Sunnis say they're mobilizing to combat Shiites, protect mosques

[ECH1969]

Sunni Muslims from across central Iraq, alarmed by how easily Shiite Muslim fighters had attacked their mosques during last week's clashes, said Monday that they were sending weapons to Baghdad and were preparing to dispatch their own fighters to the Iraqi capital in case of further violence.

Iraq was calmer Monday, but the Sunni preparations suggested that the country is still in danger of descending into civil war.

Sunnis in several Iraqi cities said last week's clashes showed that they weren't as prepared for civil strife as their Shiite rivals. Sunni politicians confirmed that many Sunnis outside Baghdad had volunteered to join the battle in the capital, but said they'd discouraged such activities.

"I received phone calls from women and men alike offering to defend mosques. They are driven. ... We asked our people to calm down. They kept saying, `We are not weak. We want to fight,'" said Harith Obeidi, a Sunni and newly elected Parliament member. Some Sunnis in "the provinces offered us tens of men. But we rejected it because it might lead to civil war."

http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/mld/myrtlebeachonline/news/world/13976350.htm

[wakeme2008]

1. But * said NO Civil War on his Watch

:grr:

[stillcool]

2. new blog from Riverbend...

http://riverbendblog.blogspot.com/

[EuroObserver]

3. Knight Ridder. But psyops, anyone?

Riverbend (sounds nervous); nevertheless: "It does not feel like civil war because Sunnis and Shia have been showing solidarity these last few days in a big way..." (link above).

Dahr Jamail: "Widespread sectarian violence generated by the recent bombing of the Shia Golden Mosque in Samarra has also brought widespread demonstrations of solidarity between Sunnis and Shias across Iraq..." ( http://www.dahrjamailiraq.com/hard_news/archives/hard_news/000366.php#more )

--> our 'Western' press, it seems, keeps insisting on the 'civil war' meme.

Go figure.

(ed: clean up title)

[ECH1969]

4. The thing about Iraq is it is so damn diverse

There are well over 100 different groups operating in different areas of Iraq with different agendas. It may look peaceful in one area and it may look like all hell is breaking out in another area.

[Disturbed]

5. Why were so many Iraqis sure that Sunnis had...

bombed the golden dome mosque? Couldn't have been al Z's group, Iranians, USA? I mean why did many go and destroy Sunni mosques in revenge when no proof of who was responsible for the g d mosque?

I still think that the Sunnis and Shia will briefly unite in one cause: End the Occupation of the US/UK.

[ECH1969]

6. The Madhi Army was behind the vast majority of the violence

Its the problem with having active militias that want to assert themselves politically and militarily.

Most Shia didn't blame Sunnis for the bombing. But, militias like the Madhi Army used this as an excuse to do what they wanted to do anyway. Kill Sunnis and take Sunni areas of Baghdad.

[stillcool]

7. "Mosque Outrage Also Brings Solidarity"

February 25, 2006

Inter Press Service
Dahr Jamail and Arkan Hamed

Muqtada Al-Sadr, arguably the second most influential Shia cleric in Iraq told reporters: "It was not the Sunnis who attacked the shrine of Imam Al-Hadi, God's peace be upon him, but rather the occupation (forces) and Ba'athists...God damn them. We should not attack Sunni mosques. I have ordered the Al-Mahdi Army to protect both Shia and Sunni shrines."

Sunnis were quick to demonstrate solidarity with the Shias in Samarra and to condemn the mosque bombings. Demonstrations of solidarity between Sunnis and Shias followed all over Iraq. Some of the bigger demonstrations were held in Basra, Diwaniyah, Nasiriyah, Kut, and Salah Al-Din.

http://www.dahrjamailiraq.com/hard_news/archives/hard_news/000366.php#more

[Kagemusha]

8. Okay here's the problem with what Sadr said here...

Let's say you want to send militia to defend a Sunni mosque from desecration. Except Sunnis are already there. With guns. And they start shooting when they see your people. Apparently there've been incidents like that... so obviously once you kill or otherwise defeat the Sunni guards, then you can "defend" the shrine from attack.

Or let's say there's a Sunni mosque which was at some point in the past a Shiite mosque, and you re-flag it and say it's a Shiite mosque now under the protection of Shiite militia. Sounds fair, doesn't it?

Sadr's said he's clamping down on THAT, too, but we'll see what the boots on the ground do.

The thing is, for a non-democracy, these militias sure had a very democratic reaction. Whatever their leaders said, they wanted blood. The leaders did not fully suppress that urge to draw blood from the enemy. That's why militias can be bad. It's not just about what you can order them to do; it's about what they can do on their own if they're pissed off or not because they're not subject to military discipline like a real military. They can't just be confined to barracks.