IN THE CITY, OK. IN THE MOSQUE, NO:

Americans bow before holy shrine to deter protesters (Anton La
Guardia, 04/04/2003, Daily Telegraph)

American soldiers retreated warily from the Imam Ali mosque in Najaf yesterday after a furious crowd gathered around them to stop foreign soldiers from approaching one of the holiest shrines of Shia Islam.

"Everybody smile!" shouted the platoon commander as he told his baffled men to kneel down and point their weapons at the ground, in a surreal act of submission.

The mightiest army in the world is learning the hard way the awkward art of trying to "win the hearts and minds" of suspicious civilians.

In other cities civilians have largely been bystanders in the military drama, neither rising up to cheer nor uniting to resist.

But in Najaf, hundreds poured into the streets to block the way of American soldiers as they came within sight of the golden dome of the mosque. They waved the soldiers away as some explained in broken English: "In the city, OK. In the mosque, No!"

The first attempt by American forces to patrol the heart of an Iraqi city has been a disconcerting experience, underlining the need for extreme sensitivity in the region.

The mosque is the reputed burial place of Ali, the fourth Caliph of Islam and the first Imam of Shia Islam.

It was damaged by Iraqi forces during the Shi'ite uprising against Saddam Hussein at the end of the 1991 Gulf war. But despite any hatred Najaf's people may harbour for Saddam, they seem resolutely opposed to having "infidel" soldiers violating the holy ground.

Nevertheless, the city's religious authorities seem to be reaching an accommodation with the occupying forces.

Has ever a war been fought with greater deference to the population than this one? Posted by Orrin Judd at April 4, 2003 7:16 PM