The Great Iraqi Desire – Normalcy

A Reporter's Recent Trip To Iraq – Females Make Up 25 Percent Of Iraq's Parliament – And Iraqi's Stand Up A New Air Force

'A Fragile State' - Impressions From Iraq: "Baghdad – You hear certain things over and over, as you spend some time in Iraq … One word you hear constantly is 'normalcy.' That is the great Iraqi desire: normalcy – a normal life, in which one can study, marry, have children, work, and pray, as countless people do elsewhere." (Jay Nordlinger, "'A Fragile State' - Impressions From Iraq," National Review, 11/3/2008 – Subscription Required)

"Where [Iraqi] Special Forces are trained, we ask a man some basic questions. 'Why did you join up?' 'To defend my country.' 'Against whom?' 'Terrorists.' 'Did your family suffer under Saddam Hussein?' 'Yes, a lot of families did.' 'Are Americans occupying your country?' 'Occupation' has different meanings. Saddam Hussein occupied this country.' Incidentally, this man's brother was killed not long ago, because terrorists learned that he – their victim – had a brother in the Special Forces. We hear a lot about sacrifices such as this."

"I walk through [a market called Doura] with Gen. Robin Swan, and he notes a key distinction between … Iraq post-surge and Iraq pre-surge. Terrorists can still perform spectacular bombings, for sure. But sectarian violence does not now follow those bombings. Life goes on. And the bombers are denounced."

Fox News America's Newsroom: "During the height of the insurgency, al Qaeda in Iraq bombed this street literally every week … [Today] we have seen shops open and pharmacies open for business. Literally, this area is full of activity." (Fox News' America's Newsroom, 10/21/08)
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Iraq's Female Lawmakers Make Strides: "Getting little notice amid the violence of the past several years is an astounding experiment that is nearly unheard of in the Middle East – Iraq's constitution mandates that women make up 25% of the parliament. That's a higher percentage than the U.S. Congress. In Arab countries, women in parliaments average less than 10%, according to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, an international association." (Jim Michaels, "Iraq's Female Lawmakers Make Strides," USA Today, 10/27/08)

"Slowly, the women of Iraq's parliament are emerging as a political force. That is still jarring to some in a region where people of opposite sexes usually won't shake hands, and where it is still legal in many countries – including Iraq – for men to have more than one wife."

Iraq Updates Hussein-Era Air Force: "After only five months in the Iraqi Air Force's new training program, [one Iraqi has] already gotten more time behind the yoke of a plane than the average pilot in Saddam Hussein's Air Force got all year. (Tom Peter, "Iraq Updates Hussein-Era Air Force," The Christian Science Monitor, 10/27/08)

"We need an Air Force to defend ourselves from any attack from our neighbors; that's all we need" said Col. Samir Agarr, commander of Iraq's 23rd Squadron.

"Only in the past year has the fledging force begun to take off … At the beginning of this year it had about 800 airmen, but that figure has already more than doubled to just over 2,000, and by the end of 2009, the IQAF is set to triple to over 6,000 airmen."

CNN's Newsroom: "The coalition air force training team is partnering with the Iraqis to build an air force that can protect the sovereignty of the nation … a great example of the progress we're making" said Lt. Col. Mark Bennett. (CNN's Newsroom, 10/28/08)
Watch News Report on Iraqi Air Force

H/T: CJ