“I used to be very optimistic. But, the security situation is getting worse daily.”

Wednesday's New York Times has a good article about the online diary of Iraqi National Library Director Dr. Saad Eskander. The Times piece adds some additional background on the dangers confronting Dr. Eskander and his staff. This passage in particular shows the gravity of the situation:


In the e-mail exchange, Dr. Eskander wrote: “I used to be very optimistic. But, the security situation is getting worse daily.”

Although all available resources have been directed to keeping the collections safe, “terrorists attacks, especially mortars shelling represent a considerable threat,” he wrote. “It is extremely difficult for my staff, including me, to work in a normal way. Many roads and bridges are often blocked. Hundreds of checkpoints are responsible for the daily heavy traffic. There is always the possibility of daily car-bomb attacks, assassinations, kidnapping and so on. Sometimes our drivers refuse to go to dangerous districts. All these ‘tiny things’ affect our works on daily basis.”