Good News From Iraq

Ancient marshlands in southeastern Iraq drained by Saddam Hussein have rebounded to nearly half their former area, and progress should continue despite turmoil currently rocking the nation, U.N. officials said on Thursday.

The marshlands, believed by some to be the location of the biblical Garden of Eden, once totalled an area nearly the size of Wales and provided a resting spot for thousands of wildfowl migrating between Siberia and Africa.

"Good news out of Iraq is not very common these days," said Robert Bisset, press officer for the United Nations Environment Programme, at a news conference announcing the results of the first phase of a marshlands restoration project funded by Japan.

"Everything isn't perfect in the marshlands, but there are some very positive stories," he added.

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