Thousands Of Shiites To Form Human Chain In Najaf

[cal04]

Thousands of Shiite Muslims vowed Friday to flock to the holy city of Najaf to form a human chain around the revered Imam Ali shrine after militia leader Moqtada Sadr was reportedly wounded in battle.
In a peaceful demonstration outside the heavily fortified Green Zone, which houses the US embassy and some government offices, the Shiite men, women and children vowed to guard the shrine and shield Sadr in the fighting at Najaf.

"We are a group of 500 women, many of whom are young students, and we plan to go tonight to Najaf and be part of a large human chain that we will form surrounding the shrine and also Sadr," said 20-year-old Rajaa Khayum, a resident of Sadr City, the Shiite stronghold of northeast Baghdad. Dressed in a traditional abaya, Khayum said hundreds of Sadr supporters would leave in groups Friday evening and participate in the holy war, but in a peaceful way.

"We do not have arms, but our bodies will be armour for the Imam Ali shrine and Sadr. We will take the bullets of the Americans and are ready to die martyrs for our religion and its son, Moqtada."
The gold-domed tomb of Prophet Mohammed's son-in-law Ali held by Sadr's Mehdi Army has for centuries made the city of Najaf a place of pilgrimage for Shiites seeking his blessing.

The religious importance of Najaf to Shiites, who make up the majority in Iraq, was highlighted in early April 2003 when US troops invading Iraq entered the city of half a million. They were confronted by hundreds of angry civilians who blocked soldiers from approaching the shrine, which is off-limits to non-Muslims. A spokesman for the Shiite Muslim militia leader urged thousands of partisans in Baghdad to march to Najaf on foot after Friday prayers. "As we gather here, outside the headquarters of the agent of the occupation who have brought nothing but death and destruction to this country, we order you to march to Najaf on foot," said Sayed Hazem al-Araji.

http://www.turkishpress.com/turkishpress/news.asp?ID=24439

[NMDemDist2]

1. oh chit, how are they going to handle this one? n/t

[wicket]

4. Oh man

This could be a public relations night-mare for the Pentagon. It brings up images of Gandhi and MLK jr.

[Ducks In A Row]

20. there won't be any nightmare

because we'll never hear what happens. It will be bad, but the news will be covered up.`

[amber dog democrat]

22. Its got to leak out some how.

but maybe in history books.

[slojim240]

6. I thought that Iraqi women hated Iraq men, especially the clerics?

Another lie?

[NMDemDist2]

16. no I never heard that,

Afghani women have some problems since their country is so fundamentalist

Iraqi women have had a lot of freedom in Saddam's secular regime

and any women will go to try to protect their sons, brothers and husbands

[stepnw1f]

24. You Thought?

[whistle]

21. Here is why the U.S. can not win in Iraq....

Best policy in war--thwart the enemy's strategy,
second best--disrupt his alliances through diplomacy,
third best--attack his army in the field,
worst strategy--attack walled cities.

-- Sun Tsu, Art of War

<link> http://leav-www.army.mil/fmso/FMSOPUBS/issues/battle.htm

[dweller]

25. thus, we will have lost

and they will be slaughtered.

there will be no victors in this insane war.
dp

:cry: for the victims of our madman in chief

[DoYouEverWonder]

2. OMG, I hope this works

I pray for their success.

[Mara Steele]

3. Oh please, PLEASE...

let there be no violence...

PLEASE... keep these people safe from harm.

:cry:

[movonne]

5. These poor, poor people..what we have done to them is a atrocity.

[Cerridwen]

7. I'm too cynical...my first thought...Kent State

:cry:

[jimshoes]

17. It will be all that

and then some. Kent State, Tienneman Square, all rolled into one. Not that the Western press would ever show a massacre like that on the TV box. But its something that you won't be able to keep a lid on. Let's hope it don't happen.

[DrWeird]

8. Those damn terrorists.

The only thing these people understand is violence.

Fucking savages.

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

9. Oy - this bodes ill

trés ill indeed

[bemildred]

10. Make sure you have plenty of video cameras and video cell phones.

Just in case.

[DrWeird]

11. I wonder who cares more about human life...

The US forces or the Chinese?

[jeff30997]

13. Good analogy. But i really wonder too...

I hope it will work but i have doubts...

[bemildred]

14. How would you measure?

We do know neither one likes pictures.

[MaineDem]

12. "We are a group of 500 women"

Go with peace, my sisters! My prayers are for your safety.

(I want to cry for what we've done to the Iraqi people.)

[leftchick]

15. I hope that they even make it to Najaf.....

I can't see the US Marines letting them through with out violence. Good lord let these poor people have their country back...

:cry:

[Disturbed]

18. The Hand-Over That Wasn't:

The Hand-Over That Wasn't: Illegal Orders give the US a Lock on Iraq's Economy
by Antonia Juhasz

Officially, the U.S. occupation of Iraq ended on June 28, 2004. But in reality, the United States is still in charge: Not only do 138,000 troops remain to control the streets, but the "100 Orders" of L. Paul Bremer III remain to control the economy.

These little noticed orders enacted by Bremer, the now-departed head of the now-defunct Coalition Provisional Authority, go to the heart of Bush administration plans in Iraq. They lock in sweeping advantages to American firms, ensuring long-term U.S. economic advantage while guaranteeing few, if any, benefits to the Iraqi people.

The Bremer orders control every aspect of Iraqi life - from the use of car horns to the privatization of state-owned enterprises. Order No. 39 alone does no less than "transition from a … centrally planned economy to a market economy" virtually overnight and by U.S. fiat. Although many thought that the "end" of the occupation would also mean the end of the orders, on his last day in Iraq Bremer simply transferred authority for the orders to Prime Minister Iyad Allawi - a 30-year exile with close ties to the CIA and British intelligence.

http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0805-07.htm

[jimshoes]

19. Do you think these guys even for one minute

thought their plans for Iraq might not work. I'm sure a lot of them are scratching their heads now thinking that very thing. The again, maybe not.

[Barrett808]

23. This is essentially what happened at the siege of Fallujah

Why should we think events will transpire any differently this time?