The Iraqi Olympic soccer coach demonstrates why the US doesn't want Iraqis anywhere near a free press:
THESSALONIKI, Greece (Reuters) - Iraq's Olympic soccer coach said Monday his side should not be seen as a symbol of freedom, taking issue with a campaign commercial for President Bush.
The flags of Iraq and Afghanistan appear in a commercial as part of Bush's drive for re-election in November. A narrator says: "At this Olympics there will be two more free nations -- and two fewer terrorist regimes."
But coach Adnan Hamad said Iraq, still plagued by violence daily, remained a country under occupation.
"You cannot speak about a team that represents freedom. We do not have freedom in Iraq, we have an occupying force. This is one of our most miserable times," he said.
"Freedom is just a word for the media. We are living in hard times, under occupation."
The Iraqi men's soccer side has been one of the surprises of the Olympics, reaching the semifinals of the competition. They play Paraguay Tuesday for a place in the final.
But their success has been overshadowed in the past few days by rows over the commercial for Bush, who went to war and ousted Iraq's Saddam Hussein last year.
Although Washington has officially handed power to an Iraqi interim government, more than 130,000 American soldiers remain in the country, battling with insurgents from various factions. Western officials also hold key positions behind the scenes.
"We want to give our people a cause to celebrate, to forget their problems," Hamad told reporters in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki, the venue for Tuesday's match.
After Sports Illustrated magazine quoted Iraqi team members expressing outrage at the Bush ad, a British adviser to the Iraqi Olympic committee accused journalists of taking advantage of players' naivete and said sport should not be politicized.
But Hamad said: "One cannot separate politics and sport because of the situation in the country right now."
He said the violence which continues to afflict Iraq, more than a year after Bush declared major combat there was over, meant the team could not fully enjoy its success.
"To be honest with you, even our happiness at winning is not happiness because we are worried about the problems in Iraq, all the daily problems that our people face back home, so to tell you the truth, we are not really happy," he said.
Emphasis and links mine.
UPDATE: Another soccer team story:
BAGHDAD, Aug 23 (AFP) - Loading Kalashnikovs ready to herald victory, Iraqis have put aside their simmering conflicts to cheer the fortunes of their Olympic football team, which could be on the verge of clinching a historic medal in Athens.
Having stunned talent-packed Portugal in their opening match and defeated Australia in the quarter-finals, the unfancied Iraqi side stands just 90 minutes away from a gold medal showdown against either Argentina or Italy.
"We have been carrying the dreams of a whole nation," said veteran coach Adnan Hamad.
Their team's electric performance on the pitch have united a fractious and deeply-troubled country, bogged down in a near three-week battle between US-led Iraqi government forces and Shiite militiamen in Najaf.
"We are twice as happy -- we have been successful and we have made our fellow countrymen proud ... From now on, anything is possible. If we make the final it will be a great honour," said Hamad.
"It has united Iraqis and for a while, made them forget the violence that has ruined their country since the war's end in April 2003," said Najah Hamud, vice-chairman of the Iraqi Football Federation, beaming in his shabby office.
[...]
"Before the war we were cut off from the world because of the (13-year UN) embargoes," said Hamud.
"We dreamed about going to Amman for a few days just for a change of scene. Now we've been invited all over the world and we'll accept."
[...]
"I hope our achievements heal the hurt of the Iraqi people and help bring an end to the occupation," said trainer Adnan Hamad from Athens.
