Baghdad (CNN) -- Throngs of jubilant Iraqis, some so happy they wept, gathered early Tuesday at Baghdad's al-Shaab Stadium for the country's first international soccer match in years. "I cannot believe my eyes," exclaimed Hussein Jasim, 19. He wept and shouted "Allahu Akbar!" or "God is great!" "I have not seen in my entire life that many Iraqis gathered in one location happy, dancing and chanting," he said. "I am not used to it. ... It's my happiest moment!" A decade after the Iraq War began, Alaa Rahem felt something he hadn't in a long time in this country with tenuous peace -- optimism.
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First international soccer match in Baghdad in years brings Iraqis to tears
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"It's my happiest moment!" an Iraqi fan exclaims
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Iraqi Football Association chose to play Syrians, who are caught up in civil war
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