When the Apricots Bloom

These chapters lend insight into the fear-driven bureaucratic underground of Iraq during Saddam Hussein’s rule, as the chain of threats expands and secret deals are made. Just as Huda threatens to turn Rania over to the mukhabarat, Rania then threatens Basil in the same way, and Basil then threatens Kareem. The balance here is between certainty and uncertainty, for the uncertainty of punishment for trying to get a passport conflicts with the certainty of punishment if an informant were to give one’s name to the mukhabarat. Thus, Rania is risking her safety for Huda to avoid a guaranteed visit from men like the Bolt Cutter. Likewise, Basil and Kareem comply to avoid punishment, ironically making themselves vulnerable to the possibility of punishment if they are caught complying. In many ways, the Shorja Market stands as a direct contrast with the Rashid Hotel, for the hotel creates an atmosphere of opulence and safety while the Market is visibly dangerous and seedy. However, despite overt appearances, the actual roles of each setting are reversed, as Huda is threatened by the mukhabarat in the Rashid Hotel, but she and Rania are approached by a helpful child in Shorja Market. These contrasting dynamics demonstrate that there is unity among those under government rule, such as the inhabitants of Shorja Market, while there is no unity in official spaces like the Rashid Hotel, where government officials act with impunity.

Critically, Rania and Basil reveal that their insistence on the lack of opposition is an outright lie, since Rania easily finds Basil, who finds Kareem. However, the opposition itself is clearly different from the kind that Huda and Rania remember in relation to Mustafa, as the agents in this modern-day opposition are not actually fighting the government. Instead, Kareem details a convoluted plan to involve America in Iraq’s affairs, working covertly with the Shi’a religious sect to stir up discontent and provoke events that might mandate foreign intervention. While the primary intrigue up to this point has focused upon the twists and turns of Huda’s efforts to acquire a passport, Kareem reveals the existence of similar schemes that operate at a much higher level and involve multiple governments and participants. Unfortunately, this particular intrigue will inevitably involve Ally, since Kareem knows that any violence against a foreigner would justify foreign intervention. In Kareem’s plan, Ally becomes the key to pushing the government past the balance between oppressing Iraqi citizens and appeasing foreign nations that could force the mukhabarat to expose their violence.

The ambiguous and somewhat combative nature of the relationships between Huda, Rania, and Ally gain intensity in these chapters, as Huda has threatened Rania to secure her son’s escape from the country, but she discovers through Hanan that Rania still cares for her. Likewise, Rania comes to appreciate Huda’s efforts to secure a passport for Khalid as her own daughter is threatened by Malik and the potential danger of Uday Hussein. As children under threat, both Hanan and Khalid become a bonding point for Rania and Huda, as they both have families to protect in the absence of any male assistance. In fact, the recurring issue of male characters who are absent at best and threatening at worst continues to intensify, as Kareem, the cleric, and Malik each present new threats that the women of the novel must navigate. Kareem is essentially threatening Ally’s safety by forcing Huda to inform on her, while the cleric’s insistence on subjugating women by restricting their movements and their clothing indicate a possible shift toward sexism on a broader scale. Although Kareem insists that foreign governments would never put a religious group in charge of the country, the cleric’s presence at the meeting implies precisely the opposite. Both women are uncomfortable with the idea of implicating Ally in the proceedings, indicating that an attachment has reformed between the two childhood friends, even though both have professed that they cannot be friends with foreigners or each other.

Malik offers a different kind of threat than the violence of the mukhabarat, and the implication of bringing Hanan to Uday Hussein highlights the undertone of sexual violence that pervades the novel. Although none of the characters have yet experienced direct, sexual assault, the harassment that Ally faces every day implies the possibility of such an assault, and Malik confirms that this is also a possibility for Hanan. Rania is aware that Uday collects girls for the specific purpose of sexually assaulting them, using his political power to ensure that no one resists his actions. However, this threat forces a reflection on prior events in the novel and foreshadows the possibility of sexual assault in the events to come. Thus, Huda’s detention, the harassment that Ally faces, and Adnan Nawab’s comment on the frequency of sexual assault in Baghdad all combine to create a sense of imminent danger for Hanan and the other women in the novel.