Protest at Iraq Forum Reshapes Najaf Crisis (Allawi holds Najaf assault!?)

[Barrett808]

Protest at Iraq Forum Reshapes Najaf Crisis
By Rajiv Chandrasekaran, Washington Post Foreign Service

BAGHDAD, Aug. 15 -- More than 1,100 Iraqis convened Sunday for the start of a conference aimed at selecting a national assembly, a milestone in the country's transition to democracy, but the high-security meeting was roiled by a dispute over the use of military force to confront militiamen loyal to a rebellious Shiite Muslim cleric.

In a remarkable scene of political activism that would have been unimaginable under Baath Party rule, dozens of Shiite delegates jumped to their feet in a loud protest of the interim government's decision to mount military operations to evict followers of the cleric, Moqtada Sadr, from a Shiite shrine in the holy city of Najaf. Chanting "Yes to Najaf!" and raising their fists, the Shiite dissenters demanded that the participants call on the interim prime minister and Sadr's followers to refrain from violence and for a special committee of delegates to negotiate a solution to the crisis.

The outburst triggered a succession of events that quickly reshaped government policy toward Najaf and instilled the first measure of checks-and-balances in Iraq (news - web sites)'s nascent political system. The Shiite protesters, along with several non-Shiite participants, caucused and drafted a letter to interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi and his cabinet that called for a dialogue with Sadr and "an immediate cease-fire and cessation of all military activities in Najaf and other Iraqi cities."

A four-person delegation from the conference then met with Allawi. When the meeting was over, the government announced that its plans to use force to expel Sadr from the Imam Ali shrine were on hold. In a reversal from its position a day earlier, Allawi's cabinet issued a statement pledging to refrain from military action against Sadr's militiamen and to keep an "open door" to a negotiated settlement.

"This is democracy in action," said Ibrahim Nawar, a U.N. adviser who helped organize the conference. "For now, at least, they have succeeded in changing the government's approach toward the situation in Najaf."

Although senior officials said units from the Iraqi army would still be deployed to Najaf to prepare for an assault on the shrine should Sadr not withdraw, they acknowledged their strategy had shifted. "We're going to give time for a peaceful solution," said Wael Abdul-Latif, the minister of state for provincial affairs.\

(much more)

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/washpost/20040816/ts_washpost/a2540_2004aug15&cid=1802&ncid=1480

[bemildred]

1. Al Sadr - 2, Allawi - 0. nt

[demoman123]

2. "Democracy in action" my ass.

It just means the US will have to attack Sadr's people. The US would probably have to do this anyway, since the Iraqi forces aren't strong enough. US tanks are already rolling up to the shrine.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=753325&mesg_id=753325

[Junkdrawer]

3. Yep. And they want the reporters gone so the US can claim Iraqi police...

did the deed.