Politics and Culture

Some people credit the repeal of censorship laws for the explosion of internet usage. Others cite the ouster of AOL as official Iraqi ISP (Their free disks were often used as IED shrapnel). That's not true, but what follows is:

Full story here.

Follow up:

- Slightly tipsy, the young men piled into a minibus and drove to Palestine Street, until recently a no-go area after dark but now filled with traffic and pedestrians. They pulled up outside a recently opened late-night restaurant, which serves sheep’s head on bread, a favourite dish for Iraqi men after a few drinks.

Such hangouts, called pacha restaurants, closed after the 2003 invasion because people were too scared to go out late in the evening. “We were surprised to see a pacha restaurant open again,” said Mr Ali, a 28-year-old contractor. “It is a clear sign that things are getting back to normal.”

- In one of Baghdad’s central commercial districts yesterday evening, The Times saw shops with goods spilling out on to the streets, from washing machines to watermelons. People milled around, making purchases or chatting.

- “I had to buy 150 extra chairs to keep up with the growing demand,” Mr Masef said, noting that he serves 300 to 500 customers a day compared with about 100 a year ago.

- The atmosphere of calm has encouraged parents to allow their children to walk to and from school. “I can also go outside the house to study with my friends or play until 9pm,” said 14-year-old Raed Saleem, who was previously under strict orders to be home by 4pm. “I pray for Iraqi people to keep living in peace.”

— No foreign nationals have been kidnapped in Iraq since May

— 165,000 Iraqi troops have been trained and are operational, equal to the total size of the US force

— 194,000 Iraqi police on the streets

— Iraq has a quarter of a million internet subscribers, up 20 times on prewar levels