$46 million hospital for Falluhja
By Qassem Salman
Azzaman,
September 8, 2005
The government has allocated $46 million for the construction
of a new hospital in the war-ravaged city of Falluja.
Minister
of Industry and Minerals Asama al-Najafi has laid the
foundation stone for the 200-bed hospital.
�The
building of this hospital has a lot of symbolic significance because it is
being implemented in a city that has suffered a lot of oppression and tyranny,�
Najafi said, without elaborating.
He said
the hospital will �offer services of an international standard.�
Najafi
inspected the city which was the scene of some of the most ferocious fighting
in the two and a half years since the U.S. invasion of Iraq.
Falluja
was literally destroyed as U.S. troops stormed the city, deploying
tanks, armored vehicles, heavy artillery and air bombardment.
In a bid
to help the 300,000 inhabitants to rebuild their city, Najafi agreed to subsidize
sales of cement and other construction materials to Falluja.
The
minister promised other projects among them a $20 million housing complex with
504 flats.
Work is
continuing to rehabilitate the city�s public services and compensate the
inhabitants for damage.
Meantime,
more than 70% of the eligible voters have registered at the polling stations
for the October 15 referendum on the draft constitution.
Falluja
boycotted the January elections, but participation in the referendum is
expected to be very high.
Falluja
is a Sunni stronghold in the country and Sunni political and religious groups
are confident that they will eventually garner a two-third majority of No vote
in at least three provinces to defeat the constitution.
Relative
stability has returned to Falluja recently and the
city�s police chief, major-general Salah al-Ani said his force of 700 officers was in control.
------------- Bruce
Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.
|