Nation IN BRIEF : MICHIGAN : U.S.-Iraq Phone Contact Restored

An estimated 250,000 Arab-Americans living in the Detroit area found that it was possible to talk by telephone to relatives and friends in Iraq for the first time since the Persian Gulf War. Long-distance telephone carrier MCI and the Iraqi government worked together over the last two weeks to link up service between the two countries, said Larry Codacovi, vice president of international services at Washington-based MCI Communications Corp. MCI was authorized to activate satellite circuits with Iraq by the Federal Communications Commission and the State Department, so “we’re not violating any sanctions,” Codacovi said. Iraq had approached MCI about restoring the service, he said.