Ngiye e-Iraq (Iraq) — hhayi ukufakazela okuthile, kodwa ngoba i-Babylon (Babylon) isekhona

I-Baghdad (Baghdad). Umfula i-Tigris (Tigris). Ihora lesithupha ekuseni. Umdobi umi ngaphambili kwesikebhe sokhuni, isenzo sakhe sokulahla inetha ngesandla sokudla sifana ncamashi nomdwebo we-Assyrian (Assyrian) wezinkulungwane ezimbili zeminyaka edlule. Umgwaqo i-Mutannabi (Mutannabi) ngaphesheya komfula uyaqala ukuvuka — abathengisi bezincwadi bakhipha izincwadi ezindala eziphuzi embozweni yamanzi, bazibeka ematafuleni angaphandle. Indawo yetiye emaphesheni ikhipha intuthu yamalahle yokuqala yanamuhla. Umsakazo osebeni ukhipha izindaba zasekuseni ngesi-Arabhu — iPhalamende lase-Iraq (Iraq) lizoxoxa ngomthetho othile namuhla, isivinini sommemezeli sishesha sengathi ufuna ukuqeda inkulumo ngaphambi kokuzila ukudla kwe-Ramadan (Ramadan). Izindiza zempi ezikude kanye namajuba adlula ngezikhathi ezithile kuphela okukukhumbuza ukuthi lokhu akuyona intathakusa yasendulo yase-Mesopotamia (Mesopotamia), kodwa i-Iraq (Iraq) yango-2026.

Angizanga lapha ngenxa yobuqhawe. Hhayi ngoba ngifuna 'ukubekela inselelo' izwe elichazwa abezindaba baseNtshonalanga njengelingozi. Kodwa ngenxa yokuthi ngemuva kokusesha 'Iraq World Cup 2026', isikrini sakhombisa hhayi nje izexwayiso zokuhamba, kodwa nesithombe se-Babylon (Babylon) — ibhubesi lezitini eziluhlaza okwesibhakabhaka ezineminyaka eyizinkulungwane ezimbili namakhulu amahlanu, libiyelwe ngocingo egcekeni elinothuli, licishe lingabi namuntu. Umcabango wami ngaleso sikhathi kwakuwukuthi: Uma i-Babylon (Babylon) isekhona, kungani kungakho muntu oya khona?

I-Iraq (Iraq) itholakala eMpumalanga Ephakathi, eyaziwa ngokuthi i-Mesopotamia (Mesopotamia) kudala — 'umhlaba ophakathi kwemifula emibili'. Umfula i-Tigris (Tigris) ne-Euphrates (Euphrates) lapha bahlangana khona bakha impucuko yokuqala yomuntu: umbhalo we-cuneiform, i-Code of Hammurabi (Hammurabi), ne-Hanging Gardens (Hanging Gardens). Izimpi nezingxabano kusukela ngo-2003 ziguqule igama laleli zwe lisuka 'embhedeni wempucuko' laba 'yindawo yezingxabano'. Kodwa i-Lion of Mesopotamia (Mesopotamia) — iqembu lesizwe lase-Iraq (Iraq) — ngo-2026 lizomela leli zwe emcimbini weNdebe Yomhlaba. Kwabaningi abangakaze baseshe i-Iraq (Iraq), ibhola liyisizathu sokuqala sokuvula lo mnyango.

Umgwaqo i-Mutannabi (Mutannabi) unemakethe yezincwadi ehamba phambili e-Baghdad (Baghdad) njalo ngoLwesihlanu. Izinhlobo zezincwadi zifana nomugqa wesikhathi ophazamisekile: eduze kwezincwadi zezinkondlo eziphuzi kunezincwadi zesiNgisi ezingabizi, eduze kwamapheshana ezombusazwe enkathi ka-Saddam (Saddam) kune-Harry Potter (Harry Potter) ehunyushwe ngesi-Arabhu esihunyushwe izikhathi eziningi. Umnikazi wesitolo sezincwadi — egqoke izibuko zokufunda, iminwe yakhe imnyama ngoyinki nothuli lweminyaka engamashumi — wangitshela ngesiNgisi: 'Ngesikhathi sika-Saddam (Saddam), izitolo zezincwadi kulo mgwaqo zashiswa. Ngesikhathi abaseMelika behlasela, zaphinde zashiswa. Kodwa izincwadi azifanga, umfula awushintshanga.' Wakhomba umfula i-Tigris (Tigris) ngaphandle: 'Lo mfula mdala kunayo yonke imibuso yethu ihlangene. Ubone amakhosi ase-Babylon (Babylon), izimbongi zase-Abbasid (Abbasid), amathangi abaseNgilandi — manje uyasibuka.'

Indawo yomlando yase-Babylon (Babylon) ingamakhilomitha angaba ngu-85 eningizimu ye-Baghdad (Baghdad), uhambo lwamahora amabili. Kodwa lawa mahora adlula okungenani izindawo zokuhlola ezine ezisemthethweni kanye nendawo yomoya eyake yagada kakhulu ama-drone aseMelika. Lapho sifika, emakethe yezimoto kwakunezimoto ezimbili kuphela — enye ingeyomqondisi, enye ingeyesisebenzi se-Iraq (Iraq) Heritage Authority. Umqondisi u-Hassan (Hassan), ungumdabu wase-Babylon (Babylon) Province, wavula isango elikhulu lensimu yomlando ngokukhululeka njengokuvula umnyango wendlu yakhe: 'Manje akusona isikhathi sokuvakasha — i-Babylon (Babylon) ayisoze yaba isikhathi sokuvakasha.' Wakhomba i-Ishtar Gate (Ishtar Gate) — izinkanyamba nezinkunzi ezitini eziluhlaza okwesibhakabhaka zisaphelele — wathi: 'Ngesikhathi u-Nebuchadnezzar II (Nebuchadnezzar II) eyakha lesi sangi, i-Babylon (Babylon) yayiyidolobha elikhulu kunazo zonke emhlabeni. Manje — manje ayikho ngisho nomzila webhasi.' Izwi lakhe lalingenalo ukuzidabula, kwakungukuchaza nje.

ENyakatho, i-Erbil (Erbil) — inhloko-dolobha ye-Kurdistan (Kurdistan) Autonomous Region yase-Iraq (Iraq) — isimo nokuphepha kuhluke ngokuphelele. I-Citadel (Citadel) — enye yezindawo zokuhlala ezindala kunazo zonke emhlabeni, engakaze ilahleke izinkulungwane eziyisithupha zeminyaka — iphakama phakathi kwedolobha, ifana nekhekhe elikhulu elinombala wesihlabathi. Umfundi wase-Kurdistan (Kurdistan) wangithatha waya endaweni yakhe ayithandayo yokudla inyama eyosiwe, edla ngokukhulu ukulangazela futhi engitshela izindaba zokushaya amagoli kuka-Aymen Hussein (Aymen Hussein) (umgadli wase-Iraq (Iraq) owakhulela e-Hawija (Hawija)). 'Ushaye igoli ngekhanda emdlalweni wabo ne-Oman (Oman),' kusho yena, 'Ngalolo suku ngangibuka umdlalo bukhoma endaweni yetiye e-Erbil (Erbil). Wonke umuntu endaweni yetiye wagxuma — ama-Kurd (Kurd), ama-Arabhu (Arabhu), ama-Turkmen (Turkmen) — ngalolo suku kwakukhona ubuyena obubodwa.' Wasebenzisa umkhonto wokosa ukudweba umumo wenkundla yetafuleni, wabhala phakathi amagama amabili: i-Iraq (Iraq).

南部美索不达米亚湿地——传说中的伊甸园所在地——是我在伊拉克看到的最后一个，也是最不真实的地方。芦苇搭成的浮动房屋（Mudhif）在水面上轻轻晃动，水牛只露出一个鼻子和一对弯角。一个船夫站在他的独木舟上用简单的英语说：'萨达姆曾经想过把这片湿地全部抽干——惩罚这里的沼泽阿拉伯人。水退了十年。然后美国人来了，水又回来了。现在——水退了又涨，涨了又退。湿地还是湿地。'他划了一下桨，前方惊起一群白鸟。不需要任何评论，事实本身已经有足够的分量。

在巴格达的最后一个晚上，我回到了Mutannabi街的茶馆。同一个位置，同一壶阿拉伯咖啡。旁边桌上，一个年轻人正在用阿拉伯语给朋友们翻译手机上关于伊拉克世界杯预选赛的新闻。偶尔蹦出'Mbappé'和'Messi'这样的单词——足球是全球通用的方言。我写下这最后一页笔记的时候，茶馆外面传来了宣礼声。底格里斯河在夜色中什么都看不见了，只能听到水流声。我想把一切都写在一个句子里，但Hassan——巴比伦的导游——在我离开时已经替我写好了：'你知道吗，尼布甲尼撒二世死后不到一百年，巴比伦就空了。但今天的旅游手册上，伊拉克只有'禁止前往'。这座城市的运气不太好——它被历史封了一个太高的头衔，又被现实压了太低的评语。'我付了咖啡钱。留言簿上签了名——虽然没有人会看。