Many Iraqis return as options run out

Houston Chronicle ^ | GREGORY KATZ

[DogBarkTree]

CAIRO, EGYPT — Ahmed Hilmy, agitated and anxious, walked into the Iraqi Airways office in downtown Cairo to find out whether he had cleared the waiting list for a confirmed seat on the next day's flight to Baghdad.

The green-clad ticket agent tapped in Hilmy's name, punched a few more computer keys, then looked up with a smile. "You're on," she said. Hilmy's face relaxed with a broad grin. After eight months as a refugee in Egypt, he was going home.

"I'm so happy," he said. "It's not totally secure, not everything is safe, but it's better than staying here in Cairo and doing nothing."

Every week, more and more Iraqis show up at the airline office, looking for a ticket home. Similar scenes are unfolding at airline offices and bus stations in Jordan and Syria, the countries with the largest Iraqi refugee populations. So far, more than 25,000 Iraqis have returned home, Iraqi Red Crescent officials said last week, without giving a country-by-country breakdown.

"A lot of people are going back now," said Emab Abas Naser, the Iraqi Airways manager in Cairo. "The security in Iraq has improved. The situation is much more stable now."

[DogBarkTree]

Another positive sign things have improved. God bless our troops and the Iraqi people taking back their country.

[jwparkerjr]

I wonder how many more would return if they had a way to do so. Many of these people are the kind of citizens Iraq needs to rebuild its infrastructure and get back to a more nearly normal way of life. Intuition tells me the kind of people who fled are not the kind that will be a problem. The problem makers stayed and caused trouble.

[Blue Highway]

Pray for the families safe return home and that peace will be given to them.

[nuconvert]

No bias in that headline.
Lol.

[DogBarkTree]

Very true. As with most MSM, you have to read, watch, or listen with a BS filter.

[Chode]

thank you... these scum are unreal!!!

[frankenMonkey]

Yeah, that headline is unbelievable. Kinda like:

Bush wins election as options run out.
Trump opens casino as options run out.
Woman gives birth as options run out.

[jakester]

Or; Iraqis return because they’re broke!
Iraqis return because their visas have been revoked or
canceled!

[frankenMonkey]

Or:
Iraqis return to their now safe homeland to contiune its restoration and rebirth.

[Chode]

the way i see it, they thought their options had run out and that's why they LEFT Iraq... now they see their options opening back up in Iraq and moving back home.

[jakester]

Yep 80% return because they have no other choice!