Why many of Iraq's elite don't flee | csmonitor.com

Still, Abdallah persists in Baghdad. "Iraqis are so committed to our country - it's something in our hearts," he says. "It's not like the Lebanese who go to Brazil, or the Philippinas who go here and there."

The good news, Abdallah says, is that his students "are even more committed to learning than before." The bad news is that, "in the back of their minds, they all want to go abroad."

And his patients? Even when he goes to a conference outside Iraq for a few days, the message is the same, says Abdallah: "Doctor, please don't leave us."

Why many of Iraq's elite don't flee | csmonitor.com