Explosions Echo Throughout Najaf

yahoo ^ | Sun, Aug 15, 2004 | By ABDUL HUSSEIN AL-OBEIDI, Associated Press Writer

[dennisw]

Explosions Echo Throughout Najaf

42 minutes ago

By ABDUL HUSSEIN AL-OBEIDI, Associated Press Writer

NAJAF, Iraq - Explosions and gunfire rattled through the city of Najaf as U.S. troops in armored vehicles and tanks rolled back into the streets here Sunday, a day after the collapse of talks — and with them a temporary cease-fire — intended to end the fighting in this holy city.

Much of the renewed violence Sunday afternoon appeared to come from the city's vast cemetery, where Shiite militants have been hiding out and fighting running gunbattles with U.S. forces amid the tombs since the violence broke out here Aug. 5.

An explosion, believed to be from a tank round, landed near the outer wall of the compound housing the revered Imam Ali Shrine, the militants' informal headquarters, said Ahmed al-Shaibany, an aide to militant Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. "The shrine was not hit," he said.

Earlier, U.S. tanks moved toward the center of town and U.S. military vehicles were seen patrolling the city, which had been quiet since Friday as government officials and the militants tried to negotiate a solution to the crisis.

Government negotiators said Saturday the three days of talks had been fruitless, but representatives of militant Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr said the sides had agreed on a cease-fire deal before interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi personally intervened to quash it.

Meanwhile, a mortar barrage slammed into a commuter bus station in central Baghdad, scattering shards of glass, shrapnel and blood.

There were contradictory reports of death tolls. Police Lt. Yasser Fawaz, who was at the scene, said about 10 people were killed and about 15 others injured. Interior Ministry spokesman Col. Adnan Abdulrahman said the attack killed one person and injured five others.

The attack came just hours after the start of a heavily secured national conference meant to move Iraq (news - web sites) on the road toward democracy.

Fawaz said the mortars appeared to target the Green Zone, the fortified enclave where the conference was being held, but hit the station by mistake.

About 1,300 religious, political and civic leaders gathered for the unprecedented three-day meeting to discuss political issues and help choose a 100-member national council meant to serve as a watchdog over the country's interim government before elections scheduled for January.

"This conference is not the end of the road for us, it is the first step ... to open up horizons of dialogue," Allawi told the delegates. "Your blessed gathering here is a challenge to the forces of evil and tyranny that want to destroy this country."

The conference, which is being boycotted by several factions, including al-Sadr's, is intended to make Iraqis of all political and religious groups feel they have a voice in the government as the country struggles to enact democratic reforms while fighting a devastating insurgency.

"The challenge before you is great," U.N. envoy Ashraf Jehangir Qazi told the delegates. "But these are things you can and will achieve."

Many delegates had high expectations for the meeting, but the Najaf violence, which has angered many in Iraq's Shiite majority, cast a pall from the start.

After the opening speeches, Nadim al Jadari, an official with the Shiite Political Council, ran onto the platform and threatened to quit the conference — which would be a painful blow to the government — unless negotiations were restarted to end the fighting in Najaf.

Before the renewed violence Sunday, members of al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia were seen patrolling the streets of Najaf's Old City. Police officials also warned journalists to leave the city, saying they had intelligence a car bomb might be sent to target them.

On Saturday, about 10,000 demonstrators from as far away as Baghdad arrived here to show their solidarity with the militants and act as human shields to protect the city and the holy Imam Ali shrine, where the militants have taken refuge since the fighting started.

Coalition officials reiterated Saturday they would not enter the shrine.

"It is not out intention to go anywhere near the holy sites. We understand their significance to the Shia and we respect the Shia," Maj. Gen. Andrew Graham, deputy commanding general of the Multination Corps, told The Associated Press. "The irreverence ... is (al-Sadr's) and not ours."

During the negotiations, al-Sadr had demanded a U.S. withdrawal from Najaf, the freeing of all Mahdi Army fighters in detention and amnesty for all the fighters in exchange for disarming his followers and pulling them out of the shrine and Najaf's old city, aides said.

After days of discussion, Iraq's National Security Adviser Mouwaffaq al-Rubaie announced the talks were over.

"We have been talking and discussing these matters for three days, but reached no positive conclusion," he said. "After three days, my government thought there was no use in continuing."

However, Qais al-Khazali, al-Sadr's spokesman in Najaf, said a deal had been reached and al-Sadr — who was not in the talks himself — had signed it, when "we were surprised that they got instructions from Dr. Allawi to leave."

The U.S. military estimates hundreds of insurgents have been killed since the clashes broke, but the militants dispute the figure. Six Americans have been killed, along with about 20 Iraqi officers, it said.

In other violence Sunday, a Ukrainian patrol commander, Capt. Yuriy Ivanov, was killed in a land mine explosion near Suwayrah, 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of Baghdad, said Lt. Col. Artur Domanski, a Polish military spokesman.

Also, a 29-year-old Dutch military policeman was shot dead and five others seriously wounded during violence Saturday in Rumaythah in the southern al-Muthana province, the Dutch Defense Ministry said Sunday.

In a separate incident in Rumaythah, al-Sadr militants fought with police in a battle that killed two people, including one policeman, said Dr. Mohammed al-Kharasani, a hospital official.

On Sunday afternoon, U.S. jet fighters bombed the volatile city of Fallujah, witnesses said. There were no immediate reports of injuries.

[dennisw]

American soldiers move along a position secured by the US army 1st cavalry at a building near the area near the cemetery in the holy city of Najaf, in southern Iraq (news - web sites) Sunday Aug. 15, 2004. Negotiations to end the fighting in Najaf broke down Sunday, threatening to spark a resurgence of the fierce clashes between Shiite militants and a combined U.S.-Iraqi force that have plagued this holy city for more than a week. (AP Photo/Jim MacMillan)

Mahdi army soldiers stand guard as they take positions near the ancient Imam Ali mosque Sunday Aug. 15, 2004. Negotiations to end the fighting in Najaf broke down Sunday, threatening to spark a resurgence of the fierce clashes between Shiite militants and a combined U.S.-Iraqi force that have plagued this holy city for more than a week. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)

Mahdi army soldiers carrying rocket propelled grenade launchers take their position near the ancient Imam Ali mosque Sunday Aug. 15, 2004. Negotiations to end the fighting in Najaf broke down Sunday, threatening to spark a resurgence of the fierce clashes between Shiite militants and a combined U.S.-Iraqi force that have plagued this holy city for more than a week. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)

Mahdi army soldiers, one of them wearing a T-shirt bearing pictures of Muqtada al-Sadr and his father Mohammed Baqir al Sadr, stand guard as they take positions near the ancient Imam Ali mosque Sunday Aug. 15, 2004. Negotiations to end the fighting in Najaf broke down Sunday, threatening to spark a resurgence of the fierce clashes between Shiite militants and a combined U.S.-Iraqi force that have plagued this holy city for more than a week. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)

[Dog]

Dennis see my thread in breaking news please..

[Diogenesis]

Najaf is a terrorist city.

[hershey]

This holy places, holy sites nonsense is selfserving twaddle. The US should blow up as many as possible. If this upsets the anthill, all the better. We have a target-rich environment and should take advantage of it. Those who aren't with us are against us and need to know what awaits them.

[binfoo4]

The one thing i do not understand is why Sadar has so much power? Why not take him out? Mark him as a terrorist and nail him. I can see him over taking the current Iraqi govenment. He is getting more and more followers. I see him a threat to our national security and an enemy to our country. I kinda wish we would take off the gloves and give Sadar a real AMERICAN beating.

[Diogenesis]

Sadr has no power.

Point #1:

Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani is NOT In Najaf.
Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani is in Britain
for medical treatment while the runt pretender tries to take over.

---

Point #2:

[Jumper]

Like two safe havens, Sadr fights from his holy shrine. However, should Sadr's forces target American safe havens, e.g., the embassy or state department grounds then we should use the precedent to return the breach of protocol as it has now evolved. Respect has its rewards.

[ABG(anybody but Gore)]

I wish they would have kept napalm in the arsenal. That would be perfect for ending this in about 5 minutes.

[penelopesire]

"On Saturday, about 10,000 demonstrators from as far away as Baghdad arrived here to show their solidarity with the militants and act as human shields to protect the city and the holy Imam Ali shrine, where the militants have taken refuge since the fighting started."

????
How did '10,000' supporters 'arrive' in Najaf on Saturday? I thought we had the place surrounded? Is this liberal spin or did we just 'allow' them to go join the jihad?

[Dustbunny]

Starve them out !!!!!

[Lijahsbubbe]

Definitely a big moment. We need to turn this one our way.

Prayers for the troops and Iraqis fighting for democracy.

[LoudRepublicangirl]

I think if Sadr is taken out we want it to be done by the Iraqi forces so they can get credit for it. If we do it ourselves that will create more of a backlash. We have to fight the PR war as well as the actual war itself. The other side doesn't have that burden.

[LouD]

If it is such a holy place, why are they putting it at risk by hiding out there. They should recognize that the U.S. military does not destroy places of religious or cultural value unless they are military targets.

When the cemetery and shrine become parking lots for the new Najaf Wal-Mart, they will have nobody to blame but themselves.

[Diogenesis]

Prayers for the troops and Iraqis fighting for democracy.

Amen.
May they fly like the wind.

[The Scourge of Yazid]

You gotta love that mass-produced (I'm assuming) t-shirt with a photo depicting a loving Sadr family moment.

It's the latest fashion trend in Karbala. Get with it man!

BEWARE THE BLACK TURBAN YAZID!

-good times, G.J.P. (Jr.)

[Lijahsbubbe]

I don't know about "10,000, but here's a pic.

Iraqi Shi'ites arrive after marching from other cities to Najaf, in a show of support for the radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr on August 13, 2004

[nuconvert]

"The one thing i do not understand is why Sadar has so much power?"

He really doesn't. That's the ridiculous thing about this.
The ayatollahs and mullahs there in Iraq, haven't paid much attention to him over the past few yrs, because he's more of an annoyance, and they saw his time of popularity as temporary. We should have gotten rid of him a while ago.

[AmericaUnited]

Much of the renewed violence Sunday afternoon appeared to come from the city's vast cemetery, where Shiite militants have been hiding out

Why is this continuing to be a problem??!! Sweep this area from one end to the other with AC-130 gunfire!

[Lurking in Kansas]

Notice how the photos are captioned.

Mahdi army soldiers…

More propaganda from the liberal media. They are not army soldiers ; they ARE terrorist thugs, criminals, and basically, evil scum.