IRAQI STUDENT JOKES WITH SOLDIERS ON FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL IN BAGHDAD, 2003-10-01 (photo)

An Iraqi student jokes with a U.S. Army soldier on the official start of the new school year in the capital Baghdad October 1, 2003. Schools across the country are in various states of disrepair and most are still waiting for new textbooks and stationery to arrive. Locals, aid agencies and the U.S.-led authorities in Iraq have refurbished many schools, restoring water and electrity and repairing furniture. But many are still not ready to welcome students, and hope to reopen on Saturday, the first day of the week in Muslim Iraq. REUTERS/Laszlo Balogh PP03100005 CLH/