Celebratory shots kill 4 in Iraq after soccer win

updated 1:39 p.m. ET July 29, 2007

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Defying orders from authorities, revelers fired celebratory gunshots and poured into the streets after Iraq beat Saudi Arabia to clinch its first Asian Cup soccer championship on Sunday.

Mosques broadcast calls to stop the shootings, which killed at least four people. Security forces enforced a vehicle ban in an effort to prevent a repeat of car bombings that killed dozens celebrating Iraq’s progress to the finals Wednesday.

Iraqis welcomed the victory as a chance to show the world they can come together and expressed frustration that their politicians couldn’t do the same.

“Those heroes have shown the real Iraq. They have done something useful for the people as opposed to the politicians and lawmakers who are stealing or killing each other,” said Sabah Shaiyal, a 43-year-old policeman in Baghdad. “The players have made us proud, not the greedy politicians. Once again, our national team has shown that there is only one, united Iraq.”

The Iraqi team, known as the “Lions of the Two Rivers” beat three-time champions Saudi Arabia 1-0 in its first appearance in the Asian Cup final.

The jubilation over the victorious run of the team has given Iraqis a rare respite from the daily sectarian attacks, with men of all ages cheering and dancing in the streets after each win.

But extremists seemed just as determined to destroy national pride and unity. Two car bombs tore through crowds of revelers in two Baghdad neighborhoods, killing 50 people after Wednesday’s semifinal victory over South Korea.

An Iraqi military official said police had foiled a suicide car bomber on Sunday by opening fire as the attacker took aim at a crowd in southwestern Baghdad. The driver was killed but no other casualties were reported, according to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to release the information.

Elsewhere, the mood was festive. In Baghdad, soccer fans danced and waved Iraqi flags in the streets, while women handed out sweets. People sprayed confetti from cans over the heads of jubilant crowds in the southern city of Basra.

“This winning has united the Iraqis and nobody has been this since a long time,” said Yassir Mohammed, a 35-year-old Sunni from western Baghdad, as the sounds of gunshots popped around him.

A show of unity
Hundreds of people also gathered in the Kurdish city of Sulaimaniyah, 160 miles northeast of Baghdad, chanting “Baghdad is victorious.” Revelers drove their cars through the streets, honking horns and waving Kurdish and Iraqi flags in a show of unity.

Iraqi politicians were quick to try to take advantage of the win.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s office issued a statement congratulating the team and said each member would receive $10,000 for their achievements. The Shiite leader’s office said earlier that it had planned to send a Cabinet delegation to the game, but had problems getting overflight permissions from countries it would have to cross en route to Indonesia.

The statement did not single out any countries or give more details.

At least four people were killed and 17 wounded by the shooting that broke out after Sunday’s game, according to initial reports by police and hospital officials.

Police in the predominantly Shiite southern city of Nasiriyah reported at least nine people, including three children, wounded by the gunfire. All the officials declined to be identified because they were not supposed to speak to the media.

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