August 13, 2004
THE [GIRLIE] MAN IN BLACK:
US launches Najaf assault: Rebel cleric reported wounded; rebellion rages in six cities (David Holley and Mark Mazzetti, August 13, 2004, Los Angeles Times)
Radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr was wounded during fighting in the holy city of Najaf, Arab satellite television networks said today, according to the Associated Press.Sadr is said to be holed up in Najaf 's sacred compound housing the Imam Ali shrine, surrounded by 1,000 of his followers.
Radical cleric in talks to leave shrine (Reuters, 8/13/04)
Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr is unhurt and negotiating with the government to leave the Imam Ali shrine in the city of Najaf, Iraq's Interior Minister Falah al-Naqib says.Several spokesmen to Sadr said he was wounded in a U.S. raid on Friday.
"Sayyed Moqtada will not be touched if he leaves the shrine peacefully. A truce has been in force since last night," Naqib told Reuters.
"We will go after the criminal elements which have penetrated the Sadr movement, but not Moqtada," he added.
Hold the raisins. Posted by Orrin Judd at August 13, 2004 9:08 AM
right now the stories are saying Sadr is holed up in the mosque surrounded by US and Iraq forces. Iraq wants their forces to go into the mosque since the US forces would contaminate the holy ground. Yet the Iraq forces seem reluctant to take on Sadr. Talk of negotiations with Sadr are starting to appear. This charade needs to be ended especially since there is evidence Iranians are part of Sadr's army. Finish this and perhaps oil prices will start coming back down.
Posted by: AWW at August 13, 2004 9:15 AMMookie needs to go to one of two places: 6 feet under, or prison.
Posted by: Roy Jacobsen at August 13, 2004 9:35 AMHere's a question: Is there any city in the Middle East that's not a *holy* city? It seems like every damned podunk one-camel burg there is some kind of holy city. Isn't there a Middle Eastern equivalent of Teaneck, NJ? Not holy, not un-holy, just a city.
Posted by: Governor Breck at August 13, 2004 9:57 AMGov:
Irrespective of the claims for other cities, Najaf is the holy city of Shi'a Islam.
Posted by: oj at August 13, 2004 10:05 AMGovernor:
Good point. And the holiness only means it would be a sacrilege for the infidels to do anything bad to them there. They themselves have no such qualms.
It reminds me a bit about how often land someone wants to develop turns out to be a sacred aboriginal burial ground.
Posted by: Peter B at August 13, 2004 10:34 AMThis is the future of Iraq. Near-term, conflict. Then, Shiite theocracy. It will happen because of this "sensitive" war we are fighting.
Posted by: Bill at August 13, 2004 10:51 AMShi'ite democracy.
Posted by: oj at August 13, 2004 10:57 AMShiite theocracy.
Shi'ite democracy.
Distinction without difference.
Posted by: Jeff Guinn at August 13, 2004 12:23 PM>It seems like every damned podunk one-camel
>burg there is some kind of holy city.
The morning drive-time crew on KFI AM640 (Los Angeles) has noticed this, and these days refers to ANY & every location in Iraq as The HOLY of .
Amid comments that every bedouin tent in Iraq is THE HOLY CITY OF whatever, the Holiest City In All Islam. They even started referring to locations in local news that way ("The HOLY City of Compton!") if the local story follows the Iraq news.
Actually, there are a lot of HOLY cities over there -- started centuries ago to draw in the pilgrimage traffic. Apparently getting your town declared a Holy City of Islam was medieval Arabs' version of Chamber of Commerce civic boosterism.
Posted by: Ken at August 13, 2004 12:37 PMWe're a Christian democracy, but not a Christian theocracy.
Israel is a Jewish democracy, but not a Jewish theocracy.
Shi'ism is just as compatible with democracy as Christianity and Judaism.
Posted by: oj at August 13, 2004 12:55 PMWell, Muqtadar says he represents Shia democracy, so why are we mad at him?
Bush has a sort of genius for getting himself into these lose-lose situations. If we kill him, it isn't much of a trophy, and if we don't we look like monkeys.
How many months has it been now since the Marines announced he was toast? More than 4.
Because he's not running for election. If he agrees to he lives.
Posted by: oj at August 13, 2004 2:00 PMOJ:
"Shi'ism is just as compatible with democracy as Christianity and Judaism."
Not accordig to the Koran. Christian and Jewish democracies exist because of secularism.
Posted by: Jeff Guinn at August 13, 2004 3:25 PM"It reminds me a bit about how often land someone wants to develop turns out to be a sacred aboriginal burial ground."
About 5 years ago Minneapolis was clearing some trees to widen Hiawatha Ave near Minehaha Park. Some Native American "activists" and a gang of white college kids with orange and green hair staged a "sit-in" in the trees, claiming that they were sacred Indian burial trees.
Last year, while Gray Davis was still governor of CA, they were debating a bill to give Indian tribes a "veto" over proposed construction projects. Does anyone know if it passed?
Posted by: Robert Duquette at August 13, 2004 9:54 PMOoops, the invasion of Najaf has been canceled.
This is beginning to look like the wars with East Asia, or was it Eurasia? If it's the third week in August, the war is off, or something.
Posted by: Harry Eagar at August 15, 2004 1:56 PMHe's not going anywhere--there's no rush.
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