Shia uprising

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Fighting has spread beyond the Shia Iraqi holy city of Najaf where US forces have been battling insurgents for the past week.
Clashes in Baghdad, Amara, Kut and other towns left at least 30 dead and 219 wounded on Tuesday alone, the Iraqi health ministry said. http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/39940000/jpg/_39940542_gunman-ap-203x300body.jpg

The figures do not include Najaf, the stronghold of radical cleric Moqtada Sadr who has vowed to keep fighting.

An aid worker there told the BBC that hospitals were struggling to cope.

The unnamed official from the Red Crescent said Najaf's main surgical hospital had not been functioning since April while the general hospital was hoping to receive "special kits for... war-wounded people".

Wednesday dawned with an apparent lull in the fighting in Najaf, a city of nearly 600,000, where the US has been using warplanes to bomb Mr Sadr's Mehdi Army (MA) militants.

Withdrawal call

One of Iraq's deputy presidents, Ibrahim Jaafari, has called for the US-led foreign forces to withdraw and allow Iraqi security forces to take over.

We keep pushing... and they just keep coming
Capt Patrick McFall
US officer


"Iraqi forces can administer Najaf to end this phenomenon of violence in this city that is holy to all Muslims," he said on Arabic TV channel al-Jazeera.

The presence of US-led multinational forces had been requested earlier by the Najaf governor to support the Iraqi police and national guard.

Moqtada Sadr issued a statement on Wednesday calling on his followers to keep fighting even if he himself was captured or killed.

"I thank the dear fighters all over Iraq for what they have done to set back injustice," he added.

In other developments on Wednesday:


gunmen shot dead a prominent Shia politician in Diyala Province, killing Ali al-Khalisi in his car in the town of Mahmoudiya; his supporters blamed Saddam loyalists

a bomb exploded in the marketplace of Khan Bani Saad, a village north of Baghdad, killing four and wounding 10
'Something bad'

According to casualty figures released by the US military, 360 militants were killed in Najaf between last Thursday and Sunday with the loss of at least five US troops and 20 members of the Iraqi security forces.

Iraq has become a battlefield for settling scores
Najaf resident


Shia sources dispute the figures for their dead and no independent confirmation has been possible amid the heavy fighting in the city.

"We keep pushing... and they just keep coming," Capt Patrick McFall, a US cavalry officer in Najaf, was quoted as saying by AP news agency.

Another officer, Maj David Holahan of the marines, described the use of air strikes in the city:

"We've pretty much just been patrolling and flying helicopters all over the place, and when we see something bad, we blow it up."

Fighting spreads

The Iraqi health ministry has not given details of its new casualty figures but medical sources in Amara said at least 15 people had been killed since Tuesday.


The report was not confirmed by British forces patrolling the area - and there were also unconfirmed reports of Iraqi casualties in Basra.

In Baghdad, the Iraqi government accused Shia gunmen of killing 14 people and wounding 67 in recent days in the city's mainly Shia district of Sadr City.

Shia gunmen wounded five members of the Iraqi security forces in Kut on Wednesday morning, a correspondent for AFP news agency reports from the city.
BBC

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10 August 2004 -- Fighting continued for a sixth consecutive day today in the southern Iraqi city of Al-Najaf, where U.S. forces have battled militiamen loyal to radical Shi'a cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. The battle poses a dilemma for the interim government and is raising concerns about a wave of unrest spreading to other Shi'a cities in southern Iraq.

An intense morning battle in central Al-Najaf today followed a night of intermittent clashes between U.S. troops and Imam Al-Mahdi Army militia fighters near the holy city's large ancient cemetery.

It is the sixth consecutive day of fighting in Al-Najaf between U.S. forces and militiamen loyal to radical Shi'a cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

A one-day truce was called late yesterday. U.S. military vehicles used loudspeakers this morning to announce the truce had collapsed: "Leave peacefully. There is no truce with the armed elements. We call for all people to cooperate with police and the Iraqi army and evacuate these areas."

Al-Sadr defied demands yesterday from Iraq's interim government for his militia fighters to withdraw from Al-Najaf, saying that he will fight until his "last drop of blood is spilled."

An unidentified Al-Mahdi Army fighter claiming to be from England told a Reuters correspondent in Al-Najaf that Shi'a Muslims from across Europe are joining the battle.

"We want to send a message to the American and the coalition forces. We want to tell them that we came all the way from Europe and there are plenty of guys that are going to be joining us soon, God willing. We came here to join the forces of Muqtada al-Sadr, and we came here to give our lives, and there are plenty of men who are going to be coming. So, it's a warning to them, from us, that we are going to give our lives all the way. And we are going to bomb them all the way," the militia member said.

The battle is the fiercest fighting seen in Iraq in months, and presents a dilemma for the newly installed interim government of Prime Minister Iyad Allawi. Failure to impose order in Al-Najaf could weaken Allawi's credibility with Iraqis who want a firm government that can bring security.

But a full-scale attack in Al-Najaf by U.S. and Iraqi forces could prove even more damaging. There are fears the fighting could damage holy sites like the Imam Ali Shrine, or cause widespread civilian casualties. That, in turn, could spark a broad Shi'a backlash elsewhere in Iraq.

Days of clashes have also been reported in Baghdad's impoverished Shi'a suburb of Al-Sadr City. U.S. tanks, backed by troops from the Iraqi national guard, advanced on the area today following a morning gun battle.

Iraq's Health Ministry said 10 people have been killed and 104 injured in clashes around Baghdad since yesterday. There were no official casualty tolls from Al-Najaf. But U.S. commanders claim to have killed 360 Al-Mahdi Army fighters there during the past week.

The radical Shi'a uprising has left several Shi'a cities virtually closed. In the southern port city of Al-Basrah, limited amounts of oil were being loaded onto export tankers today after Shi'a militia fighters attacked a pipeline, forcing its closure yesterday.

Iraqi officials say the damage was minor and export operations should be fully restored by tomorrow.

(compiled from agency reports)

Copyright © 2004. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org

[h&s]

A one-day truce was called late yesterday. U.S. military vehicles used loudspeakers this morning to announce the truce had collapsed: "Leave peacefully. There is no truce with the armed elements. We call for all people to cooperate with police and the Iraqi army and evacuate these areas."
Did anyone hear that? Straight after the translator guy said it, the 'Defenders of the City' replied with 4 rpg's and AK-47 fire from pretty much every angle!
The question I want to ask though is what do you people think of the upising? On one hand it is a revolution against U$ imperialism, but on the other it is a religon-based thing, and the hardline Commie inside me screams out 'Burn Them!'
Regardless of the cause though, as my dad said the other day; "I look forward to the day we see the Americans hanging from their helicopters fleeing from their embassy."

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i find myself supporting the new uprising especially as a lot of the Mehdi army is made up of Iraq's poorest people, i'm not sure about Sadr but at least he is standing against US imperialism!

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US troops 'poised to storm Najaf'

US and Iraqi forces are preparing for a major assault against Shia Muslim fighters in the holy city of Najaf, the US military has said.

US forces have been battling insurgents loyal to radical cleric Moqtada Sadr for the past week.

Hundreds have been reported killed or injured since the fighting began.

One of Iraq's deputy presidents, Ibrahim Jaafari, has called for the US-led forces to withdraw and allow Iraqi security forces to take over.

"I call for multinational forces to leave Najaf and for only Iraqi forces to remain there," he said in remarks broadcast by Arabic TV channel al-Jazeera.

Earlier, he also called on Mr Sadr's Mehdi Army militants to pull back.

Holy site

But the US military - whose intervention was requested by the Najaf governor last week - has said it plans to press on with its offensive in the city.

"Iraqi and US forces are making final preparations as we get ready to finish this fight that the Moqtada militia started," said Col Anthony Haslam, commanding officer of the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit in Najaf.

"The desired end state is one of stability and security, where the citizens of Najaf do not live in fear of violence or kidnappings, and where the city of Najaf can once again return to peace and prosperity."

The US military said on Monday that Najaf's Governor, Adnan al-Zorfi, had given its troops permission to raid the Imam Ali mausoleum. The US says the insurgents are using the shrine as a refuge, but an attack could anger Shia Muslims.

It is one of the holiest sites in Shia Islam, marking the spot where the Prophet Muhammad's son-in-law, Ali, is buried.

Mr Sadr has called on his followers to keep fighting even if he himself is captured or killed.

"I thank the dear fighters all over Iraq for what they have done to set back injustice," he said as fighting flared up in other cities such as Amara, where at least 10 Iraqis died in clashes with UK forces.

Confirmed casualty figures are unavailable for Najaf but clashes in Baghdad, Amara, Kut and other towns left at least 30 dead and 219 wounded on Tuesday alone, the Iraqi health ministry said.

At least six Iraqis were killed and 10 injured when a bomb exploded at a market near Baquba, north of Baghdad.

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Sadr tells fighters: Carry on if I'm martyred

Radical Shiite Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr is urging his militia to keep fighting US forces in Iraq even if he is killed, raising the stakes in a bloody confrontation that shows no sign of ending.

The challenge comes as sporadic clashes echoed from the heart of the southern city of Najaf, where hundreds of Iraqis have been killed or wounded in the past week.

Najaf is the site of some of Iraq's holiest Shiite Muslim sites.

"Keep fighting even if you see me a prisoner or a martyr," Sadr said. "God willing, you will be victorious."

The fighting between US forces and Sadr's Mehdi Army in Najaf, which is part of a broader Shiite uprising in several southern and central cities, is the toughest challenge yet for the six-week-old administration of Prime Minister Iyad Allawi.

The crisis appears to have created cracks in Mr Allawi's administration after Deputy President Ibrahim Jaafari urged US troops to leave Najaf to end the fighting.

"I call for multinational forces to leave Najaf and for only Iraqi forces to remain there," Mr Jaafari said.

"Iraqi forces can administer Najaf to end this phenomenon of violence in this city that is holy to all Muslims."

Sanctuary

US forces have been pounding Sadr's militiamen in Najaf from warplanes and helicopters for days.

The Iraqi fighters have taken sanctuary in the vast cemetery near the Imam Ali Shrine.

Marines have cordoned off the area but have not made a full assault, a move that would enrage Iraq's majority Shiites. They have also said they were not hunting Sadr.

The cleric says he still wants Iraq to remain united and he thanks "those who tried to resolve the crisis peacefully".

In the past 24 hours, at least 30 people have been killed and 219 wounded in five Iraqi cities including Baghdad, the Health Ministry says.

The figure does not include Najaf nor casualties among foreign forces.

US forces say they have killed 360 Sadr loyalists so far in Najaf.

Sadr's spokesmen say far fewer have died during the second rebellion by the militia in four months.

The rebels have ignored an order from Mr Allawi to leave Najaf.

The latest fighting raises questions about what role Sadr wants to play in postwar Iraq, especially ahead of landmark elections scheduled for January.

Mr Allawi's attempts to bring Sadr into the political fold appear to have failed, for now.

Aged about 30 and a prominent figure in a revered clerical dynasty, he does not speak for all Iraq's Shiites but his tough anti-US rhetoric has won him many admirers and swelled the ranks of his Mehdi militia.

-- Reuters

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Fierce fighting in Iraq holy city
Fighting has intensified in the Iraqi holy city of Najaf as US marines vowed to crush a week-long uprising by supporters of Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr.
Tanks backed by helicopter gunships moved to seal off the Imam Ali Shrine in the centre of the city on Thursday.

US aircraft and artillery also pounded a nearby cemetery where militiamen have taken up positions in recent days.

American troops, using loudspeakers, told residents to leave the area. Many are fleeing the fighting.


US and Iraqi forces have been battling Mr Sadr's Mehdi militia in Najaf - about 160 km (100 miles) south of Baghdad - for the past seven days.

The latest clashes broke out at around 0700 (0300 GMT) on Thursday, as US forces headed towards the cemetery.

"Major operations to destroy the militia have begun," a US military spokesman said.

Correspondents say the nature of the fighting suggests the US and Iraqi forces had mounted a pincer movement.

The US military said on Monday that Najaf's Governor, Adnan Zorfi, had given its troops permission to raid the Imam Ali mausoleum in Najaf.

The US says the insurgents are using the shrine as a refuge.

It is one of the holiest sites in Shia Islam, marking the spot where the Prophet Muhammad's son-in-law, Ali, is buried.

Oil threat

Mr Sadr's militia has threatened to blow up oil pipelines in the south of the country.

Hundreds have been reported killed or injured since the fighting began.

Mr Sadr has called on his followers to keep fighting, even if he himself is captured or killed.

Heavy bombardments have also been reported in the city of Kut, south-east of Baghdad.

More than 50 people were killed as US planes pounded suspected militia positions in the city, medical officials say.

Elsewhere, two US marines were reported killed in a helicopter crash in Anbar province west of Baghdad.

Three other people were injured in Wednesday night's crash, which occurred during what the US military described as "security and stabilisation operations".

No hostile fire was observed near the helicopter at the time of the crash, they said.

BBC

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Najaf, Iraq - Explosions and gunfire echoed across this Shiite holy city today as the U.S. military and Iraqi forces launched a full-scale assault to crush a week-long uprising by militiamen loyal to radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

Thousands of U.S. troops were taking part in the offensive, which began with the cordoning off of the revered Imam Ali shrine, its vast cemetery and Najaf's Old City.

"Major operations to destroy the militia have begun," said U.S. Marine Maj. David Holahan, executive officer of the 1st Battalion, 4th Marines Regiment.

The assault was expected to be led by Iraqi forces - many of whom have only minimal training - in an effort to lessen the anger from Iraq's Shiite majority, should the offensive damage the shrine where many insurgents have taken refuge.

On Wednesday, U.S. Marines promised action that would "finish" the militia of al-Sadr.




Al-Sadr's men responded in kind, setting up checkpoints on the edge of Najaf, where they walked openly with AK-47s and rocket-propelled grenades.

Iraq's vice president and other Shiite political leaders sought a political solution while Prime Minister Ayad Allawi pressed for U.S. military action.

A large-scale battle could be a turning point for the nation's interim government.

The margin for error is slim for Allawi, whose support is shaky. Allawi, a Shiite, has given U.S. forces the go-ahead to take the fight to the doorstep of the Imam Ali shrine, the holiest site in Shiite Islam. Major damage to the shrine could spark a massive uprising and jeopardize Allawi's position.

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U.S. marines take centre of Najaf
By Khaled Farhan

NAJAF, Iraq (Reuters) - U.S. marines backed by tanks and aircraft have seized the heart of the holy Iraqi city of Najaf in a major assault on Shi'ite rebels, but they kept out of a site sacred to millions of Shi'ites around the world.

Warplanes and Apache helicopters pounded militia positions in a cemetery near the Imam Ali Mosque on Thursday, igniting protests in at least two other cities as an uprising that has killed hundreds across southern and central Iraq entered its second week.

The assault against the Mehdi Army of radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr and growing anger among the majority Shi'ite community could spark a firestorm for interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi should holy sites be damaged or the death toll escalate.

Thick black smoke poured into the sky as helicopters skimmed mud-brick rooftops in the heart of Najaf. Soon after midday, marines controlled the city centre and had blocked entry to the mosque, one of Shi'ite Islam's holiest sites, a witness said.

In the southeastern city of Kut, at least 72 people were killed in U.S. air raids and fighting between Iraqi police and the Mehdi Army on Thursday, the Health Ministry said.

It said 25 people were killed in clashes in Baghdad and 21 in other cities in the past 24 hours. There were no immediate casualty figures from the Najaf offensive.

Protests broke out in Baghdad and the southern city of Basra after the offensive began, aimed at crushing the heart of a radical Shi'ite Muslim rebellion that has hit seven cities.

The U.S. military said the assault would exclude the Imam Ali Mosque. A spokesman for Iraq's Interior Ministry told CNN that Iraqi forces alone would disarm militia holed up inside.

But the Mehdi Army raised the prospect of a bloody battle, vowing no surrender and saying Sadr was leading the defence at the shrine and vast cemetery, one of the Middle East's largest.

"The morale of the fighters is very high," said Ahmed al-Shibani, a senior Sadr spokesman in Najaf.

OIL MARKETS NERVOUS

U.S. marines made clear their intentions, broadcasting a message in Arabic from Humvees that said: "To the residents of Najaf: Coalition forces are purging the city of Mehdi Army."

A threat by Sadr's militia kept a main southern oil export pipeline shut on Thursday although crews had repaired it after sabotage stopped operations for three days, an official said.

A senior official from Sadr's Mehdi Army, Sheikh Asaad al-Basri, had warned that militiamen would blow up pipelines in the south if U.S. forces tried to storm their Najaf bases.

Oil prices stayed close to record levels after the threat. U.S. light crude rose 12 cents to $44.92 a barrel, just 12 cents below Tuesday's record of $45.04 for New York crude futures.

Militiamen responded to the American assault in Najaf with rocket-propelled grenades and mortar bombs, firing at times from inside the walls of the Imam Ali Mosque.

Witnesses said thousands of civilians fled the centre of the southern city. The U.S. military said the figure was much lower. Some residents escaped on carts pulled by donkeys and by late morning many streets were deserted.

Analysts warned of a backlash even if the shrine was undamaged and the militia beaten in Najaf. They said resentment could fester and pose long-term consequences for Allawi, who has said nothing publicly on the crisis since Sunday.

"This has the potential to be a highly destructive bout of fighting," said Gareth Stansfield, a Middle East expert at London's Royal Institute of International Affairs.

"It's not just the physical damage, it's the symbolism of the Americans being in Najaf as well that is damaging."

PROTESTS ERUPT

Some 2,000 U.S. servicemen and 1,800 Iraq security men are deployed around Najaf, a city of 600,000 about 160 km (100 miles) south of Baghdad.

The U.S. military said Iraqi forces were actively involved in the offensive, although witnesses said American troops were doing most of the fighting.

As news of the offensive filtered in, thousands of Shi'ites took to the streets in Basra and a Baghdad district to protest.

"Long live Sadr, America and Allawi are infidels," thousands of protesters in Basra chanted. A similar protest took place in Baghdad's Shi'ite neighbourhood of Kadhimiyah.

A Reuters photographer said he had seen dozens of dead militiamen in civilian houses in Najaf. He said the bodies had been taken from the battle zone and covered in ice to preserve them before burial. It was unclear when they had been killed.

Iraq's most influential Shi'ite cleric, who is in London undergoing medical treatment, called for the holy city of Najaf, his hometown, to be respected, an aide said.

"Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani is pained and very sad about what is happening in holy Najaf," Murtada al-Kashmiri told Reuters.

Despite the tightening military noose in Najaf, Sadr has ordered his men to keep fighting if he is killed or captured. The latest fighting has shattered a two-month truce between U.S. forces and their most vocal critic in Iraq.

U.S. forces say they have killed 360 Sadr loyalists so far in Najaf. Sadr's spokesmen say far fewer have died in what is the second rebellion by the militia in four months.

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United States warplanes have led an assault on Moqtada al-Sadr's militia in Najaf as US troops and Iraqi forces sealed off the sacred Imam Ali Mosque in the old city where fighters vowed to fight on.

At least five civilians were killed and six militiamen wounded, said Sadr spokesman Sheikh Ahmed al-Shaibani, who claimed the Mehdi Army had destroyed at least two US armoured vehicles and killed several soldiers.

"We are pounding the American positions with mortars and Katyusha rockets," said Sheikh Shaibani, as thick, black smoke shrouded the sky above the city centre.

"We are ready to fight until the last drop of blood if this is what the Americans want," added another Sadr spokesman, Sheikh Ali al-Sumeisim.

By dusk, one militiamen had been killed and 25 wounded, said the cleric inside the holy shrine.

US troops and Iraqi forces quickly sealed all access to the Imam Ali shrine, in a bid to trap militiamen who remain in control of a two kilometre radius area around the mosque.

After intense fighting, marines raided Sadr's home but found the house empty, Sheikh Shaibani said. Sadr was now believed to be hiding in the shrine.

In Baghdad, officials vowed the joint US-Iraqi offensive, involving nearly 4,000 troops, would continue and demanded that the Shiite fighters evacuate and not violate the shrine.

"Our Government calls on all armed groups to drop their weapons and return to civil society. The political process is open to everyone and all are invited to take part," a statement from Prime Minister Iyad Allawi said.

Defence Minister Hazem al-Shalan said 1,200 militiamen had been captured in Najaf, many of them non-Iraqis who do not speak Arabic.

"The operations are continuing in the city [of Najaf] and will continue until the militia is forced out or they surrender," Mr Shalan told reporters.

Various efforts were underway to defuse the stand-off. The Government's adviser on security, Muwafaq al-Rubaie, headed to Najaf in a bid to meet with Sadr and end the assault.

The Najaf office of Iraq's revered Shiite Muslim spiritual leader Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani also said it was working with all sides for peace.

At least three US Bradley fighting vehicles were seen at the southern entrance to the shrine compound and residents were being urged on loudspeakers to leave.

"Leave the city. Help coalition forces and do not fire at them," the announcement instructed in Arabic. "We are here to liberate the city."

The other main roads leading to the shrine could not be approached amid fierce fighting.

Marines had announced they were preparing for "major assaults" on Najaf, as Sadr pressed loyalists to fight to the end, regardless of whether he was killed or captured.

Mr Allawi's office maintained that the Imam Ali would remain safe and multinational forces would not enter the tomb.

Shortly after the onslaught began, the deputy governor of Najaf quit his job in protest.

"I resign from my post denouncing all the US terrorist operations that they are doing against this holy city," Jawdat Kadam Najem al-Kuraishi said.

Also, 16 members of Najaf's 30 member provincial council have resigned in protest at the US-led assault.

"We have decided to resign due to what has befallen Najaf and all of Iraq from the hasty US invasion and bombardment of Najaf," the council said in a statement received by AFP.

The US military, backed by Iraqi forces, closed in on the heart of Najaf on Thursday to isolate militiamen loyal to Moqtada al-Sadr, pounding their positions in the city and raiding the radical cleric's home.

Meanwhile, an official from the southern province of Basra offered to send 1,000 Iraqi forces to Najaf to replace US forces, threatening to take matters into his own hands if the Government did not respond.

--AFP

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Sadr wounded in US attack on Najaf
Rebel Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr has been wounded during the US bombardment of the holy city of Najaf, but his exact condition is unknown, two of his spokesmen have said.

The US military on Thursday launched a massive assault on Najaf, home to the Imam Ali shrine, revered by Shiites the world over.

"Sayyed Moqtada was wounded in American bombing," spokesman Ahmad al-Shinabi told Reuters.

"He suffered three injuries to his body," he said.

Shortly after being wounded, Sadr called on his supporters to continue their "holy war" even if he dies a martyr, the spokesman said.

Thousands of US forces, backed by Iraqi police and national guard, yesterday mounted a pincer assault to trap Sadr's fighters in the heart of Najaf, before going on to raid the militia leader's home, which was unoccupied.

Further north, in Kut, which fell briefly to Sadr's militia during the spring uprising against the US-led occupation, heavy overnight US bombing killed 84 people and wounded 176, medics said.

Twenty-four hours of nationwide fighting in Iraq, mostly in the Shiite south and Sadr's Baghdad stronghold, has claimed 165 lives and wounded 594, the Iraqi Health Ministry said.

Sadr is the scion of a prominent religious family.

His father Mohammed Sadek al-Sadr was killed in 1999 by agents of Saddam Hussein for speaking out against the ousted leader's regime

-- Reuters/AFP

[Hiero]

What is the death toll of Imperialist ?

[PRC-UTE]

Last news I heard the US admits it "miscalculated" the response to invading Najaf and are freaked. They've reportedly asked for the UN to send it troops to help.

Too little, too late.

I hope the Iraqis continue to kick some imperialist ass.

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Has anyone heard how journalists were ordered out of Najaf? Well I read an article yesterday from a journalist still there who refused to leave. The Iraqi army (a small unit in front of the yanks to make it look like an Iraqi operation) said that they 'couldn't be held responsible for anythng that happened' to him if he stayed. The Iraqi army asked him again the next day to leave, and again he refused. He then asked them what would happen to him if he stayed, and they replied that if they saw him they would have to shoot him!
They obviously want the journalists out so that they can do a repeat of Fallujah, without the pesky journalists showing them breaking the Geneva Convention again.

[Lacrimi de Chiciură]

I heard that also. I also heard in a report that a shot was fired at him and that pieces of glass splinted into his face/cheek. They supposedly said that it could have been Iraqi insurgents, who were miles away.

[socialistfuture]

heres an interview with him done by al jazeera

http://knifeparty.com/cutenews/show_archiv...t_from=&ucat=2& (http://knifeparty.com/cutenews/show_archives.php?subaction=showfull&id=1087337211&archive=&start_from=&ucat=2&)

[socialistfuture]

an interview with al sadr what is