| Submit your comments on this article |
| Iraq-Jordan |
| Iraqis Celebrate Olympic Victory with |
| 2004-08-21 |
| Sat Aug 21, 2004 03:57 PM ET BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqis, weary of violence and deprivation, erupted in wild celebration Saturday after their national soccer team beat Australia 1-0 in the Athens Games. Red tracer bullets - fired in joy not anger - lit up the night sky, cars honked and revelers sang and clapped in this battered capital of five million people -- scene of almost daily bloody car bomb and mortar attacks. Firing gunshots into the air is a common way of celebration in Arab countries. Of course, no mention is made of the routine fatalities connected with this incredibly moronic practice. The win puts Iraq into the Olympics soccer semi-finals. Since the fall of Saddam Hussein following a U.S.-led invasion last year, Iraqis have had little to cheer about. A fierce anti-American insurgency has killed hundreds and has delayed reconstruction projects. Wow! None of the usual Reuters spin about "Iraqi citizens killed." Must be because this was written by a sportswriter. |
| Posted by:Zenster |