Blast Kills Iraqi Peace Poet

Salon.com | News Wires: By SAMEER N. YACOUB (AP)

June 25,2007 | BAGHDAD -- The poet Rahim al-Maliki wrote about his dreams of Iraqi unity in a place where such appeals are drowned out by daily bombings. One of them took his life on Monday.

Al-Maliki -- whose fame grew by hosting two shows on state-run television -- was among 13 people killed in a suicide attack at a Baghdad hotel, where he was filming tribal leaders about their decision to join U.S.-led forces in the fight against factions linked to al-Qaida. Four of the tribal sheiks from the western Anbar province were among the victims. ...

Under Saddam Hussein, he was imprisoned twice on accusations of criticizing the government and expressing sympathy for fellow Shiites who suffered widespread crackdowns after a failed uprising in the wake of the 1991 Gulf War. He did not publish his work during Saddam's regime, but he read his poems at gatherings -- and they were passed along by admirers who memorized the verses....

Al-Maliki lived in the Baghdad district of Sadr City with his wife and four children.

In one of his poems, he called upon all Iraqis to understand their shared stake in the country. ...