Active duty soldiers lend voices to protest Iraq war.(Main)

Byline: WILLIAM KATES - Associated Press

SYRACUSE - Active duty soldiers from Fort Drum will take part in a regional peace rally Saturday, saying it's time for them to be heard.

Organizers expect between 1,000 and 2,000 protesters to gather Saturday in Syracuse for what they describe as the city's largest peace rally since the Vietnam era when Syracuse University was a hotspot of anti-war activism.

"The average soldier is the most credible voice in finding out the truth . . . and the most unheard and ignored," said Eli Wright, a 26-year-old medic from Denver who served in Iraq from September 2003 to September 2004. He is a …