Skip to main contentSkip to footer

George Bush celebrates Thanksgiving in Baghdad


November 27, 2003
Share this:

The American President celebrated Thanksgiving dinner in a rather unlikely location on Thursday, when he jetted into Baghdad to share a turkey with his troops.

George Bush's surprise appearance was shrouded in secrecy as Secret Service bosses were deeply worried about security. American forces in Iraq have suffered a series of increasingly audacious attacks in recent weeks and, just a few days ago, a flight leaving Baghdad Airport was hit by a ground-to-air missile.

Mr Bush decided to push ahead with the plan, nonetheless, and Air Force One touched down yesterday with lights off and its windows blacked out. The White House meanwhile published a false story saying that the President would spend Thanksgiving with his family in Texas.

There were quite a few open mouths, therefore, when Mr Bush arrived in the mess hall where troops from the US Army's 1st Armoured Division were sitting down to celebrate the holiday. "I bring a message on behalf of America," he said as a loud cheer sounded around the hall. "We thank you for your service. We are proud of you and America stands solidly behind you. You are defending the American people from danger and we are grateful."

"I was just looking for a warm meal somewhere," continued the politician. "Thanks for inviting me to dinner – I can't think of a finer group of people to have Thanksgiving with than you all."

Photo: © Alphapress.com
Troops from the 1st Armoured Division had no idea their Commander In Chief would be dropping in to share the holiday meal with themPhoto: © AFPy
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Mr Bush said he couldn't think of a finer group of people to share Thanksgiving withPhoto: © AFP

Sign up to HELLO! Daily for all the latest and best royal coverage

By entering your details, you are agreeing to HELLO! Magazine User Data Protection Policy. You can unsubscribe at any time. For more information, please click here.

More Royalty

See more