[And we're now in the middle of the Shia high holy days, among which Thursday is extra special. Wonderful time to storm a mosque if you want to make the entire country into an stone throwing intifada.]
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/06/international/middleeast/06KUFA.html
The New York Times April 6, 2004
KUFA
An Incendiary Cleric Braces His Militia for an Invasion
By JEFFREY GETTLEMAN
K UFA, Iraq, April 5 The Grand Mosque of Kufa has now become the grand
arsenal.
On Monday, as American authorities issued an arrest warrant for
Moktada al-Sadr, the radical Shiite cleric who set off the most
serious insurrection so far against the occupation forces, hundreds of
his supporters were busy fortifying the mosque here with heavy
weapons, bracing for an American invasion.
Mr. Sadr has barricaded himself inside the golden brick walls,
refusing to surrender. His militia is prowling the streets, staring
down the sights of machine guns, building fighting positions in and
around the mosque, the town's biggest, and pointing rocket-propelled
grenades at the highway heading north the road they expect to see
American forces come rumbling down.
"The only way the Americans will enter this city is entering over our
bodies," said Sheik Abu Mahdi al-Rubayee, a commander in Mr. Sadr's
private army, estimated to number in the tens of thousands. "If they
come for our leader, they will ignite all of Iraq."
Kufa, a sandy, palm-lined town along the banks of the Euphrates River,
is a picture of what may lie ahead if Iraqi security forces are unable
to quell potential insurrections. On Sunday, as part of the uprising
orchestrated by Mr. Sadr, hundreds of militiamen took over Kufa,
driving out Iraqi security forces.
On Monday, blue-and-white Iraqi police trucks cruised the streets. But
it was bearded, black-clad men loyal to Mr. Sadr who were driving
them. The police stations and government offices are now occupied by
Mr. Sadr's agents, who enforce an austere version of Islam and have
even set up their own religious courts and prisons. The town is
basically an occupation-free zone.
"The occupation is ending," vowed Said Sadduck, 26, a disciple of Mr.
Sadr. "This is just the beginning."
American officials, who have accused Mr. Sadr of inciting violence and
unleashing his band of armed followers against American troops, have
said they will capture Mr. Sadr when they are ready.
Dan Senor, a senior spokesman for the occupation authorities, said
there would be no warning.
Many Kufa residents are dreading a showdown. The streets are full of
militiamen, in open disregard of occupation laws calling for private
armies to be disbanded. At a kebab stand in front of the grand mosque,
a man winced as truckloads of armed young men whizzed past.
"This is bad," said Adil Sahab, a doctor's assistant. "Look at how
idle these boys are. Trouble is coming. Can't you feel it?"
Kufa, 100 miles south of Baghdad with 110,000 residents, is the first
Iraqi city to spin entirely out of occupation control. The town is a
stronghold of conservative Shiite beliefs.
For years, it has been the power base of the Sadr family, a learned
band of Shiite clerics. Mr. Sadr's father, a famous ayatollah, was
killed in 1999, along with Mr. Sadr's two older brothers. That left
Moktada, now 31, the leader of the family.
Though Mr. Sadr is not an ayatollah, or top cleric, he has a devoted
following. Part of his appeal is his youth. The other part is his
militancy. While other Shiite clerics have pressed for moderation, Mr.
Sadr has openly rejected the occupation. His newspaper, Al Hawza, was
closed last week after American authorities accused it of printing
lies that incited violence. That began a cycle of demonstrations that
culminated in widespread bloodshed on Sunday.
"He is one of the only ones who is not afraid," said Falah Hussein, a
laborer. "He refuses the occupation. Totally. That's why we like him."
Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company