Filling the night air with roaring engines and screeching tires, youths in bandannas tear down a highway in souped-up motorcyles, pulling wheelies and dodging cars in a cat-and-mouse with police.
Drag-racing in California, you say? No, this is Baghdad

Giving themselves names like "Wheelies to the Death", groups of Iraqi bikers gather on Fridays in Jedriya district to taste the thrill of speed, test authorities and forget the worries of living in a city still struggling with bombings and blackouts

Burning rubber, Baghdad bikers race to escape