Iraq Wins the Asian Cup But Captain Calls for US to Leave.
It's very, very rarely that I watch the TV news and smile at any item which features Iraq. And yet, last night, as the news spread that the Iraqi national team had won the Asian cup final 1-0, I couldn't help but grin at the sight of Iraqis of all religions celebrating this historic victory.
It's so long since these people had anything approaching good news and so rare to see Iraqis put aside their religious differences and simply celebrate as Iraqis that one couldn't help but be swept up in the whole thing."This is not just about football... this is more important than that," Iraq's Brazilian coach Jorvan Vieira told a news conference.
"This has brought great happiness to a whole country. This is not about a team, this is about human beings."
The sight of people swarming out of bars and jumping up and down in the streets allowed one, for the briefest of moments, to forget what we have inflicted on these people.
However, this morning reality knocked on the door with the news that the Iraqi team captain will not be returning to the war torn country and is asking that the Americans leave.
"I don't want the Iraqi people to be angry with me," he said. But, "If I go back with the team, anybody could kill me or try to hurt me.Iraq celebrated last night, even though the celebrations had to be held in a country under a vehicle curfew to avoid a repeat of the car bombing which killed fifty after Iraq's semi-final victory, but celebrate they did.
"One of my closest friends, they (the authorities) came to arrest him, and for one year neither me nor his family knew where he is."
The Sunni Muslim Iraqi captain — who like the rest of the team wore a black arm band to remember the dozens killed by carbombers following the side's semifinal victory over South Korea on Wednesday — said the American presence in his homeland was a "problem."
"I want America to go out," he said. "Today, tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow, but out. I wish the American people didn't invade Iraq and hopefully it will be over soon."
So, for one brief night, Iraqis celebrated again the simple fact that they were Iraqis."Our gallant youths fulfilled their vows to their country and people," said Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki in a televised speech after the game. "They were able to portray Iraq beautifully, in all its shades, and bring a smile of hope to their people. They are a stark contrast to those who lurk in dark corners to plant death and sorrow among the innocent."
Patriotic music filled the airwaves. Children with their faces painted red, black and green, the colors of the Iraqi flag, pelted their neighbors with candies. Families made plans to slaughter sheep or chickens for feasts. Vendors sold out of the T-shirt that emphasizes unity over sectarianism with the slogan, "I am Iraqi."
Even the country's politicians managed to set aside their squabbles as they crammed onto sofas to watch in the living room of Deputy Prime Minister Barham Saleh's elegant villa in the capital's Green Zone compound. There were enough cabinet ministers to make a quorum, and a handful of senior American and British diplomats joined them in cheering on the home team.
In marshy southern villages, mountainous northern towns and the battle-scarred neighborhoods of the capital, elated Iraqis pumped bullets into the air in defiance of government and clerical bans on celebratory gunfire.In Baghdad, a few daring celebrants broke the curfew and piled into beat-up cars to cruise until the police stopped them. Others skirted the 14-hour ban on vehicles by roaming the streets on bicycles and scooters festooned with huge banners.
In many homes, Iraqis gasped as their TV sets showed scenes that were unimaginable only a month ago: Kurds raised the Iraqi flag in their mostly autonomous northern region, men stripped off their shirts and ran half-naked in southern holy cities, women who usually stay indoors for protection stayed out past sunset.
"I can't describe my feelings because I've never had such a great feeling," said Qusai Hadi, 31, from Basra, a largely Shiite Muslim city in southern Iraq. "Those players planted happiness in every Iraqi's heart. I wish I could kiss them, one by one . . . . I hope this happiness lasts forever."Don't we all Hadi, don't we all....
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