Iraqi Uber driver who dodged bullets in DC gun battle says the Democrat-run city feels like a war zone — when in fact it might be far worse

An Uber driver in Washington, D.C., fled to the United States hoping to escape the violence in his native Iraq. After nearly catching several bullets over the weekend, Omar Al-Furaiji has concluded he has simply found himself in another war zone.

WTTG-TV reported that Al-Furaiji was driving near the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in downtown Washington over the weekend when his Toyota Highlander SUV was struck by a hail of bullets.

Neither Al-Furaiji nor his passengers caught lead, though the barrage did send shards of glass flying, fifteen pieces of which later had to be removed from his body.

"I thank God I survived," said Al-Furaiji. "For some reason, God saved me."

Video captured by Al-Furaiji's dashcam shows the driver and his passengers ducking amid the crackle of gunfire. A vehicle with tinted windows can be seen slamming into a dumpster behind the Uber. Those inside bail out, with at least one opening fire on persons off-screen.

According to a police report, witnesses indicated at least six gunshots were fired by an individual in an SUV with tinted windows.

Authorities stated one person outside the vehicle had been shot in the back.

Al-Furaiji, who formerly worked in theater while in Iraq, told WTTG that he can't use his vehicle on account of the damage and his stress from the incident, saying, "It's not even a movie. It's like time doesn't exist."

He showed NBC News bullet holes in his windshield, stating, "This is supposed to be my head, if I didn’t bend down or lay down."

One bullet reportedly cut through the left side of his seat. Another slammed through his headrest.

The police report obtained by Fox News Digital indicated the driver had likened D.C. to the war zone he had left behind.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime tracks intentional homicide rates for various countries around the globe. The latest data for Iraq is from 2014, when the Islamic State had taken over much of Anbar province, captured Mosul, and expanded into the northern part of the country.

The murder rate for the capital city of Baghdad recorded for that year was 18.4 (per 100,000 population).

In recent years, a number of Democrat-run cities in the U.S. have far surpassed the reported murder rate in Baghdad at the height of the terroristic caliphate's stranglehold on the country.

Time reported that in 2021, the murder rates for Memphis, Detroit, Atlanta, Louisville, and Indianapolis were 48.7, 47.9, 32, 30.5, and 27.1 respectively, adding that data for D.C. was unavailable, although the year-end total was 226 murders.

Last year, D.C. Metropolitan Police reported 203 homicides, which would amount to a murder rate of over 29.4.

Axios reported that the district is on its way to setting a 20-year record, having seen over 160 murders already this year, with 16 slayings between Aug. 1 and Aug. 8 alone.

Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser's district ranks 2 on Neighborhood Scout's crime index, with 100 being safest. The odds of becoming a victim of a violent crime are 1 in 102.

Council member Trayon White appears to agree with the Iraqi Uber driver, stating, "We are in a war zone."

Editor's note: This story has been corrected. It previously listed Dallas among the Democrat-run cities with 2021 murder rates higher than the 2014 murder rate in Baghdad.

Uber sprayed with bullets in DC; driver who left Iraq says city feels like war zoneyoutu.be

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