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| Packing for Baghdad |
| 2003-04-10 |
| Iraqi exiles in Britain are excited at the prospect of returning to their homeland now that Saddam Hussein's regime has crumbled. Yassim fled Iraq in 1980 after his father and uncle were killed by Saddam Hussein's regime. But now he has applied for his papers, bought a plane ticket and is packing to go home to Baghdad. "I haven't seen my mother, or brothers and sisters for 23 years," he told BBC correspondent Graham Satchell. "The first thing I want to see is my family." Yassim is one of thousands of Iraqis in the UK who want to return to their homeland now that the threat from Saddam's brutal regime has been lifted. Children who have only known exile but have been told about their country by their parents are longing to see it. Watching liberation One little girl told BBC News: "When I saw them tear down Saddam's statue I knew that he was broken, dead. "We can go and live there now, have what we want, what we dreamed of, like smell the air." 'I knew Saddam was broken, dead' In Iraqi cafes across London many watched the scenes of liberation in the centre of Baghdad on Wednesday in disbelief. Men drank tea and cheered as they watched Saddam Hussein's statue finally topple. "It's an historical moment," said one man, at the Baghdad Cafe in west London. "We have been waiting for this a long time and we thank the British and American people and troops for helping us get rid of the most criminal man in the world." 'Keep him alive' Another said he would not be a happy if the former leader were found dead. 'I want to see Saddam on trial' "I want to see him on trial and talking about why he did what he did," he said. On all the exiles' minds is the thought that they could soon be reunited with grandparents, brothers, sisters, aunts and uncles they have not seen for many years. One woman has not seen her family for 24 years. "I have waited for this moment," she said. "I want to go to Iraq as soon as I can." MURAT - Obviously these people have been brainwashed by living in the west so long. They have been poisoned by democracy and freedom. Once they get back they'll realise that life under Saddam was really not that bad. |
| Posted by:rg117 |
| #1 The Arab world thinks the Iraqi people are insane, because they can't understand how you couldn't love such a nice guy. The rest of the Arab world closes their eyes at his evil and loved him because he was against the Americans. This just shows what the arab world is capable of. They would rather see their countries enslaved than helped by the Americans. Unbelievable!! |
| Posted by: George 2003-04-10 09:54:55 |