Food stall in Sadr City converts to a bus after municipality torubles

BAGHDAD, November 7 — The owner of a fast food stall in Sadr City has converted his small restaurant stall into a food truck-style shop on wheels after municipal authorities repeatedly shut down his operations and carted off his business.

Abbas Haitham used to set up his fast food stall each day in the middle of Sadr City to offer quick meals to passersby before the municipality removed his stall. To avoid what he called “municipal harassment,” he converted his business into a passenger bus.

Haitham said, “We used to have a stall, but the municipality removed it, claiming it encroached on the street. My father suggested that we move the restaurant into a Coaster bus, and indeed, we executed the project, which cost us about $7,000.”

Since moving into the new setup, he says the business now moves about the district freely, and the municipality no longer bothers him.

“Many people want to implement the same idea, and we have helped some of them. Some come to photograph us because they admire the design of the bus. I advise young people to work and come up with new ideas to earn their livelihood.”