THANK U FALLETME B MASELF AGIN:

Grateful Kurds in Iraq's north embrace Americans and their culture (Mariam Fam, 3/20/04, Associated Press)

At MaDonal, a restaurant with a familiar name, diners munch cheeseburgers and fries. U.S. troops open cans of Diet Coke. An American flag flies next to the sign that bears the internationally recognized trademark yellow M.

The scene reflects a fact of life in Iraq's north: Many Kurds are fascinated with the culture of the superpower that freed an oppressed people from brutal persecution by the ousted dictator.

''The people like the Americans,'' said Dana Mohammed, who works at MaDonal, named after McDonald's. ''They helped us get rid of the dictator, Saddam Hussein.''

In Saddam's Iraq, the United States was demonized and largely blamed for the country's woes. In the new Iraq, the U.S. presence gets mixed reviews at best. Many Arab Sunnis resent an occupation that has cost them their privileged status. Some majority Shiites, while grateful for the ouster of the dictator, think the Americans have overstayed their welcome.

In some moderate Middle Eastern countries where U.S. culture is popular, American restaurants and products are often threatened with boycotts. The U.S. flag is often burned by angry demonstrators.

But the situation in northern Iraq is different.

Many Kurds ethnically distinct from Arabs have no qualms about expressing their support for the United States.