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Andy over at Flying Yangban pointed out this article in the Chosun Ilbo that featured the below photograph:
The picture is supposed to be of a sandstorm hitting the Korean Zaytun unit’s base in Irbil, in Northern Iraq. However, Andy points out that this picture is not from the Korean base in Irbil but of Al Asad Airbase in Western Iraq. Here are some more pictures of the sandstorm:
This pictures bring back memories of my time in Iraq. This is how the sandstorms looked like though I remember them being darker then the reddish color in the pictures. Could be because of the sunset. These sandstorms looked like something straight out of The Mummy. When my men and I first saw a sandstorm or in Arabic, Shumali, heading straight for us we just kind of glanced at each other in disbelief wondering if this was natural or not? Everything was perfectly calm as the storm approached. However, once it hit you the calm instantly disappeared and all hell breaks loose as any exposed skin you may have begins to feel like it is being pricked by needles. You must have eye protection to see or you risk blinding your eyes. We actually had people get lost, wandering around in these sandstorms when they had to go to the bathroom. The shumali that hit during the combat phase of the war even had a name given to it by the GI’s, a MOASS (mother of all sandstorms).
This is one GI who will never complain about monsoon season or the heat here Korea this time of year, because trust me, I have been through worse.
11:26 am on January 7th, 2007 1
What a scene! It's really a scene in "The Mummy" if there is a mouth opend.
"However, Andy points out that this picture is not from the Korean base in Irbil but of Al Asad Airbase in Western Iraq."
Well, it looks like the Korean news paper fabricated the news article again in order to support their story. They are implicitly saying that the Korean troops well endure in such a bad land and this effort must be evaluated by the US government.
11:34 am on January 7th, 2007 2
GI,
Not the Zaytun unit. They wish they had something exciting to talk about from their experience in Iraq. Unfortunately, from what I've read, they mostly stay on base and leave security to the Kurds.
Here's a link to an impressive video of the storm. In it, you'll see what appears to be civilians walking around like it's no big deal. No Koreans in sight mind you.
http://www.big-boys.com/articles/sandstorm.html
1:44 pm on January 7th, 2007 3
Yup, that's Al Asad alright. I was stationed there for a year during OIF I and I'd know that place anywhere (especially those cliffs to the north). Those photos were taken on the contonement area of the base and from atop the "temple of doom", a huge concrete bunker that housed the base generator. Those sandstorms are pretty common in Western Iraq. Now, most of the buildings there are pretty sealed up now, but when the first one hit us back in '03 most of the windows were still busted out, and a lot of folks still living in tents or under the stars….
11:30 am on September 3rd, 2008 4
[...] Shipping on qualified orders Sponsored by: Amazon.com/ • Found on Ads by Google Sandstorm in Iraq The picture is supposed to be of a sandstorm hitting the Korean Zaytun unit?s base in Irbil, … [...]