IRAQ: U.S. Troops in Iraq Make Most of July 4th

U.S. soldiers observing Independence Day held barbecues at bases across Iraq on Friday and celebrated along with Kurdish allies, who are also marking the anniversary of the establishment of their first government.

Some U.S. troops joined actor Arnold Schwarzenegger in a screening of his latest Terminator movie.

Thousands of U.S. troops chowed down at a barbecue at Baghdad International Airport, where the U.S. military had trucked in 3,000 pounds of sirloin, 1,000 cases of potato chips, piles of corn on the cob and about one ton of charcoal.

"I will never grill again on the 4th of July, " said Sgt. Joseph Cannings, a 43-year-old Dallas native, flipping about 40 filet mignon steaks on an enormous grill. "My family will be eating lunch meat from now on,"

"Anybody want medium rare or don't care, come on up," screamed Sgt. Ronald Bretzke, 37, but there were few takers.

Earlier Friday, troops joined Schwarzenegger at the airport to watch his latest movie, "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines."

Schwarzenegger addressed a rambunctious crowd of soldiers in one of Saddam Hussein's former presidential palaces located inside the airport compound.

"It is really wild driving around here, I mean the poverty, and you see there is no money, it is disastrous financially and there is the leadership vacuum, pretty much like in California right now," he said.

Schwarzenegger, 55, has indicated he may run for governor of California as a Republican if residents there vote to recall Democratic Gov. Gray Davis.

"I play terminator, but you guys are the true terminators," he told the soldiers, before heading to a base north of Baghdad near the town of Balad, which came under attack late Thursday, injuring at least 18 soldiers.

U.S. troops have been beset by a stepped up insurgency in recent weeks that has raised fears of a political and economic quagmire. Troops said Friday the pressures of serving in Iraq - and the immense summer heat - made passing the holiday away from home even tougher.

"I miss my family and I wish I could be there with them today," said Sgt. Jason Bramlett of Ft. Myers, Fla., who was on patrol in the Iraqi capital. "But we have a job to do here. The Iraqi people need our help."

Meanwhile, U.S. soldiers were treated to a grand 4th of July celebration by grateful Kurds at a spectacular lakeside resort near Dokan, a town in the semiautonomous Kurdish north of the country. Kurds also celebrate July 4 as the anniversary of the establishment in 1992 of a Kurdish government, thanks in part to a U.S.-British enforced no-fly zone that kept Saddam Hussein's forces out of the north.

Barham Salih, a leader of the eastern half of the Kurdish enclave, thanked U.S. troops for ousting Saddam.

"What you have done is immense," he said. "You have come from afar and delivered our people from injustice. You came to liberate our people. Mission accomplished."

Salih sent out invitations to all of the military units with ties to the north, as well as the Coalition Provisional Authority, the U.S. and British occupation power.

"It's fantastic to celebrate the 4th with our allies," said Dick Naab, northern Iraq's top coalition provisional authority official. "When you can't be home, the next best thing is being with friends."

AP correspondent Borzou Daragahi in Dokan and Sameer Yacoub in Baghdad contributed to this report.

Our Military Today
4th of July

President Bush (news - web sites) speaks during Independence Day celebrations at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio, Friday, July 4, 2003. (AP Photo/Al Behrman)

U.S. Army soldiers from the 4th Battalion 64th Armor Combat Team relax in Lake Habaniyah near their base camp in Habaniyah, Iraq Friday, July 4, 2003. The battalion held a beach party to celebrate Independence Day. (AP Photo/John Moore)

President Bush shakes hands with eager troop as they celebrate Independence Day at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio, July 4, 2003. Bush is considering whether to send U.S. troops to war-torn Liberia as part of peacekeeping mission as he prepares to visit Africa in the coming week. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Belgian tourist Douglas and his mother place a flower on a grave at the American D-Day war cemetery of Colleville sur Mer, Normandy, Friday July 4, 2003. For Independence Day, red roses were put on each of the 60,511 graves of American soldiers who died fighting on French soil. (AP Photo/Franck Prevel)

Hollywood action star Arnold Schwarzenegger, on a USO (United Services Organizations) tour to bring his new movie 'Terminator 3' to the troops in Kuwait, visited soldiers being treated at the the Army field hospital in Balad, Iraq, on U.S. Independence Day, July 4, 2003. Schwarzenegger finished the day by showing his new movie to the troops at Camp Doha in Kuwait. The actor is on a two day USO tour of the region. REUTERS/Ralph Alswang/USO-Handout NO SALES

American WWII veteran Captain Wilbur Latshaw, from the 741st tank, places a flower on a grave of an American at the D-Day war cemetery of Colleville sur Mer, Normandy, Friday July 4, 2003. For Independence Day, red roses were put on each of the 60,511 graves of American soldiers who died fighting on French soil. (AP Photo/Franck Prevel)

U.S. Army Chaplain Cpt. Peter Johnson from Glendora, Calif., plays rock and roll for troops from 4th Battalion 64 Armor Regiment near their base camp in Habaniyah, Iraq Friday, July 4, 2003. The battalion held a beach party to celebrate Independence Day.(AP Photo/John Moore)

U.S. Army Soldiers of the 2nd 501st. Aviation Regiment line for imported barbeque steaks late into the evening during Independence day holiday at their air base at the Baghdad International Airport, Friday, July 4, 2003, in Iraq. (AP Photo/Wally Santana)

U.S. Army Soldiers of the 2nd 501st. Aviation Regiment line for imported barbeque steaks during the Independence Day holiday at their air base at the Baghdad International Airport, Friday, July 4, 2003, in Baghdad, Iraq. (AP Photo/Wally Santana)

U.S. Army soldiers from the 4th Battalion 64th Armor Combat Team wrestle in Lake Habaniyah near their base camp in Habaniyah, Iraq Friday, July 4, 2003. The battalion held a beach party to celebrate Independence Day. At center left is Pfc. Harrison Grimes from Monrovia, Liberia and at center right Spc. Travis Hunt from St. Louis, MO.(AP Photo/John Moore)

Independence salute : US Army soldiers of the 101st Airborne Division salute during ceremonies at the division headquarters in the northern city of Mosul. Re-enlistment ceremonies were held in conjunction with the US Independence Day commemoration, as 158 soldiers re-enlisted. The headquarters occupies a former palace of Saddam Hussein overlooking the Tigris River. (AFP/Stan Honda)

U.S. Army Soldiers of the 2nd 501st. Aviation Regiment line for bbq imported steaks on the Fourth of July holiday at their air base at the Baghdad International Airport, Friday, July 4, 2003, in Baghdad, Iraq. (AP Photo/Wally Santana)

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