KURDISH FIGHTERS STAND GUARD IN SULAIMANIYA, 2003-04-22 (photo)

Kurdish soldiers stand guard in Sulaimaniya upon the arrival of retired U.S. Lt. General Jay Garner, who will run post-war Iraq, 22 April, 2003. Kurds in northern Iraq welcomed the retired U.S. general overseeing the country's rebuilding on Tuesday with cheers, hugs and a shower of petals 12 years after he helped them break free from Saddam Hussein. Garner told an emotional crowd of Kurdish leaders and students in the city of Sulaimaniya, 330 km (205 miles) northeast of Baghdad, that their self-governed region was a model for Iraq after the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam. REUTERS/POOL/Odd Andersen OA/EH/JDP