The people of Iraq have reason to be afraid. They suffered for a very long time. They have real enemies still hoping to wrest control. It is a delicate time.
We are winning.
Amb. Bremer and Gen. Abizaid are good men, wise. Their briefings are reassuring.
The letters from the troops are hopeful, too.
The Iraqi people who are helping us rebuild are very brave and grateful. They are determined to make sure no one like Saddam - or the Mullahs in Iran - rule again. They want freedom.
We are taking out more bad guys daily. All the forces say things are improving - contrary to press accounts.
Prayers are working.
"Saddam wanted to kill us all, but now he's gone and the Americans have come to bring us law and democracy."
-- Jamil Azad, owner of a tea shop in Halabja, The Washington Post, August 7, 2003
"We suffered 35 years. Now the best job is done, there is no more Saddam Hussein and his regime."
-- Yonadam Kanna, leader of the Assyrian Democratic Movement and member of the Governing Council, Christian Science Monitor, August 7, 2003
Baghdadis now freely surf the Internet and send e-mail without a government official pacing behind them."
-- The New York Times, August 5, 2003
"Iraqis are very thirsty to learn what is happening outside of Iraq."
-- Abbas Darwish, owner of a Baghdad shop that sells newspapers, The New York Times, August 5, 2003
"Recruitment for Iraq's post-Saddam army started on July 19, and this week, a two-month basic training course gets underway to produce its first 1,000-strong light-armoured mechanised infantry battalion."
-- Agence France-Presse, August 5, 2003
"I can put my head on the pillow and sleep deeply. I can rest now."
-- Ayad Hosni, a barber in Baghdad, Knight Ridder, August 5, 2003
"But neighborhoods in and around Baghdad, staggering from uneven electrical power and water supply, also buzz with normal summer delights. Ice-cream stands are jammed, soccer fields swirl with the dust of matches and bookstores down from the Shabandar [cafe] are open all hours and selling posters of imams and politicians once-reviled by the ousted regime. Booksellers grin when asked about their new reality."
-- Chicago Tribune, August 5, 2003
"You never knew who was sitting next to you. In the past no one would dare to just speak out. Now everybody is talking. About federalism, about a monarchy. ... I think our aims are just one, to eliminate persecution for anyone ever again."
-- Jafar Adel Amr, a tool salesman in Iraq, Chicago Tribune, August 5, 2003
VOICES OF FREEDOM
Quotes from the grateful Iraqi people. Y