Firdos Square

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Firdos Square, or Firdus Square (Arabic: ساحة الفردوس; transliterated: Sahat al-Firdaus), is a public open space in Baghdad, Iraq. It is named after the Arabic word Firdows, which literally means "paradise"--both of which are derived from the Persian word, pairidaeza, meaning the same.

It is the location of two of the best-known hotels, the Palestine Hotel and the Sheraton Ishtar, which are both also the tallest buildings in Baghdad.

It was the site of the famous image of United States Marines toppling the statue of Saddam Hussein. Many critics have since claimed that the event was staged and images of the celebrating Iraqis were doctored to make the crowd appear larger than it actually was. ^{[1] [2] [3]}

On April 9th, 2005, it was the center of a largescale demonstration comprised of tens of thousands of Iraqis protesting the American occupation of Iraq on the second anniversary of the invasion of Baghdad. The demonstration was organized by Moqtada Sadr, a Shi'ite cleric, and supported by Sheikh Abd al-Zahra al-Suwaid a follower.

Suwaid was quoted as stating to the gathered "The rally must be peaceful. You should demand the withdrawal of the occupation forces and press for quicker trials for Saddam Hussein and his aides before an Iraqi court."

[edit] See also

• 2003 invasion of Iraq media coverage (Symbolic coverage)

[edit] References

1. ^ "Doctored Photo from the London Evening Standard", The Memory Hole, May 13, 2003
2. ^ "Lights, camera, rescue", Seattle Post-Intelligencer, May 30, 2003
3. ^ "The photographs tell the story...", Information Clearing House, April 15, 2003