Famous Baghdad street seeks to reclaim former glory

By Ross Colvin

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - When General David Petraeus reports to Congress on the success of his military strategy in Iraq, he will probably point to a Baghdad riverside avenue lined with eucalyptus trees that has been given a $2 million facelift.

The heavily publicized project is aimed at showing Iraqis that a major U.S.-led crackdown launched in February in the city has succeeded in tamping down bitter sectarian violence, reducing the number of car bombs and death squad killings.

In just over a week, Petraeus, the top U.S. military commander in Iraq, is due to testify before Congress on the military build-up of 30,000 extra troops. He is expected to tell them that the new security strategy is working.

"The September report will characterize successes that the surge has facilitated, and this is one of them," said Major Anthony Judge, the project officer, standing in the shade of a tree in Abu Nawas street to escape the baking afternoon heat.

But fears that such a prestige project could be a prime insurgent target, uncertainty over when it will actually open and complaints from businesses about insufficient funding and drab building design suggest success is not guaranteed.

One of Baghdad's most famous streets, Abu Nawas has undergone several transformations over the years and was once known for its bars, nightclubs, fish restaurants and its park stretching towards the Tigris River where families picnicked.

Then came the U.S.-led invasion in 2003 and the street died.

As the city hunkered down behind curtains of blast walls that sprang up to protect against car bombs, Abu Nawas was cut off from the rest of the capital by tons of concrete blocks.