Issue

Conflict and Peace Building

Nearly 30 years after the Rwandan genocide, thousands of maimed amputees remind us of the war that took 500,000 lives in 100 days. War leaves marks that cannot be erased—not only in Rwanda, but on every continent.

Reporting from Conflict and Peacebuilding examines the roots of conflict, whether it be religious hatred, sectarian rivalry, a security vacuum, the struggle for natural resources, or the desperation that results from poverty.

Pulitzer Center journalists also cover war’s aftermath: the transitional governments that result in chaos, diplomacy that goes awry, peace talks that never end, and the people who suffer the consequences, young and old. We see the children who go hungry, lose their homes, leave school, become combatants, or join the jihad.

Often the end to conflict leaves turmoil in its wake while the road to peace seems circuitous: In South Sudan, rebel-commanders-turned politicians plunge the country into civil war. In the U.S., troops return home from one war only to be re-deployed to another. But everywhere, in every conflict, there are also voices crying out for peace, determined to heal the divide.

 

Conflict and Peace Building

Iraqi Army in Sadr City Prayer Space

The Iraqi Army built a base in the outdoor space where 7,000 Sadr City residents pray every Friday.
This Friday, they posted snipers on rooftops and checkpoints around the mosque.
The Jeish al Mehdi tried to keep worshipers from confronting the soldiers.

Winning the war?

The most amazing thing to me on this trip has been the ability to visit places I haven't been able to go since 2006, and in some cases, since 2005. It stirs memories, good and bad, but the most striking things are the physical changes (and in some cases, lack thereof) in Baghdad as the war drags on through its fifth year.

Anything is better than civil war

A hot summer, even for Baghdad.
The Tigris drops. Sea grass under the bridges.
'Are you a river?' asked Al-Sayyab, 'or a forest of tears?'

They only found 83 bodies last week.

Rebar and concrete husks punched through by rockets.
Facades wrapped around hot air and broken furniture.
A hundred miles of concrete, and the wooden stock, warn smooth under his hand.

Amman-Baghdad

The buses have all gone. We are left alone with the oil stained pavement and the taste of cardamom.

Amman - when will you deserve your pale white stone, your thin air and your two million refugees?

Mercenaries grow old here, skin hangs to muscle and bone. Oily stares that hope for nothing.

Our black wing passes over the crescent moon. We dive into the darkness of Baghdad.

David Enders on Iran's Press TV

On July 28, 2008, Iran's Press TV conducted a live interview with David Enders about his perspectives on the war in Iraq.

Enders is currently reporting from Baghdad on Iraq's upcoming elections, the issue of U.S. detention of Iraqis and continued U.S. pacification efforts in Sadr City and Falluja.

Enders also plans to travel to Syria to examine the continuing struggle for Iraqi refugees there.