"I'm a uniter", indeed: Iraqi refugees shed sectarian bitterness in exile

[IDemo]

Many of the 2 million who escape seek support from fellow countrymen

Associated Press
Updated: 2 hours, 27 minutes ago

DAMASCUS, Syria - A dozen Iraqi men — Sunnis and Shiites alike — sat around a table in a Damascus restaurant, singing, drinking and sharing a camaraderie all but impossible in the sectarian killing fields back home.

"We can certainly choose our religious beliefs. But we have to realize the inevitable — that eventually we have to share everything in order to live in peace," said Salam Mohammed, a 34-year-old Sunni from Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit.

More than 2 million Iraqis have fled their homeland to escape Sunni-Shiite reprisal killings.

Once they reach the safety of Syria and other countries, many Iraqis shed sectarian bitterness and seek support from fellow countrymen regardless of religious sect.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21279372/

-- note: I have read that the number of refugees may be closer to 4 million than two.