Awad Nasir writes:

Again and again, I watched the footage showing the fall of the statue. It was as if I was afraid it might slip from the realm of my memory. But it was not until my sister, whom I had not seen for years, phoned me from Baghdad that I was convinced that "The Vampire" had fallen and that we were free.

"Hello Awad," my sister said, her voice trembling. "The nightmare is over. We are free. Do you realize? We are free!"

You can read the rest here. It's worth the the five minutes it'll take.