Iraq holds own beer festival

A restaurant owner in Northern Iraq has held his own version of Munich's Oktoberfest.

German-born Gunter Voelker, who runs the Deutscher Hof Erbil restaurant in Kurdish city Irbil, explained that the beer festival aimed to bring people together and shift perceptions about Iraq's suitability as a holiday destination.

He said: "We can make this festival with Iraqi people, Turkish people, Kurdish people, American people, German people, with [people from] all over the world in peace and in a real good mood."

The party, which ended yesterday, included waitresses wearing dirndls as well as beer steins, sausages and an oom-pah band.