PORTLAND – Rep. Michael Michaud has returned from Iraq, where the Green Zone in Baghdad came under fire during his visit there.

The Democrat from Maine’s 2nd District said that security guards at one point hustled him out of a meeting in the U.S. Embassy and into a hallway away from windows as shells landed.

Michaud said two shells hit the Green Zone the next day while he was meeting with officials from the Army Corps of Engineers.

In a statement, Michaud said his visit was informative but too short to observe the complex challenges facing U.S. troops and the Iraqi people.

“My visit reinforced my belief that our soldiers have served our country with distinction and honor, but that it is time for the Iraqi people to take control of their own country,” he said. “It is time for our troops to come home and for the Iraqis to build their own future.”

Last week’s visit to Iraq, which included other members of Congress, was Michaud’s first. He plans to return in August to study health care issues affecting U.S. troops.

The group also visited Jordan and met with NATO officials at their headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.