Posted on 08/11/2004 8:04:58 AM PDT by Common Sense 101
Marines Say Readying for Final Assault
(Reuters) - U.S. marines said on Wednesday they were preparing a final assault on Iraqi Shi'ite militia in the holy city of Najaf, after a radical cleric urged his men to keep fighting even if he was killed. The warning came as sporadic clashes between U.S. troops and militia loyal to Moqtada al-Sadr echoed from the heart of Najaf, where hundreds have been killed or wounded in the past week around some of Iraq's holiest Shi'ite Muslim sites.
(Excerpt) Read more at story.news.yahoo.com ...
Have you heard kerry whine about FREE FIRE ZONES?
The world may get the opportunity to see what one really looks like.
First - you move out the civilian population, and take a few weeks with all the psy-ops leaflets and loudspeakers for advanced warnings to leave or too bad.
Second - anything that moves afterwards, no longer does.
Simple and it works - that's why the left hates it so
Why do we keep referring to it as "the holy city" of Najaf ?
it's going to be a very "holey" city once our Marines get done with it...
It's a mis-spelling. It's "holey city".
Wouldn't bother me to hear it referred to as the "former" holy city! Or better yet, the rubble formerly known as Najaf.
Granted, we will nevr hear those words, as leveling the place would cause all kinds of an uproar, ...... not to mention the fact that the shias would be upset too! (referring to the all-out hissy fit the lib media would pitch!)
How final?
Like Sharon and Arafat?
The Marines have been after this Mosqueto Sadr since February or March.
Is this just going to lead to another truce so he can restock, resupply, rearm?
Even more interesting is an ancillary L.A. Times story suggesting that the U.S. “will not negotiate with al Sadr”. Within the story contains the following… This time, military officials say, they will not negotiate and will not stop applying pressure until they "defeat and destroy" radical Shiite Muslim cleric Muqtada Sadr's Al Mahdi militia.”
Ummmmm… There does not appear to be any ambiguity here. Has the administration finally decided to stop dealing with al Sadr with “half measures”?
It is holy to Shi'ite Muslims. I think it is where Ali, who was Mohammed's son is buried.
Actually, after reading this again, I noticed that the "military officials" only claim that they intend to "defeat and destroy" al Sadr's militia.
No mention of al Sadr becoming "worm food".
Good word choice. I hope it catches on.
Well you know, we wouldn't want to offend anyone by killing the fat terrorist...
because it is. Its like the Vatican to the Shia.
When did someone mention Michael Moore?
Some cleric - his "fighters" are being greased right & left & he still can't figure out if 'God is willing'.
Why do we keep referring to it as "the holy city" of Najaf ?
Najaf
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/iraq/najaf.htm
An Islamic holy city, Najaf is home to the shrine of Imam Ali Ibn Abi Talib, the Prophet Mohammad’s cousin and son-in-law and fourth caliph (656-661). Najaf also contains one of the largest cemeteries in the world. According to Imam Ali, any Muslim buried here will enter paradise; as a result, the tombs of several prophets are found in Najaf. Shia Muslims especially consider it a privilege to be buried here. Like Karbala, Najaf became an important center of Islamic scholarship and theology. During his exile from Iran, Ayatollah Khomeini lived here for 12 years prior to the 1979 revolution in Iran. In 1999, the Iraqi Shia leader Ayatollah Mohammad Sadiq al-Sadr was assassinated in Najaf, sparking clashes between Shia and the Iraqi government.
Najaf has a population of 560,000, and Muhammad's son-in-law, Imam Ali bin Ali Talib, is buried in the Imam Ali mosque. Iran's Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini spent 1964-78 in exile in Najaf. The holy city of Najaf is located 160 kilometers South of Baghdad and 60 km to the south of Hilla. Najaf in arabic means a high land where water cannot be reached. It is a city situated on high plateau over a sandy ground looking down from northern and eastern sides on wide scope camp of domes and tombs called valley of the peace. Najaf is a city of low-level sprawl, with boulevards lined by trees, arched brick buildings, and streets filled with bearded clerics wearing white or black turbans. Najaf is the spiritual center of Shiite Islam, site of the shrine of the Imam Ali, son-in-law of the Prophet Mohammad and first leader of the Shias.
Four senior Grand Ayatollahs constitute the Religious Institution (al-Hawzah al-`Ilmiyyah) in Najaf, the preeminent seminary center for the training of Shiite clergymen. Before the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran, Najaf was the most important center of study for Shia religious leaders. However, Saddam Hussein ordered mass arrests and the expulsion of senior clerics, giving the Iranian seminary in the city of Qom the opportunity to take over the religious leadership of the Shias. Qom was the pre-eminent religious center for Shia Muslims for 25 years. But Najaf has a history of more than a millenium of leadership, and the Iranian clerics who run the holy city of Qom, are facing a revived rival. As of mid-2003 the seminary in Qom hosted between 40,000 and 50,000 clergy, while the number in Najaf stould at about 2,000, down from about 10,000 before the Ba'ath regime took. The first exodus from Qom to Najaf is expected to be by exiled Iraqi clerics, estimated to number between 3,000, and 5,000.
(snip)
Why because it is, if you're a Shite Muslim.
A little something I've noticed over the last couple of days, no uprising among the Shites. This is a good thing for a number of reasons.
U.S. Forces, Close to Attack in Najaf, Suddenly Pull Back
After spending today preparing for a major attack against insurgents loyal to the rebel Shiite cleric Moktada al-Sar, American forces called off the attack as it was about to begin.
Officers here described the reversal as a postponement and said the attack could still be carried out at any time. The abrupt reversal came after a day of hawkish announcements by American officers here.
"Why do we keep referring to it as "the holy city" of Najaf ? "
The media use it so often you would think it is part of its name. Note that the media rarely if ever refer to the Vatican as the "holy city"?.
Soon, it will be called Tell Najaf, just another dusty rubble pile.
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