Chuck
April 9th, 2007, 01:12 PM
NAJAF, Iraq (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of people waving Iraqi flags staged a peaceful rally in the southern city of Najaf on Monday to demand the withdrawal of U.S. forces, four years to the day since Baghdad fell to invading American troops.
The streets of the Iraqi capital itself were largely empty after authorities clamped a 24-hour ban on vehicles to prevent any insurgent attacks, especially car bombings.
The anniversary comes as Iraq's Shi'ite-led government is trying to avert full-scale civil war between majority Shi'ites and minority Sunnis who were dominant under
Saddam Hussein. Sunni and Shi'ite clerics marched alongside each other in Najaf.
U.S. military spokesman Rear Admiral Mark Fox said that four years ago U.S.-led forces had "liberated
Iraq from Saddam's republic of fear." That had allowed Iraqis to exercise their democratic rights and stage protests such as the one in Najaf.
"While there have been substantial accomplishments, the first four years have also been disappointing, frustrating and increasingly dangerous in many parts of Iraq," he said.
The protesters in Najaf were responding to a call by powerful anti-American cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, who blames the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003 for the country's woes and wants a timetable set for a U.S. troop withdrawal.
Waving red, white and back Iraqi flags, marchers choked the 7 km-long road between Najaf and neighboring Kufa and clogged streets leading to Sadrayn Square, the main rallying point. Many had come from Baghdad and Shi'ite towns and cities in the south.
Sadr was not at the rally. He has kept out of sight since the Baghdad crackdown. The U.S. military says he is in
Iran, but his aides insist he is still in Iraq, possibly Najaf.
His ability to muster such a large gathering was a signal to the Iraqi government and Washington that, despite his absence from public view, he is still a force to be reckoned with.
The young cleric, popular among Iraq's Shi'ite poor, led two uprisings against U.S. forces in 2004 but has since become a major political player. His movement holds a quarter of the seats in the ruling Shi'ite Alliance.
Washington accuses his Mehdi Army militia of fuelling sectarian violence and says it is now the biggest threat to peace in Iraq, a charge he denies.
SADDAM STATUE
Speaking against the backdrop of an Iraqi flag, a senior Sadrist, cleric Abdelhadi al-Mohammadawi, called on U.S. forces to leave. His speech was interrupted by the periodic chorus of "Leave, leave occupier!" and "No, no, to the occupation."
"We demand the exit of the occupier and withdrawal of the last American soldier and we also reject the existence of any kind of military bases," he said.
U.S.
President George W. Bush has insisted U.S. troops will not leave until Iraqis can take over security and has repeatedly rejected setting a timetable for withdrawal.
While Iraq has a new U.S.-trained army, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's government is still heavily dependent on American firepower and logistical support to combat the Sunni insurgency. In November, the
U.N. Security Council renewed the mandate of the U.S.-led forces in Iraq until the end of 2007.
"This protest is our demand for sovereignty because we will not stay quiet on the issue. The Iraqi government can handle everything and there is no need for the occupiers to remain and continue killing innocents," said Mohammed Hamza from Baghdad.
Four years ago to the day, the world watched as Iraqis, helped by U.S. soldiers, toppled Saddam's 20-foot (six-meter) statue in Baghdad's central Firdous Square. A crowd trampled over what was left of the statue and danced for joy.
Saddam had vowed to defeat the U.S.-led invasion launched on March 20, 2003, but his forces offered little resistance as U.S. forces thrust deep into the heart of the Iraqi capital.
By then the war had cost 96 American dead, 30 British dead and unknown thousands of Iraqi military and civilian casualties.
Four years on, those tolls have soared to more than 3,270 U.S. soldiers killed, 140 British soldiers, 124 from other nations, and tens of thousands of Iraqis. Ten U.S. soldiers were killed at the weekend.
(Additional reporting by Yara Bayoumy and Mussab Al-Khairalla in Baghdad) (http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070409/ts_nm/iraq_dc_31)
The streets of the Iraqi capital itself were largely empty after authorities clamped a 24-hour ban on vehicles to prevent any insurgent attacks, especially car bombings.
The anniversary comes as Iraq's Shi'ite-led government is trying to avert full-scale civil war between majority Shi'ites and minority Sunnis who were dominant under
Saddam Hussein. Sunni and Shi'ite clerics marched alongside each other in Najaf.
U.S. military spokesman Rear Admiral Mark Fox said that four years ago U.S.-led forces had "liberated
Iraq from Saddam's republic of fear." That had allowed Iraqis to exercise their democratic rights and stage protests such as the one in Najaf.
"While there have been substantial accomplishments, the first four years have also been disappointing, frustrating and increasingly dangerous in many parts of Iraq," he said.
The protesters in Najaf were responding to a call by powerful anti-American cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, who blames the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003 for the country's woes and wants a timetable set for a U.S. troop withdrawal.
Waving red, white and back Iraqi flags, marchers choked the 7 km-long road between Najaf and neighboring Kufa and clogged streets leading to Sadrayn Square, the main rallying point. Many had come from Baghdad and Shi'ite towns and cities in the south.
Sadr was not at the rally. He has kept out of sight since the Baghdad crackdown. The U.S. military says he is in
Iran, but his aides insist he is still in Iraq, possibly Najaf.
His ability to muster such a large gathering was a signal to the Iraqi government and Washington that, despite his absence from public view, he is still a force to be reckoned with.
The young cleric, popular among Iraq's Shi'ite poor, led two uprisings against U.S. forces in 2004 but has since become a major political player. His movement holds a quarter of the seats in the ruling Shi'ite Alliance.
Washington accuses his Mehdi Army militia of fuelling sectarian violence and says it is now the biggest threat to peace in Iraq, a charge he denies.
SADDAM STATUE
Speaking against the backdrop of an Iraqi flag, a senior Sadrist, cleric Abdelhadi al-Mohammadawi, called on U.S. forces to leave. His speech was interrupted by the periodic chorus of "Leave, leave occupier!" and "No, no, to the occupation."
"We demand the exit of the occupier and withdrawal of the last American soldier and we also reject the existence of any kind of military bases," he said.
U.S.
President George W. Bush has insisted U.S. troops will not leave until Iraqis can take over security and has repeatedly rejected setting a timetable for withdrawal.
While Iraq has a new U.S.-trained army, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's government is still heavily dependent on American firepower and logistical support to combat the Sunni insurgency. In November, the
U.N. Security Council renewed the mandate of the U.S.-led forces in Iraq until the end of 2007.
"This protest is our demand for sovereignty because we will not stay quiet on the issue. The Iraqi government can handle everything and there is no need for the occupiers to remain and continue killing innocents," said Mohammed Hamza from Baghdad.
Four years ago to the day, the world watched as Iraqis, helped by U.S. soldiers, toppled Saddam's 20-foot (six-meter) statue in Baghdad's central Firdous Square. A crowd trampled over what was left of the statue and danced for joy.
Saddam had vowed to defeat the U.S.-led invasion launched on March 20, 2003, but his forces offered little resistance as U.S. forces thrust deep into the heart of the Iraqi capital.
By then the war had cost 96 American dead, 30 British dead and unknown thousands of Iraqi military and civilian casualties.
Four years on, those tolls have soared to more than 3,270 U.S. soldiers killed, 140 British soldiers, 124 from other nations, and tens of thousands of Iraqis. Ten U.S. soldiers were killed at the weekend.
(Additional reporting by Yara Bayoumy and Mussab Al-Khairalla in Baghdad) (http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070409/ts_nm/iraq_dc_31)