Iraq Pilgrims in Saudi Thank God for Saddam's Fall

[Barrett808]

Iraq Pilgrims in Saudi Thank God for Saddam's Fall
Sun Jan 25, 3:29 PM ET
By Andrew Hammond

JEDDAH (Reuters) - Joyful Iraqi pilgrims arriving in Saudi Arabia on Sunday said they would thank God for ending the rule of Saddam Hussein in prayers during haj pilgrimage but other Arabs were thinking of the U.S. occupation.

"I hope God will give Iraq strength and make it strong and united after all these years of pain, sickness and war," said Thabet Karim Jassem of Baghdad, part of 300 Iraqis who arrived at a haj terminal in the port city of Jeddah, near Mecca.

Jassem was among thousands of Iraqis that had been stranded on the Kuwait-Iraq border last week over visa problems.

More than 32,000 Iraqis were chosen by lottery to perform the haj this year, the first pilgrimage for post-Saddam Iraq.

"We remained nine days at the border, it was a very miserable time for thousands," said Bakkar Rasoul, a Kurdish eye doctor from Suleimaniya. "But I am really happy that we are free and God helped us to visit Mecca."

"I and many people are thankful toward the United States because they were able to release us and we will definitely never forget. I don't think any Muslim can forget this," he said, standing by Kurdish and Iraqi flags beside the Iraqi pilgrims.

(more)

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=574&e=5&u=/nm/20040125/wl_nm/saudi_haj_dc_1

[pinto]

1. Headline - article disconnect...were Kurds able to make the haj before?

Or were they banned from observance under the Ba'athist regime?

Headline infers they were prohibited from travel to Mecca...

If so, the haj is an understandable, overdue joy for Kurdish Muslims.

I'm aware of the atrocities against the Kurds under the Ba'athists.

This is merely a comment about reporting - there is no quote in the article "Thank God for Saddam's fall". The quote I see is "God helped us visit Mecca".........

If the fall of Saddam helped Dr. Rasoul visit Mecca, I stand corrected.