Web diarist’s graphic account of war

LIKE a latter-day Anne Frank, an ordinary resident of Baghdad has emerged as the voice of his beleaguered nation, posting a vivid daily account of life in the Iraqi capital on the internet.

Going by the name of Salam Pax, his online diary has secured a cult following worldwide with his sharp observations of life in a war zone.

Although there are still dozens of journalists and TV cameras in the Iraqi capital, his postings have the ring of authenticity and immediacy that even live television reporting finds hard to match.

He is a self-confessed David Bowie addict, cannot stand Saddam Hussein, yet hates the notion of an American occupation. He is not beyond the odd skit either, poking fun at so-called human shields who stay in the best Baghdad hotels. His diary, mysteriously titled Where is Raed?, has recorded, with humour and in eloquent detail, the anxieties of the Iraqi capital's besieged citizens as they wait for the next bed attack their rush to tape up windows, the stockpiling of groceries, the increased presence of menacing Ba'ath party officials on the streets.

By last Friday, as US B52s finally homed in on Baghdad, the website had become the most linked-to web diary on the internet, with millions of net users captivated by the sharp observations and witty asides of a clearly educated and erudite writer. Just like the heart-rending diary of Anne Frank, whose teenage musings emerged after World War II.

He claims to be a 29-year-old middle-class man living somewhere in the suburbs of the Iraqi capital. But is he real? According to those familiar with the city, he certainly displays a familiarity that could only come from a resident or someone with an intimate knowledge of Baghdad. Conspiracy theorists on the web have suggested that he is anything from a Mossad agent to a Saddam stooge pumping out misinformation for the gullible masses.

To start with, there is the mystery of his cryptic name. It doesn't take long to realise that "Salam Pax" is a simple play on words meaning "peace" in Arabic and Latin, respectively. This mirroring motif is reflected in the website's address, www.dear-raed.blogspot.com, with its palindromic "dear" and "Raed."

Those who know Baghdad well, and who have read the diary closely, say there is no doubt that whoever is writing it is currently resident in the Iraqi capital. The author may display evidence of spending time in the west (possibly Britain, though he does use Americanisms) with his cynical sense of humour and love of David Bowie lyrics, but the reams and reams of fascinating detail about domestic and street life in Baghdad are highly convincing.

After all, why would he make it all up, especially for the long period before it even became the internet phenomenon it is today.

As Salam himself said last Friday: "Please stop sending emails asking if I were for real. Don't believe it? Then don't read it. I am not anybody's propaganda ploy. Well, except my own."

His fans worldwide are praying that he does not meet a fate similar to that of Anne Frank.

After being betrayed, Anne, her family, and the others living with them were arrested and deported to Nazi concentration camps. Nine months after she was arrested, Anne died of typhus at Bergen-Belsen.