March 2, 2005
SANCTUARY (via Jim Yates):
US snipers on Samarra’s spiral minaret (Lucian Harris, Art Newspaper)
US army snipers have been positioned at the top of the great spiral minaret of the 9th century al-Mutawakkil mosque in Samarra. Armed with 50 calibre rifles and working in 24-hour two-man shifts, the soldiers watch over this turbulent city in the Sunni triangle north of Baghdad, which continues to be a hotbed of resistance against the Coalition.The 172-foot-high minaret, known as the Malwiya (spiral in Arabic), has a commanding view of the surrounding area, and the US army says that positioning snipers at its summit has drastically reduced the number of roadside bombs targeting military vehicles.
Nevertheless, their presence has raised concerns for the safety of one of the most important buildings in the history of Islamic architecture, of such significance for Iraqis that it is depicted on the new 250 dinar banknote. Obviously we aren't going to shoot at it.
Posted by Orrin Judd at March 2, 2005 12:30 PM
Guardian Angel on my shoulder.
Posted by: Luciferous at March 2, 2005 3:33 PMThere is no good reason why this mosque should get any greater protection than the Koln Cathedral. But this is just another in the weird list of things not to do in a Muslim country.
1. Don't attack in the hostile Afghan winter.
2. Don't fight on Ramadan.
3. Don't invade or conquer any of their holy cities.
4. Don't use female troops in country.
5. Don't let the troops have alcohol on break.
At some point shouldn't Lucian go back to pulling footballs away from Charlie Brown and just shut up?
I recall reading (and I may misremember details) that in the Mexican war, the US was avoided cathedrals in urban fighting... until Mexican snipers started using the belltowers.
Shortly after that, a young lieutenant named Grant distinguished himself by hauling cannon up into one.
Posted by: Mike Earl at March 2, 2005 4:13 PMdexter Filkins says the unit he was embedded with in Fallujah took fire from every mosque it passed--every one.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4239012
Posted by: oj at March 2, 2005 4:17 PMmy understanding is that a mosque will be fired on if terrorists are using it to shoot at u.s. troops. and that they are being used less often for these purposes.
Posted by: cjm at March 2, 2005 4:38 PMIn Iraq, isn't 'mosque' just a euphemism for 'weapons depot' and/or 'staging area'?
Posted by: jim hamlen at March 2, 2005 4:47 PMUnless I read this wrong, the reason there are snipers on the spire is because it's freaking tall and give them an open shot at anyone trying to blow someone up. Not because it warrants "greater protection."
Posted by: Timothy at March 2, 2005 5:04 PM