Another neighborhood presumed safe was now off limits.

"It's hugely frustrating, in that there are many places that we cannot get to," McCarthy said. "That goes against all of my journalistic instincts. I hate having to rely on secondhand sources. I want to go out and see places and talk to people, and in many cases that's not possible. We are kidnap targets now."

The subject is particularly sensitive at ABC News, where anchor Bob Woodruff was nearly killed by a roadside bomb in January 2006. Any major story idea, like traveling with troops on patrol, needs to be approved by bosses in New York, he said. They often say no.

Much of ABC's reporting is done by local staff members, the unsung heroes of journalism in this war, he said. People are much more free to move around in other parts of the country, and McCarthy said he was surprised to see the level of commerce elsewhere, including a $1 billion retail and housing development in Kurdistan.

Despite the difficulties and time already spent covering a war that has changed shape several times, neither man wants to leave. They can't walk away without seeing how the story will end.

McCarthy met his wife three months before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, after which he was dispatched to Afghanistan. His three weeks off are family time, and he uses a Web cam to keep in touch while he's in Iraq.

"It's not easy," he said. "I've made it clear to her that this is a little slice of history that I want to follow through."

He also feels loyal to people he's met in Iraq. He has difficult working conditions; this is the life they lead every day.

"Every time I come back I'm amazed that people still live in Baghdad," he said. "Why haven't they all left?"

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