Reply #4: are you being sarcastic? [View All]

here is the AP report...http://news.bostonherald.com/news/international/middle_east/view.bg?articleid=1091833&srvc=home&position=recent


Want to vacation in the Green Zone?
By Associated Press
Monday, May 5, 2008 - Updated 15h ago


BAGHDAD - Forget rocket attacks, concrete blast walls and no sewer system and try picturing luxury hotels, a shopping center and even condos in the heart of Baghdad.

It’s all part of an ambitious five-year development “dream list” to transform the U.S.-protected Green Zone from a walled fortress into a gleaming centerpiece for Baghdad’s future.

The $5 billion plan has Pentagon backing and apparently the interest of leading hotel developers, said Navy Capt. Thomas Karnowski, who led the team that created the development plan.

Washington wants to create a “zone of influence” around the new $700 million U.S. Embassy to serve as a high-end buffer for the compound, whose total price tag will reach about $1 billion after all the workers and offices are relocated over the next year.