Outside UN, Protesters Urge Bush to End Iraq War
Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss
While world leaders gathered at the UN General Assembly inside, about 2,000 anti-Iraq war protesters chanted "Peace can work, no more war" half an hour before President Bush spoke.
"This war has drained the economy and has cost a lot of lives," said Claire Thompson, a nurse and union leader. "We're calling on our leaders to end this unsustainable war and just bring the troops back home."
There have been 2,681 US military deaths since the Iraq war began in March 2003, according to Pentagon figures, and 147,000 US troops are serving there. At least tens of thousands of Iraqis also have died in the war.
"People in Iraq also want to end the war. We want our country back," said Raed Jarrar, an Iraqi-American who moved to the United States last year.
Iranian-Americans rallied outside the UN headquarters, protesting the presence of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at the General Assembly.
"I am outraged by the presence of Iran at the UN general assembly. I think Ahmadinejad's actions and statements are pushing Iran to war," said Shirin Narunan, a leader of the Ad Hoc Committee to Stop Iran's Nuclear Weapons.
Iran, saying its nuclear program is for civilian purposes, has declined to suspend its uranium enrichment program despite UN Security Council demands to do so.
Burmese pro-democracy activists demanded the dissolution of the country's pro-junta organization, the Union Solidarity and Development Association, and the release of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi who has been in prison since 1990.
A group of protesters claimed that the US government "orchestrated" the attacks on September 11. Les Jamison, an event coordinator of NY 911 Truth, said the 9/11 tragedy was scripted by the US government to regain "military might."