Word: sadr
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...likely top the list of suspects. No matter who carried out the attack, it's a relatively safe bet that Shiites on the street will blame the U.S. for failing to ensure security. Getting Hakim out of the way also strengthens the hand of the young firebrand Moqtada al-Sadr, who is challenging for power among the Shiite clerics by pursuing a more hostile line toward the occupying forces. Removing Hakim also strikes a blow at the IGC - the Ayatollah's sanction would have been important in establishing the body's legitimacy. Ironically - and not necessarily coincidentally - last week...
...growth potential remains distinctly limited without participation from the Shiite majority. The Shiites were the brutally oppressed underclass of Saddam's Iraq, and they are deeply hostile to the Baathists. They also, however, remain for the most part suspicious of the U.S., and the firebrand young cleric Moqtada al-Sadr is making confrontation with the occupiers the centerpiece of his own bid for power among the Shiites. Sadr supporters have engaged in violent street demonstrations against the U.S. and its allies both in Baghdad and southern Iraq, and they control the Shiite slums of East Baghdad where some 10 percent...
American commanders also worry about the possible dangers posed by a new "army" being mobilized by renegade religious leader Muqtada al-Sadr, son of the late Mohammed Sadiq al-Sadr, who is revered by Iraq's Shi'ites for his struggle against Saddam. Two weeks ago at Friday prayers, al-Sadr declared his opposition to the American-appointed governing council and the American occupation and announced the formation of a "peaceful" army to defend Iraqi dignity, culture and sovereignty. He has since softened his rhetoric, saying the force will be armed only with "faith" and that it will restrict itself...
...Sadr's grandstanding is partly politics; he is trying to strengthen his position among Shi'ite leaders. But few doubt his pulling power--hundreds of thousands regularly attend his sermons--or dismiss the implied threat of an Iranian-style Islamic uprising...
...resistance thus far has been confined to Iraq's Sunni Muslim minority, there are worrying signs emerging among the Shiite majority. While the leading clerics and some of the Shiite organizations previously based in Iran have counseled moderation and working with the U.S. authority, the young firebrand Moqtada al-Sadr appears to be wrapping his own bid for supremacy among the Shia in an increasingly strident campaign to confront the occupation, reinforcing his claims to leadership of the streets by channeling popular sentiment over the heads of those taking a more moderate approach. Last weekend's clashes at Karbala...