Baghdad to US: You Owe Us $1B

City upset by damage caused by blast walls, Humvees
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 17, 2011 12:03 PM CST
Baghdad to US: You Owe Us $1B
Iraqi army soldiers remove concrete blast walls in the Sadr City neighborhood in Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, Feb. 10, 2011.   (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)

Baghdad has asked the US to apologize and pay it $1 billion for damages wrought by Humvees and blast walls during the Iraq war. "The US forces changed this beautiful city to a camp in an ugly and destructive way, which reflected deliberate ignorance and carelessness about the simplest forms of public taste," the city said in a statement.

The statement makes no reference to damage caused by bombs, Reuters notes. Officials instead made mention of the concrete blast walls constructed throughout the city, which they say tend to cause traffic jams and have damaged sewer and water systems, pavement, and parks . Only 5% of the walls have been removed since violence in the country died down. They also say US Humvees, which were driven over gardens and street medians, caused further damage. (More Baghdad stories.)

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