Very nice to hear this
In his first address to the Iraqi people, the country’s new prime minister today defended the presence of American and British forces on Iraqi soil and warned that their departure would amount to a "major disaster" for the country. Ayad Alawi, appearing in a televised address three days after being chosen prime minister, said his countrymen could "never accept" foreign occupation, and he vowed to reclaim the country’s full sovereignty on June 30. But his speech amounted to a vigorous defense of the continued presence of American troops at a time when public opinion polls have reported that most Iraqis want the foreign troops to leave immediately. "Your government sees that only the restoration of security and the safeguarding of citizens’ dignity, honor and wealth will allow us to successfully proceed on the political track and achieve the transfer of full sovereignty," Mr. Alawi said in a speech that was carried by stations like Al-Arabiya and Al Jazeera, which broadcast across the Arab-speaking world. "The targeting of the multinational forces under the leadership of the United States to force them to leave Iraq would inflict a major disaster on Iraq, especially before the completion of the building of security and military institutions," Dr. Alawi said. "And I would like to mention here that the coalition forces, too, have offered the blood of their sons as a result of terror attacks designed to force them to leave Iraq," he said.
And the ears of the Al-Jazeera audience began to sizzle and smoke because of the resulting disconnect and incomprehension |