This week Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning is visiting a part of Iraq that he says is very different from the image most Americans have of the country.

Bruning, along with several other politicians and businessmen, is spending a week in Kurdistan, a relatively autonomous region in northern Iraq, as a guest of the Kurdistan Regional Government, which paid for the trip. He talked with reporters about his trip during a conference call Wednesday afternoon.

“The Kurds and northern Iraq are really the other Iraq,” Bruning said. “It’s not what you imagine from the U.S., or what I imagine from the U.S., and that is a war-torn, destroyed place.

“It’s a wonderful place.”

Bruning, who arrived in Kurdistan early Monday, has met with Kurdistan’s foreign minister, planning minister and agricultural minister, and he plans to meet with the prime minister Thursday, he said.

On Wednesday the visitors toured a former torture prison where many Kurds were killed under the reign of Saddam Hussein, Bruning said.

“(The Kurds) turn the other cheek many times, despite Saddam’s atrocities,” Bruning said. “They have not returned those atrocities in kind.”

Kurdish officials have spoken with their visitors about the ongoing dispute over the oil fields of Kirkuk in northern Iraq, Bruning said.

“The Kurds have been very open,” he said. “They have not had the violence that many believe is a hallmark of Iraq.”

It is in America’s interest to have good relations with the Kurdish people, Bruning said.

“As Americans we certainly need to build relationships around the world with our fellow inhabitants of this planet, and the Kurds are one of the kindest, gentlest people I’ve ever seen,” he said.

The United States needs more allies in the Middle East, Bruning said.

“My fear is, with the American elections coming up, if the Democrats win, we will abandon Iraq yet again,” Bruning said. “And our allies here in Kurdistan yet again.

“And the American people need to know that peace and stability in this region are somewhat dependent on our presence, at least for the time being.”

Reach Hilary Kindschuh at 473-7120 or hkindschuh@journalstar.com.