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Mosul Makes Gains Against the Chaos
A U.S. military officer, right, presents a flag to Iraqi forces during a recent handover ceremony in Mosul. Two Iraqi units now patrol sectors of the city.
(By Mohammed Ibrahim -- Associated Press)
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Abbas, 36, said he was still worried about the long run: "Since the fall of Saddam, we haven't seen any changes in the situation. We thought it was going to get better -- the oil prices, the election -- but it hasn't."
Basaa Abdulahmed, who teaches microbiology at Mosul Medical College, said her husband had been kidnapped in August as he was leaving a mosque. He escaped after four days, but insurgents demanded $15,000 from the family anyway. She paid the ransom.
"What will I do?" she asked. "If I don't pay, they will kill us."
Hammond dutifully wrote down the details of the incident and left a phone number for Abdulahmed's family to call if they had any more trouble.
Abdulahmed's daughter-in-law, Laela Shaikhow, was watching an episode of "Melrose Place" as soldiers entered the house. She didn't need the Arabic subtitles; born in Manchester, England, she spoke perfect English.
Shaikhow, 26, returned to Britain for six months last year, but came back to Iraq in October because she found it difficult to adapt to life in the West, especially as a religious Sunni Muslim. Despite the violence in Mosul, she said she intended to stay.
"I still prefer it here to over there," she said. "Even over there, the crime is terrible."
Special correspondent Dlovan Brwari contributed to this report.
