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Archives: April 2003

Spokesmen For Shiite Dawa Party And For

*Spokesmen for the Shiite Dawa Party and for the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution (SCIRI) in Iraq explained today why key religious leaders boycotted Jay Garner's leadership meeting in Baghdad on Monday.…

Thousands Of Iraqis Demonstrated In

*Thousands of Iraqis demonstrated in Baghdad Monday morning against the leadership meeting held under American auspices. The demonstration was boycotted, however, by the powerful Sadr Movement led by Muqtada al-Sadr. They said…

Supreme Council For Islamic Revolution

*The Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI) may participate in some way in the leadership meeting called by Jay Garner for Monday in Baghdad. The last such meeting, in Nasiriya…

Craig Smith Of New York Times Has

*Craig Smith of the New York Times has reported very interesting and significant developments in the Sadr Movement in Iraq. It appears that the movement has now recognized Shaikh Kazim al-Haeri as…

Ap Is Reporting That At Friday Prayers

*AP is reporting that at Friday Prayers in Nasiriya, a cleric giving the sermon to 2000 worshipers said, "We have to be ready in the long term to establish our own Islamic…

Apparently Two Nights Ago There Was

*Apparently two nights ago there was a major battle in the Mashtal quarter of New Baghdad between US troops and Arab volunteers who had gone there to fight them from all over…

For My Essay On Shiite Religious

*For my essay on the Shiite religious parties and factions in Iraq, see "Shiite Religious Parties Fill Vacuum in Southern Iraq" in Middle East Reports Online.*Now some reporters for the Financial Times…

Us Secretary Of Defense Donald Rumsfeld

*US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld said Monday, of the future of Iraq that he did not expect to see a theocracy there like that of Iran. "'There should be a country…

Breaking News Us Military Forces

*Breaking News US military forces arrested Shaikh Muhammad al-Fartusi and two other clerics at a Baghdad checkpoint. This arrest provoked a big demonstration of 5,000 Shiites in front of the Palestine Hotel.…

Tens Of Thousands Of Iraqi Shiites

*Tens of thousands of Iraqi Shiites continue to make their way to Karbala, the site of the shrine of Imam Husayn, to commemorate the 40th day after his martyrdom (which took place…

Eight Nations Bordering Iraq Met In

*The eight nations bordering Iraq met in Riyad and called for an early US withdrawal. They demanded that the US abide by the 4th Geneva Convention in providing security and basic needs…

Some Two Million Shiites Live In

Some two million Shiites live in eastern Baghdad, and several factions are jockeying for influence with them. Press reports of local Shiite clerics in Baghdad organizing neighborhood militias to restore order after…

Al Hayat For April 18 Has Interview

*Al-Hayat for April 18 has an interview with Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani of Najaf. It says that Sistani "affirmed his rejection of any foreign power after the war to which the country…

Ive Just Read Several Recent New

*I've just read several recent new reports on the Shiites of Iraq, and I am struck by how often people mention the authority they grant to the religious establishment in Najaf. Many…

Afp And Ash Sharq Al Awsat Are

AFP and ash-Sharq al-Awsat are reporting that Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani (73) in Najaf issued a statement through is son, Muhammad Rida Ali Sistani, calling for Iraq to be government by "the…

Iraqi Shiites In Slums Of Baghdad Which

Iraqi Shiites in the slums of Baghdad, which were once called al-Thawrah Towship and then Saddam City, have now renamed their neighborhood Sadr City after the martyred Ayatollah Muhammad Sadiq al-Sadr, who…

Iraq War Has Resulted In Many Human

The Iraq war has resulted in many human casualties that make any humane person want to weep. I hope the human sacrifice will have been worth it; certainly Saddam's regime was virtually…

Khui Appears To Have Been Killed In

*Khu'i appears to have been killed in Najaf by a mob of radical followers of the 22-year-old Muqtada al-Sadr. His father had been a supporter of Khomeini in Iran, and the links…

Events Around Assassination Of Shiite

The events around the assassination of Shiite leader Abd al-Majid Khu'i in Najaf a couple of days ago remain murky. From what I can tell, though, Khu'i got involved in trying to…

Madinat Saddam Shiite Area Of 2 Million

*Madinat Saddam, a Shiite area of 2 million in Baghdad, had already tossed out the Iraqi militiamen two days ago, it turns out. These desperately poor slum dwellers had suffered massacres as…

British Forces In Basra Have Announced

*The British forces in Basra have announced that the battle for that city has just about ended. They have taken most of the important government buildings and have 4000 troops with 200…

Humanitarian Disaster May Loom In Basra

*Humanitarian disaster may loom in Basra if something isn't done quickly. The city has fallen to British forces and some of the population has turned on Baath enforcers, killing them. But despite…

For Anyone Who Hasnt Been Near News

*For anyone who hasn't been near news this morning, the US military has taken several key sites in downtown Baghdad in a dramatic show of force. Taking and pacifying a city of…

Saudi Arabia And Kuwait Are Giving

*Saudi Arabia and Kuwait are giving Jordan three months of its oil supplies free to make up for the interruption of its petroleum imports from Iraq. Jordan is being economically hurt by…

With News Of Advance Of Us Third Army

*With news of the advance of the US Third Army to the edges of Baghdad and the fall of the airport, it is easy to forget how much of Iraq the Anglo-British…

Well Latest Reports Still Are Saying

Well, the latest reports still are saying that Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani in Najaf issued a fatwa or legal ruling today that urges Shiites not to interfere with the US troops as…

Shiite Expatriate Group Supreme Council

*The Shiite expatriate group, the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq in Tehran, has condemned the Baath regime of Iraq for putting its soldiers into the mosque complex at the shrine…

Us Troops Have Entered Southern Reaches

*US troops have entered the southern reaches of the Shiite holy city of Najaf and are receiving a relatively warm reception from the 560,000 largely Shiite locals. They have been engaged in…

Killing Of Some 7 Iraqi Civilians By Us

*The killing of some 7 Iraqi civilians by US troops because their vehicle refused to stop at a checkpoint demonstrates the kind of public relations difficulties the US is being drawn into…