BAGHDAD, August 17, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- Violence and chaos in Iraq have forced more than 4 million Iraqis to leave their homes -- and more than 2 million of those have fled the country since the U.S.-led invasion of 2003. Many of those who remain in Iraq face life-threatening dangers and enormous difficulties that make survival a daily struggle.
It is little wonder that many ordinary Iraqis say moments of happiness have become rare in their lives.
Ali is one Iraqi who says that the security situation affects almost every aspect of his life. A well-educated resident of Baghdad in his 30s, Ali told Radio Free Iraq that he wants to find hope and happiness in post-Saddam Iraq, but he feels that is impossible when basic needs are not being met.
"Happiness is abandoning the Iraqis. I don't believe that there is any Iraqi who can be truly happy," Ali said. "Happiness arises from the precursors to such happiness -- such as the country being stable, or the country being secure, or a person's basic needs and requirements being [fulfilled]. By this, I mean the services he needs for his daily existence, such as water and electricity. But these have long since gone by the wayside. We pray to God for wide, smiling, happiness on the faces of the Iraqis."
More on the story.
2 comments:
The very real, very sad reality of what Iraqi people deal with that is kept out of the US News.
General Petraeus will lie and say everythings going good. As we watch hundreds of Iraqis get killed. More US soldiers are dying. The enemy has all the equipment they need thanks to General Petraeus. As for the Iraq leaders well their on vacation and are still not talking to each other. We have lost over 4000 soldiers and General Petraeus would like more time so more soldiers will die.
Post a Comment