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Habibi
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- Wednesday, August 11 2004, 17:13:56 (CEST) from -  Windows XP -  Internet ExplorerWebsite: Website title: |
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3131330.stm Friday, 6 August, 2004, 08:14 GMT 09:14 UK BBC Who's who in Iraq: Moqtada Sadr Radical Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr has been a turbulent presence in Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussein. At times he has called for a national rebellion against foreign troops and sent out his militiamen to confront the "invaders" and Iraqi police. At others he has appeared more compromising, seeking for himself a political role within the new Iraq. He is thought to be aged 30 - a youthful leader in a society which considers age and experience essential to religious authority. Moqtada Sadr mixes Iraqi nationalism and Shia radicalism, making him a figurehead for many of Iraq's poor Shia Muslims. His detractors see him as an inexperienced and impatient radical who aims to dominate Iraq's most revered Shia institutions by force. The youngest son of Muhammad Sadiq Sadr - a senior Shia cleric assassinated in 1999, reportedly by agents of the Iraqi Government - Moqtada Sadr was virtually unknown outside Iraq before the US-led invasion in March 2003. The collapse of Baathist rule revealed his power base: a network of Shia charitable institutions founded by his father. In the first weeks following the US-led invasion, Moqtada Sadr's followers patrolled the streets in the poor Shia suburbs of Baghdad, distributing food. His name clearly has powerful resonances - the Shia district of Baghdad, Saddam City, has been renamed Sadr City. Newspaper banned In June 2003 he established a militia group, the Mehdi Army, in defiance of coalition arms controls, pledging to protect the Shia religious authorities in the holy city of Najaf. Terrorise your enemies as we cannot remain silent at their violations Moqtada Sadr 5 April 2004 In quotes: Moqtada Sadr He also set up a weekly newspaper, al-Hawzah. The US-led authorities imposed a ban on the paper in March 2004, accusing it of inciting anti-US violence. The ban was lifted in mid-July by the interim Iraqi government, citing the move as proof of its belief in a free press, but the newspaper said it had been preparing to resume publishing anyway. In contrast to more moderate clerics such as Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, Moqtada Sadr calls on Shia spiritual leaders to play an active role in shaping Iraq's political future. In recent weeks his fiery rhetoric against the presence of foreign troops appeared to have softened, saying he would not advocate violence. He also appeared to be interested in joining the political process, after a spokesman said in June he planned to create a political party to contest the first full elections in January. But in mid-July, the cleric denounced interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi during a sermon, saying he was only continuing the US-led occupation. "Damn him and damn the occupier," he told worshippers. His supporters turned down an invitation to take part in a national conference - recently postponed until mid-August - to select a National Council. They said the allocation of one seat did not sufficiently recognise an organisation with thousands of members. Arrest warrant An Iraqi judge has released an arrest warrant for Moqtada Sadr in connection with the death of a moderate Shia leader, Abdul Majid al-Khoei, in April 2003, just two days after the fall of Baghdad. Moqtada Sadr strongly denies any role in the murder. His supporters have also clashed with followers of Ayatollah Sistani - who has become prominent in the run-up to the planned handover of power to Iraqis on 30 June. Moqtada Sadr denounced the August 2003 attack on the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad. He has visited neighbouring Iran since Saddam Hussein was ousted, meeting senior officials in Tehran. Moqtada Sadr's appeal to the Shia poor and dispossessed accounts for much of his popularity. However, some other Iraqis also see him as symbol of resistance to foreign occupation. Joint Sunni and Shia protests were held in Baghdad and other cities after US forces clashed with Moqtada Sadr's Mehdi Army at the same time as besieging the Sunni city of Falluja in May this year. Although Moqtada Sadr's militancy has won him support from Sunni radicals, the fighting between US forces and the Mehdi Army in the holy cities of Najaf and Kerbala has angered moderate Shia leaders. --------------------- |
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