Baghdad - Even as the second bombing in as many days struck
a Shiite shrine in Baghdad Wednesday, many Iraqis welcomed US
President Barack Obama's commitment to withdraw US soldiers from
Iraq.
'Our role is to train Iraqis to take control of their own country
so we can start bringing our folks home,' Obama said, to rousing
cheers from the US troops gathered to greet him during his four-hour
trip to Baghdad Tuesday evening.
Bomb attacks on Shiite mosques in the Baghdad neighborhood of
Kadhimiya bracketed the US president's visit. On Wednesday, at least
seven people were killed when a bomb exploded near the shrine to the
Shiite holy man Mussa al-Kadhim, the satellite news channel
al-Arabiya reported.
Shortly before Obama arrived, another bomb near the same shrine
killed at least eight people and wounded 18 others, police said. That
attack, in turn, followed seven car bombs in Baghdad and Mosul that
killed at least 42 people on Monday, police said.
'This has dangerous implications. Obama's visit was meant to tell
Iraqis that they must secure their own country,' said Jamil Fadil, a
professor of political science at Baghdad University.
Fadil said he believed Obama's trip 'came at a critical time' for
Iraq because 'the US was about to fulfill its commitments to withdraw
its soldiers from Iraqi cities and towns' by the end of July.
'Obama's visit aimed to pressure the Iraqi government to make
fundamental reforms in its political process and security forces
before the US pullout from Iraq,' said Samir Khaled, a 34-year-old
civil servant from Baghdad.
'It is important for Obama to visit Iraq, to see the reality of
the situation, and to listen to people's fears,' Khaled said.
'But it would have been better if his meetings had not been only
with high government officials,' he added. 'Obama should have met
with other political leaders to hear their opinions on how to fix
Iraq's internal affairs.'
And while many in Baghdad welcomed the US plans to withdraw from
the country, many did not welcome the US president.
'No US president, no matter who he is, is welcome in Iraq as long
as there are US troops in the country,' said Zeinab al-Kinani, a
member of parliament affiliated with firebrand Shiite cleric Moqtada
al-Sadr's movement. 'We condemn and reject this visit all together.'
'Tomorrow more than 1 million Iraqis will take the streets to
protest the US presence in Iraq,' she said.
'The voices of the protesters will rise to say, 'No, no to
America,' and 'No, no to the occupation.' They will appeal to public
opinion worldwide to stand by Iraq and to get rid of the US
occupation that so harmed Iraqi society.'
USA
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