It was a special feeling drinking the Hungarian liquor, Unicum, along the lakeside of a Baghdad palace - a summer getaway for former Iraqi strongman Saddam Hussein. The residence is now being used by coalition forces. The bitter Unicum, imported from Hungary, was found that evening in a corner of the palace. Our toast was special: we had survived the day.

Hungary’s version of Air Force One, that had flown us to the conflict zone, is an old, gray An-26 Russian transport plane. While the propeller driven aircraft has been in service for some 30 years, this was the first time that an anti-heat sensing missile defence system was installed. The surveying equipment discharges two glowing beams of light every two seconds in order to detect hostile fire. A spectacular landing was also guaranteed by mandatory orders applied in the military operation zone. The plane approached the landing strip from a high altitude, almost in freefall, in order to avoid becoming an easy target on the ground.

The night before taking this kind of trip, you seriously ponder the need to leave your family behind for Iraq, when the weekend could be spent at home. Although safety measures seemed exaggerated, the argument against unnecessary panic was confirmed by the events of that very day.

The Hungarian unit serving in Iraq performs ground transportation tasks. So far, they have successfully protected themselves and the freight they carry. Nevertheless, the troops were not able to have the opportunity to demonstrate their work to the minister. The transport unit did not participate in the protocol procedure, as visiting Hungarian dignitaries were not transported by the convoy, but flown by American helicopter to the base some 100 kilometres away.

Not much publicity was given to the fact that Hungarians were involved in a dangerous action on route to receive their defence minister at the airport. Up until then, they had only ducked to avoid stone throwers. Now they were being shot at. Hungarian troops, however, have not yet used their weapons – as a pointed machine gun effectively prompts attackers to reconsider. The first real surprise was on the American Black Hawk helicopter. The crew did not resemble the intimidating or powerful stature of a "Terminator” by any stretch of the imagination, but rather looked young and vulnerable. The doors of the helicopter were open on the sides; a machine gun to the left, another to the right; a fragile-looking young girl surveyed the landscape behind a massive weapon.

We were flying low – waving at children and indifferent adults and viewing shanties that revealed poverty of the Third World. The only signs of life emerged on the narrow path along the river; yellow dust and sand were everywhere else. The dust was whipped up upon our landing in Babylon: the base of the command of the Polish-led international division where the Hungarians are serving. One of the 70 Hussein palaces sits on the hilltop, which he visited only on one occasion. In the distance are walls known only from history books.

Hungarian troops serving in Iraq are there to perform ground transportation tasks

In our direct proximity, Polish commander Andrzej Tyszkiewicz praised the indispensable work of the Hungarian soldiers at an ad hoc press conference, remarking on the friendship between the two nations. The commander boarded his helicopter while we boarded another. Our destination was the Hungarian camp, while the commander flew toward Baghdad. We were more fortunate. The helicopter with the Polish commander had to perform an emergency landing in reaction to an attack. We were not to board a helicopter again, but weren’t told until much later of the Polish helicopter incident. On the way back to Baghdad, we almost scraped the treetops, flying so low that we had to gain altitude to avoid a collision with power lines.

Flying so low leaves little time for enemies with shoulder-launched missiles to set the target. With a three-plane formation like ours, the last vehicle has the smallest chance of surviving the attack, one expert explained. Members of the delegation were flown accordingly: the minister was on the first helicopter, the chief of staff travelled on the second and the last carried journalists.

The emergency landing by the Polish helicopter was a sign of bad times to come. Only a few of the thousands of shoulder- launched missiles missing from Iraqi Army warehouses have been recovered. Barely a week later, Iraqi resistance shot down an American helicopter. The transport helicopter was carrying soldiers on their way to take leave. Sixteen casualties, 20 wounded. Soon after, a Black Hawk crashed in Hussein’s hometown of Tikrit – six more troops were killed. By the first week in November, the number of American casualties had grown to 140 since American President George W. Bush gave his May 1st speech announcing the end of main military operations. Since then, Bush’s popularity has plunged – a result of the array of bad news from Iraq.

Dreaded Ramadan
We experienced firsthand the early uneasiness of the coalition forces in anticipation of Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting that began at the end of October. The curfew was lifted in several areas to allow the public to go about their business at night, after the daytime hours of abstinence. Troops were warned that locals would be more irritable because of a lack of food, drink and sex.

Reality surpassed all expectations. The regular attacks intensified; dozens of American troops lost their lives in the course of several days. In one of his November statements, US Assistant State Secretary Richard Armitage went as far to say that an uprising was close to instigating a war.

Out of concern for the safety of its staff, the International Red Cross/Red Crescent Societies temporarily closed its offices in Baghdad and Basra. The organisation had an uninterrupted presence in the country since 1980, pulling through three wars.

Although the main targets of the attacks are US soldiers – 99 percent of casualties are Americans – other nations have suffered important losses.
The British philosophy initially seemed successful in winning the sympathies of the population by putting aside bulletproof vests and helmets, and even discarding sunglasses to encourage eye contact. At the beginning of November, however, a British soldier was killed in a shooting.

A Polish major was fatally wounded by machine gun fire just a few days after fresh public opinion polls indicated falling Polish support for their mission in Iraq. This was the first Polish casualty. Up to this incident, the considerable 2,500 Polish unit had not sustained injuries and only six Ukrainian soldiers had suffered injuries under the 10,000-person division commanded by the Polish.
In reaction to the death of the major, Polish Foreign Minister Wlodzimiercz Cimoszewicz stated that Poland wanted to remove its troops as soon as possible. The Polish head of state and the prime minister, however, argued in favour of the mission. The Polish chief of staff argued that despite the growing danger encountered in the southern Iraqi zone, it is the safest area in the whole country. The Hungarians serve in this division, having performed 90 transport tasks by the end of October.

Hungary will stay in Iraq through end-2004

Their route crosses intersections where several attacks have been launched in the past. The Hungarian weekly, Heti Világgazdaság, suggests that Budapest is also preparing for a potential tragedy. Contingency plans have been prepared for the communication of potential deaths of Hungarian troops.
Hungarian troops, however, don’t seem to be preoccupied. In a period of increasing attacks, the original six-month mandate was extended by the Hungarian Parliament until the end of 2004. Nearly three-quarters of the soldiers have said they would be willing to stay an extra two months. They recognise the dangers, but claim that they can take care of themselves.