BAGHDAD - Even as US-led troops
closed to within a few hundred meters of the Imam Ali
Shine in Najaf, where fighters loyal to Shi'ite cleric
Muqtada al-Sadr are stationed, reports emerged from Iraq
on Tuesday that scores of Shi'ite militiamen had taken
to the streets of the southern city of Basra.
Waving
assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades, they
shouted their support for Muqtada and demanded that
US-led forces pull out of Najaf. Basra, Iraq's
second-largest city, is mainly Shi'ite and supporters of
Muqtada have clashed with British troops and Iraqi
security forces since fighting erupted in Najaf earlier
this month.
US warplanes led a heavy overnight
US assault on Muqtada's Mehdi Army dug in around the
Imam Ali Shrine in Najaf, and fighting continued into
Tuesday. By dawn, US tanks were back within 200 meters
of the shrine after retreating on Monday. Dozens of
Iraqi national guardsmen were deployed alongside US
troops for the first time around the shrine. Some
reports said that the golden dome of the shrine - where
Ali, the Prophet Mohammed's cousin and fourth successor,
was buried - had been damaged.
Interim
Defense Minister Hazim al-Shalaan warned Muqtada and his
militia to surrender or face an attack later on Tuesday
that would "wipe them out". The ultimatum was the latest
in a series of threats by the US-backed government.
Earlier,
there were also reports that Muqtada had left the
shrine, but his spokesman in Baghdad, Sheikh Salah Jasem
al-Obaidi, told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL)
that the cleric had not left and that hundreds of the
militia fighters were still sheltering within the
courtyard of the shrine's compound.
Obaidi said
negotiations were continuing with the office of
pre-eminent Shi'ite religious leader Grand Ayatollah Ali
al-Sistani to hand over the keys to the compound. Obaidi
said he hoped the negotiations would come to a
conclusion in the coming days.
Obaidi
denied statements by officials from Iraq's interim
government that Iraqi police and security forces had
entered the shrine. He said the militia fighters had
strong reasons for remaining inside compound's
courtyard.
"The courtyard is a place [that is]
different than the holy shrine," Obaidi said. "The
courtyard is one of the places of battles between the
Mehdi militia and American troops for several [reasons].
First, because the courtyard contains several cells that
can't be bombed easily. So these cells are good shelters
for the fighters of the Mehdi militia."
Obaidi said
he did not know the exact number of militia fighters
inside the shrine or the courtyard until a few days ago
when Muqtada ordered many of them to leave. US and Iraqi
officials have said more than 1,000 gunmen had taken
refuge in the shrine and the courtyard.
Muqtada's
Baghdad spokesman said the shrine itself was now locked,
with only a few militia fighters standing guard outside
of it. Obaidi also confirmed that Muqtada's office was
negotiating to hand over control of the shrine to
Sistani. But he said Sistani, who is recuperating from
heart surgery in London, has been hesitant to get
involved.
"We can't say that [al-Sistani]
doesn't want to be a middleman between Muqtada al-Sadr
from one side and the Americans from the other side,"
Obaidi said. "Seyyed Sistani always wants to keep the
perfect position for al-Marjaiah [top Shi'ite religious
leadership]. He does not have much trust in the styles
of American troops and delegations or handling their
problems."
As for the fate of al-Sadr himself,
Obaidi insisted that the elusive radical leader is still
within the city of Najaf. "He is inside the old city of
Najaf. I know him myself," Obaidi said. "Believe me that
Muqtada al-Sadr will not leave Najaf except to [go to]
his grave."
Government
feels the strain Meanwhile,
Iraq's interim foreign minister, Hoshyar al-Zebari, told
RFE/RL that the ongoing conflict in Najaf was hurting
the government's credibility. He also believes that
other ministers in the interim administration made a
mistake by calling Iran "Enemy No 1".
"The
government's reputation is on the line. I believe it has
to act decisively and robustly in order to contain this
major crisis that is facing the government," Zebari
said. "It threatens law and order."
Zebari said
there have been serious discussions among cabinet
ministers about how to deal with the conflict. He said
the ministers are aware that time is not on their side.
"The cabinet is united. The government is united,"
Zebari said. "But what people would love to see is some
real action from the government - some decisiveness - a
clear policy toward this challenge. This is what the
debate is all about, because unless we win this
confrontation, it will encourage other hot spots in the
country to flare up."
Zebari also downplayed statements in
the past two months by the defense and interior
ministers that Baghdad had evidence proving Iran has
been meddling in Iraq's internal affairs. He said he has
not seen evidence of Iranian involvement in the Najaf
crisis.
"So far we have heard, really,
claims," Zebari said. "What I am trying to establish as
a foreign minister is facts - to be able to convey them
to the Iranians or to any other country that, 'This is
what you are doing and this is unacceptable. We will not
tolerate it. If you don't stop it, I am going to make
this public.'"
He indicated the critical public
statements by those ministers have made his job more
difficult. As a result, he said, the cabinet has decided
that only he will speak about issues that could affect
Iraq's relations with its neighbors.
"Well, here
is the problem. Our government is new and it hasn't been
long since many of our colleagues have taken office,"
Zebari said. "When you describe a country as your 'Enemy
No 1', you have burned all your bridges. There is no
need to follow on [with] any other means to build
relations, to cultivate relations, to try to influence
their policy and so on."
While apparently trying to exonerate
Iran of some of the harsher charges made in the recent
weeks, Zebari was openly critical of Iraq's neighbors
and many other Pesian Gulf and Arab countries. He
said they have not helped Iraq's new government
establish security.
The interim foreign minister also
said that if other governments in the region are merely
trying to "score points" by opposing the United States
in Iraq, they are following a misguided policy that in
the long run can create more problems in the Middle
East.
Zebari said Baghdad had obtained
videotaped testimony of foreign terrorists who had
entered Iraq from neighboring countries. But he said
that the administration had had less than the desired
success in publicizing such cases through the media.
Copyright (c) 2004, RFE/RL Inc.
Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio
Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW,
Washington, DC 20036.
