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Lion of Babylon -> RE: Samarra shrine destroyed again - what next for Iraq? (6/29/2007 2:06:40 AM)
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Sadr Plans to Go Ahead with Samarra MarchTensions Between Sadrists and SIIC-Dominated Security Forces in Samawa
Shi’ite cleric Muqtada Al-Sadr issued a statement Thursday expressing his commitment to a planned march to the destroyed Askari shrine in Samarra, despite calls from the government and Sunni parties to drop the march in fear of insurgent attacks against Shi’ite pilgrims that could trigger another deadly wave of sectarian violence in the country.
Sadr’s statement said the goal of the march is to express good will and to break barriers placed by the occupation and takfiris (a reference to extremist militants who consider the Shia to be non-Muslims). “We call upon all Iraqis, be they tribesmen, elders or officials, to show good will and to cooperate in order for the march to be successful, so that it would be a turning point in improving fractured relations, and for it to confirm that those who bombed the two shrines will not be pleased with this march and will attempt to prevent it,” the statement said.
“Our purpose is to show that Sunnis also revere the Prophet Mohammed’s family and that they harbor no animosity towards them, except for the takfiris and occupiers who were responsible for the shrines’ bombing.”
In the government’s first official reaction, a statement from the office of PM Nuri Al-Maliki warned citizens that the road from Baghdad to Samarra is still not secure and that they could be subject to attacks from Sunni insurgents.
Sunni politicians have vocally discouraged the march, while Sunni websites have carried warnings that the real aim of the procession, which is to be guarded by thousands of Mahdi Army militiamen, is to resettle Shi’ites in Samarra and force its indigenous Sunni population out.
Following the bombing of the Shi’ite shrines in Samarra on June 13, Mahdi Army militiamen attacked and destroyed at least a dozen Sunni mosques across the country in retaliation.
The Sadrist Nahrain Net website quoted unnamed sources in the Hawza of Najaf who said U.S. forces would be making a grave mistake if they attempted to prevent the peaceful march by force, and that it would only confirm their suspicions that U.S. forces are biased against the Shia and are paving the way for Ba’athist militias to regain control over Baghdad.
In response to a series of questions from followers in Najaf, Muqtada Al-Sadr issued an internal statement with instructions regarding the march, which is planned on July 5. The following is a full translation of the statement as obtained by Iraq Slogger:
Your Eminence, Hujat al-Islam wa al-Muslimeen, our leader Sayyid Muqtada Al-Sadr (may God dignify you and grant you victory),
May peace and the mercy of God and his blessings be upon you.
Following your call on the Iraqi people to head to Samarra to mark the birth anniversary of Fatima Al-Zahraa’ (God’s peace upon her), we have a number of questions on our minds that for which we seek answers from your eminence. May you please offer us an explanation.
A group of residents of holy Najaf.
Q: Should the pilgrims continue to visit Samarra until the holy shrines are rebuilt? Or is it just for the duration of the one visit and then to return?
A: In the name of God. It is merely a call for visiting, and to return on the same day, unless some find the distance to be long. Then they can stay for one night.
Q: What does his Eminence say if we use the visit to stage a sit-in to demand the rebuilding of the holy Askari shrine?
A: In the name of God. If you wish to stage a sit-in, do it in your own governorates. It is best to leave the sit-in for the people of Samarra.
Q: Some are saying harm would befall the pilgrims from terrorists and takfiris, and there is no reason to perform the visit. What do you say to those doubters?
A: In the name of God. There are a number of answers to this:
First, our Lord said, “(They are) the ones that say, (of their brethren slain), while they themselves sit (at ease): "If only they had listened to us they would not have been slain." Say: "Avert death from your own selves, if ye speak the truth."
Second, our Lord said, “Those who leave their homes in the cause of Allah, and are then slain or die,- On them will Allah bestow verily a goodly Provision: Truly Allah is He Who bestows the best provision. Verily He will admit them to a place with which they shall be well pleased: for Allah is All-Knowing, Most Forbearing.”
And I remind you of what the poet said: If they cut the legs and our hands, We will come to you crawling, O’ Hussein.
In general, do not look at who ordered you to go, but look at whom and for whom you are going. There is triumph for religion and for the sect of the Prince of Believers (peace be upon him) in your visit. In the end, I ask God to protect the visitors of the two Imams (peace be upon them).
Muqtada Al-Sadr
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