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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| Iranians encounters with US soldiers fuel favorable sentiments |
| 2004-02-12 |
| On Revolution Day, the Iranian equivalent of the Fourth of July, Azadi Street was again transformed from east-west artery to carnival midway. Men lined up for free yogurt. Hawkers coaxed women to finger the material on baby clothes. Children clamored for a turn throwing darts at George W. Bush’s caricature. Hossein Asadi put three darts right between the eyes of the caricature, sketched on a pair of boards mounted in a sideshow tent. He walked away with a new yellow tennis ball but no change in his feelings, which were nothing if not admiring. "They like me to hit George Bush, so I hit George Bush," said Hossein, 15. "They say it’s the great Satan, but I say it’s a great country." Wednesday marked 25 years since an elderly Muslim cleric with eyes the color of coal declared Iran a theocracy. But while religious figures remain firmly in charge, sweeping aside an entire reform movement last week with the stroke of a pen, another pillar of the revolution appears shakier. Anti-Americanism is not what it used to be in Iran. As the United States and Iran edge warily toward possible rapprochement, the Iranian public makes no secret of its appetite for restoring relations formally severed in 1980 after militant students took over the U.S. Embassy. In recent months, Iranians say, the appetite has grown for an unexpected reason: Iranian pilgrims returning from Iraq are spreading admiring stories of their encounters with American troops. Thousands of Iranians have visited the holy cities of Najaf and Karbala since the war ended. Many have expressed surprise at the respectful and helpful behavior of the U.S. soldiers they met on the way. Leila Araki, waiting in the back of a car as her husband peddled shoes, said her mother-in-law somehow lost her money on the road to Karbala. She said a U.S. soldier reached into his pocket and handed her taxi fare back to Najaf. "This is something quite contrary to what we have been told about Americans," said Araki, 31, who was told of Americans flashing a thumbs-up and saying, "'Good, Iranians.' They were really surprised. I would never be this respected and well-treated even in my country, by my countrymen." This unusual cultural exchange has emerged at a fortuitous time, according to analysts and ordinary Iranians. After a quarter-century of mutual hostility, the U.S. and Iranian governments are working quietly to establish order both in Afghanistan and Iraq, neighboring countries that Iran considered hostile under the regimes that the United States and allied nations toppled. The prospect of formal relations remains uncertain. Senior Iranian officials said they do not expect serious progress until after the U.S. presidential election and Iran’s own contest for a new president in 2005. |
| Posted by:TS |