud of the coalition forces around here...regardless of anyone's stand on war, they have all demonstrated the best of humanity in an inhumane situation. Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Reed Posted 22 April , 2003 Share Posted 22 April , 2003 As always we can depend on the Marines - Patrick many thanks to you and your brother for posting this and getting the photos, and excellent news they are doing some work on the cemetery. I wish your brother a safe return, for him and his comrades. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick Mooney Posted 23 April , 2003 Author Share Posted 23 April , 2003 Pals, When it rains, it pours. Now we have an article in the Washington (DC) Post Newspaper about the efforts by the Marines to clean up Kut Cemetery. More details are given here, especially about a couple of specific graves. Here is the link to the story: US Marines clean up British WWI Cemetery in Kut Cheers, Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick Mooney Posted 23 April , 2003 Author Share Posted 23 April , 2003 Here's another story, this time from Task Force Tarawa itself. Marines Clean up cemetery in Kut Patrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Parker Posted 23 April , 2003 Share Posted 23 April , 2003 Patrick I felt quite honoured that it was US Marines who were cleaning up the cemetery at Kut. As well as my interest in the British Army of WWI, my other main interest is the USMC. I read, collect, and research the USMC, but mainly the Pacific campaigns of WWII. You can always rely on the USMC Best wishes to your brother and his comrades Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annette Burgoyne Posted 23 April , 2003 Share Posted 23 April , 2003 Hi Patrick Please pass on to your brother and rest of US troops what a great job they are doing at Kut Cemetery, and what a great job they and our lads did getting rid of Sadham. Regards Annette Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 23 April , 2003 Share Posted 23 April , 2003 Latest photo from Patrick. Cross of Sacrifice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andigger Posted 29 April , 2005 Share Posted 29 April , 2005 Bringing another 'old' thread back up. It has a good balance of modern events and its relivance to the Great War. Andy ps... Patrick, if your still around, thank your brother for his service most importantly and of course the pics too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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