ATLANTA -- A new year brought new hope for Baby Noor, who arrived in Atlanta Saturday for life-saving surgery.

Doctors at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta said she was resting comfortably Saturday night after the long trip from Iraq.

An initial check-up showed she did not need immediate surgery. Her first operation will probably take place in a week to 10 days, the hospital said.

Applause broke out when the 3-month-old girl arrived at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport with her grandmother and father.

"She's beautiful -- she's absolutely gorgeous," said Jenni Gerard, the girlfriend of one of the Georgia National Guard soldiers who arranged for Baby Noor's trip to Atlanta.

The grandmother wore dark sunglasses and the father covered his face with a scarf out of fear of retribution in Iraq.

The girl suffers from spina bifida, a birth defect that prevents the spinal cord from closing properly.

"Our goal is not just to close the back and not just to put in a shunt but to care for the child in totality," said Dr. Roger Hudgins, a neurosurgeon at Children's who will operate on Baby Noor.

Hudgins said it is rare in America to perform surgery on a baby as old as Noor. Ordinarily, the operation to close the spinal cord would take place before or immediately after birth.

The Georgia National Guard soldiers discovered Baby Noor when they raided her family's home in Baghdad three weeks ago. They worked through -- and around -- channels to arrange the trip to Atlanta and free medical care.

"Half of our mission is accomplished," Pfc Justin Donelly, an Army medic, said. "We've proved to these people that we're here to help them."

Hudgins said it was an honor to join the effort to help the girl, who will spend one or two months in Atlanta before returning home.

"Obviously, good works happen in Iraq every day," Hudgins said. "And good works happen with the soldiers. We hear all of the negative. It's about time we had the opportunity to hear some of the good."

Hudgins said the baby may be left with some paralysis but staying in Iraq would have meant certain death.

Channel Two Web editor Dan Williams compiled this report.