Iraq Wins In South Asia Cup

CAN football unite a country?

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Gunfire erupted across Baghdad on Wednesday as Iraqis celebrated their national soccer team’s victory over South Korea to reach the final of the Asian Cup.

Iraq won 4-3 in a penalty shootout to reach the Cup final for the first time.

Iraqis poured into the streets of Baghdad, waving national flags and cheering. An Iraqi television reporter choked back tears of joy as he joined the celebrations on a Baghdad street.

State television flashed a warning from military commanders urging people not to fire guns into the air. The warning appeared to go unnoticed as people fired pistols and AK-47 assault rifles.

No:

Two bomb attacks have killed at least 27 people in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, as crowds celebrated a famous victory by the national football team.

The first hit the city’s Mansour district, where fans were marking a win against South Korea in the Asian Cup semi-finals, killing at least 11.

The second explosion killed 16 people at an army checkpoint in east Baghdad.

Thousands had gathered on the streets of Baghdad, dancing and chanting in a rare moment of national unity.

“I was in a car with my friends, people all around were celebrating and then there was a huge explosion and a lot of fire,” one eyewitness of the first bomb attack in Mansour, who asked not to be named, told the Agence France-Presse news agency.

Anorak

Posted: 25th, July 2007 | In: Twitterings Comment | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink