Hanks backs troops in Iraq

Last updated at 12:14 19 May 2004


Actor Tom Hanks broke ranks with the Hollywood contingent in Cannes to voice his support for US troops.

While film-maker Michael Moore and actor Sean Penn yesterday used the festival to attack the Bush administration and the war in Iraq, Hanks instead praised the courage of American soldiers.

Hanks, star of Second World War TV drama Band of Brothers and the movie Saving Private Ryan, was asked to compare the current situation in Iraq with the experiences of troops in those battles.

He said: "From D-Day on June 6 1944 to the end of hostilities on May 8 1945, it was 11 months of life and death struggle for Americans and the Allies.

"That is a huge amount of time to take out of one's youth and one's futur that's no small sacrifice when someone's life is lost forever.

"To our troops now, all you can say is God bless every one of them. Let's hope they find safety and a peaceful world. I'm sure they will find the American populace much more understanding of what they've been through."

He went on: "These are extremely tough times, not just for America but for the world. We are up against a type of philosophy we don't quite understand. We are in a difficult sort of grey area now that defies logic and defies common

sense. We understood the evil of World War Two."

Urging support for US soldiers in Iraq, he said: "We have to just welcome them home and say thank you for coming back to us, thank you for your sacrifice and God bless you."

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