Iraqis stock traders mark up the sales board at the Iraq Stock Exchange in Baghdad, on Sunday, Oct. 12, 2008. While the rest of the world is facing a near financial meltdown, the Iraq stock exchange is enjoying a boom. The ISX index has soared 20 percent since September, boosted by huge growth in the hotel sector as investors grow increasingly confident about recent security gains.
A U.S. soldier gives school supplies to students of Dhat Sawary primary school in al Adil neighborhood western Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, Oct. 12, 2008.
School girls walk past the wreckage of a car after a car bomb explosion in the predominantly Shiite Bayaa district, southwestern Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, Oct. 12, 2008.
U.S. soldiers carry boxes with school supplies at the entrance of Dhat Sawary primary school in al Adil neighborhood western Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, Oct. 12, 2008.
A man walks past a destroyed shop after a car bomb explosion in the predominantly Shiite Bayaa district, southwestern Baghdad, Iraq, on Sunday, Oct. 12, 2008.
A shoe of one of the victims, is seen, on the ground as Iraqi forces stand guard the area after a car bomb explosion in the predominantly Shiite Bayaa district, southwestern Baghdad, iraq, on Sunday, Oct. 12, 2008.
Prayer beads are seen at the site of a suicide bomb attack in Baqouba, 35 miles northeast of Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2008.
Relatives carry the coffin of Iraqi lawmaker Saleh al-Auqaeili , loyal to anti-U.S. Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, outside his home in Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, Oct. 9, 2008. Officials say Thursday's explosion occurred as Saleh al-Auqaeili's car passed about 200 yards away from an Iraqi army checkpoint in a heavily secured area near Baghdad's main Shiite district of Sadr City.
An Iraqi policeman stands at the site of a suicide bomb attack in Baqouba, 35 miles northeast of Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2008. A female suicide bomber detonated an explosive vest Wednesday, killing 11 people and wounding 19, Iraqi officials said.
U.S. Army soldiers from Dog Company, 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment stand guard during a patrol with their replacements from 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division in Baqouba, 35 miles northeast of Baghdad, Iraq, Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2008.
Iraqis look at an Irai military vehicle destroyed a car nearby exploded outside the Iraqi foreign ministry building in Baghdad, Iraq, Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2008. At least five people were hurt in the blast, police said.
U.S. Army soldiers from Dog Company, 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment sprint across a street as they patrol with their replacements from 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division in Baqouba, 35 miles northeast of Baghdad, Iraq, Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2008.
An Iraqi girl passes U.S. Army Lt. Matthew Frost from Dog Company, 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment during a patrol with the company's replacements from Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division in Baqouba, north of Baghdad, Iraq, Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2008.
Christian clergymen lead a protest to demand a minority quota system in upcoming provincial elections, in Baghdad, Iraq, Monday, Oct. 6, 2008. Dozens of Christians protested over the issue at a rally near a church in Baghdad, saying the exclusion of the quota would marginalize their community, which comprises an estimated 3 percent of Iraq's 26 million people.
A US soldier greets an Iraqi boy during a foot patrol in the Sunni neighborhood of Fadhil in Baghdad, Iraq, Monday, Oct. 6, 2008.
A herd of goats passes U.S. Army soldiers from Dog Company, 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment as they patrol with their replacements from 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division in Baqouba, Iraq, Monday, Oct. 6, 2008.
U.S. Army soldiers from Dog Company, 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment are seen through the haze of burning trash as they patrol with their replacements from Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division in Baqouba, Iraq, Monday, Oct. 6, 2008.
U.S. Army soldiers from Dog Company, 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, patrol with their replacements from Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division in Baqouba, Iraq, Monday, Oct. 6, 2008.
A U.S. Army soldier from Dog Company, 2nd Squadron, 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment, right, is seen on patrol with one of his replacements from Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, left, in Baqouba, Iraq, Monday, Oct. 6, 2008.
An Iraqi boy looks at a US soldier during a foot patrol in the Sunni neighborhood of Fadhil in Baghdad, Iraq, Monday, Oct. 6, 2008.