Residents of the Iraqi capital celebrated the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan on Thursday by doing something noticeably unusual: They hung out on sidewalks, eating ice cream and lifting their faces to the cool fall breeze. After 2 1/2 years of war, suicide bombings, power shortages and barricades, Saad Salman took his five children out for a sugar rush. The family sat on benches outside an ice cream shop in Baghdad’s Karrada neighborhood—a normal scene in any other part of the Muslim world during the festival of Eid al-Fitr but not in Iraq, where the threat of violence often keeps residents tucked inside their homes unless they absolutely must go out. The capital felt downright giddy for a change. Salman, 42, a merchant, said his children begged him to leave the house in the New Baghdad district. ‘‘I wanted them to be happy,’’ Salman said. ‘‘We think the future will be brighter. These are the first steps of stability. We should live normally despite all the difficulties.’’The US military announced on Thursday that a soldier was killed during combat operations in the western city of Ramadi when his vehicle struck a roadside bomb. Two American soldiers were killed in Ramadi on Wednesday when their helicopter was shot down over the city, and US warplanes struck back later that day, dropping two bombs near the site of the helicopter crash, killing 20 people, witnesses said. The military confirmed the strikes on Thursday.In an Internet posting, al-Qaida in Iraq claimed responsibility for the helicopter attack. The insurgent group also said it had tried two Moroccan Embassy employees captured last month and sentenced the men to death, according to the Reuters news agency. ‘‘The legislative authority of al-Qaida organisation in Iraq has decided to carry out God’s law against the infidels and has ruled to kill them,’’ the group said in a statement. No further information was available.In a news briefing on Thursday, Maj Gen Rick Lynch provided new statistics about insurgent attacks against US forces. In October, 466 Americans were killed or wounded by roadside bombs and land mines and 55 were wounded or killed by car bombs. That compares with 123 in April, the peak so far this year. Many Iraqis in the capital expressed a quiet resolve, a deep faith in God that peace would come at the start of Eid, the feast marking the end of Ramadan, which Sunni Muslims started on Thursday and Shiites will begin on Friday. ‘‘We depended on God and went out without fear,’’ said Salma Ahmed, 38. She and her husband, Aqeel Hadi, 40, brought their three children to Karrada to enjoy the holiday. In Tikrit, the home town of deposed Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, residents crowded into restaurants and amusement parks, children played soccer in the streets and police set up barriers to keep vehicles away from pedestrians. Ammar Saob, 30, brought his family to an amusement park in the centre of the city that reopened Thursday after standing deserted since the US invasion in 2003In Amman, Jordan, where many wealthy Iraqis have fled in the past two years, some people from Baghdad flocked to the King Abdullah Amusement Park to celebrate the Eid. ‘‘We expect an explosion every moment, but we decided to go out instead of imprisoning ourselves at home,’’ said Hadi, a taxi driver. ‘‘Iraqis are known for defying danger,’’ Ahmed added as her children, ages 18, 14 and 10, gathered around her like ducklings. Adil Faisal, 30, a resident of the Kadhimiya neighbourhood, strolled the sidewalk with his two wives and his daughters. ‘‘We feel the situation is improving and calm these days,’’ Faisal said. ‘‘The security forces are doing their best to provide security for the people.’’ Faisal said in spite of the violence this year, things felt safer than last year, giving him hope that the country would eventually be secure. ‘‘It’s hard to restore safety within a year or two only,’’ he said. In Mosul, where violence has increased this year, residents said they could hardly recognise their neighbourhoods. Children frolicked in the streets, and families came together, visiting relatives. Army patrols kept a heavy presence in the city. which has been relatively quiet for 10 days.The Washington Post
