Baghdad June 2008: Bird’s eye view of a wounded city
Saad Khalaf with Baghdad Bureau Chief Tina Susman just before his second-ever ride in a Blackhawk helicopter last fall. The photos and impressions included here are from his first-ever Blackhawk ride in June 2007. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
Baghdads normally crowded Al Khalany Square was deserted due to a complete all-day curfew. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
The massive Rahman Mosque in Baghdads Mansour district was meant to be one of Saddam Husseins crowning achievements. Construction of the mosque was interrupted by the U.S.-led invasion in March 2003 and never resumed. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
Baghdads main public bus garage was full of idle vehicles due to the daytime curfew. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
Baghdads main auto graveyard. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
The Gazali cemetery, an exclusively Sunni Muslim graveyard. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
The Blackhawk helicopter releases flares designed to confuse incoming missiles as it flies over the New Baghdad district. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
A view over the side-gunners shoulder as the Blackhawk flies over the desert south of Baghdad. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
Baghdads Tahriat Square. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
The main Baghdad telephone exchange remains gutted from the March 2003 bombing campaign. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
The Armenian Orthodox Church in Baghdads Karada district. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
The Tigris River winds through the center of Iraqs capital. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
On the way back to the Green Zone, the Blackhawk swoops low over the Tigris. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
Baghdads once-famous Zawra Tower on the grounds of the Baghdad Zoo. In Saddam Husseins time, the towers bulbous top housed a fancy restaurant. (Saad Khalaf / Los Angeles Times)
