"We're ecstatic to get rid of him after all these years of war and deprivation," said Dinkha Khosina, joining hundreds of Iraqis to greet US troops racing from Baghdad's northern entrance to the heart of the capital.
"Welcome, welcome!" Baghdadis cried out in English, as young people took off their T-shirts and waved them in joy in front of the US soldiers.
"This is the greatest feeling I've had in my life, after spending 11 years in military service because of all the wars Saddam has put us through," said Ayub, who did not want his family name used.
