Bridge linking predominantly Sunni, Shiite areas of capital reopened скачать в хорошем качестве

Bridge linking predominantly Sunni, Shiite areas of capital reopened

(11 Nov 2008) SHOTLIST Baghdad - 11 November 2008 1. Wide of empty Azamiyah-Kazimiyah bridge, also known as Imams bridge 2. Various of Iraqi troops and military marching band, marching across bridge 3. Wide of beginning of bridge reopening ceremony 4. Iraqi Shiite officials and community residents walking across bridge 5. Iraqi Sunni officials and community residents walking from other side of bridge 6. Various of Iraqi Shiite and Sunni officials meeting and embracing at centre of bridge, while surrounded by media ++CLIENTS PLEASE NOTE: VIDEO BREAK UP++ 7. Wide of the reopening ceremony 8. Officials at ceremony 9. Iraqi Military spokesman, Aboud Qanbir at podium 10. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Aboud Qanbir, Iraqi Military spokesman: "The escalation of violence here and there is nothing more than a desperate attempt by the remnants of al-Qaida and special groups to prove their existence so that their funding will continue. But (their attempts are) in vain.'' 11. Banner reading: (Arabic) "Re-opening Imams Bridge" with Iraqi troops standing underneath 12. Various of Iraqi motorcade driving along bridge FILE: Baghdad - 31 August 2005 13. Wide of Shiite pilgrims on Imams bridge in the aftermath of stampede 14. Ambulance leaving bridge 15. Crowd of people gathered around injured 16. Woman weeping and striking her face 17. Wide of Shiite pilgrims on bridge 18. Ban of bodies of victims of stampede STORYLINE Hundreds of Baghdad residents joined Iraqi officials, on Tuesday, in reopening a major bridge that links Sunni and Shiite neighbourhoods, a move, authorities claim, is a further sign of improving security in the Iraqi capital. Security forces barricaded shut the Imams bridge in north Baghdad three years ago, following a deadly stampede during a Shiite procession that killed almost one-thousand people. The bridge then remained closed during the fierce sectarian violence that plagued Baghdad in 2006 and 2007. But violence has dropped sharply in Baghdad in recent months as US and Iraqi security forces have grabbed the upper hand against extremists. Those gains have allowed officials to replace sealed barricades on the bridge with checkpoints and reopen the east-west artery in north Baghdad. Sunnis, Shiites and government officials hailed the event as a triumph over sectarianism and celebrated with the ritual slaughter of half a dozen sheep. Speaking at the reopening ceremony, Aboud Qanbir, an Iraqi military spokesman, insisted that the latest incidents of violence in Baghdad - including a pair of roadside bombs which exploded in quick succession during the morning rush hour in east Baghdad earlier on Tuesday - were nothing more than "desperate attempts" by insurgent groups to prove their existence. The stampede that closed the bridge three years ago was sparked by rumours that a suicide bomber was about to strike. Frantic pilgrims were crushed trying to escape the phantom attack. That incident sparked intense mistrust between the neighbourhoods connected by the bridge, the Shiite quarter of Kazimiyah on the west bank and the Sunni district of Azamiyah on the east. That mistrust was not evident on Tuesday though as members of both communities meet and embraced at the centre of the bridge, while banners praising reconciliation and national unity hung from its railings. Authorities also hope that re-opening the artery will help ease traffic on Baghdad's chronically congested streets. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...