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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: A. Geiche who wrote (475299)	10/13/2003 1:33:02 AM
From: A. Geiche	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 769667

Protesters defy US-backed rule MARGARET NEIGHBOUR thescotsman.co.uk HUNDREDS of thousands of Shiite Muslims in Iraq marked a religious festival yesterday as Shiite radicals continued to challenge the authority of the US-led occupation administration and its Iraq partners. Up to one million pilgrims gathered in Karbala to mark the birthday of Mohammed al-Mahdi, the last of the 12 Shiite imams who disappeared in the 9th century but who devout Shiites believe will return to rule the world. The event was peaceful and by noon the crowds were returning home. The celebrations took place about two weeks before Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting, and are expected to heighten religious sentiments as a radical cleric, Sheikh Muqtada al-Sadr, is challenging the authority of the US-led coalition and the US-appointed Governing Council, which serves as Iraq’s interim leadership. Last week al-Sadr followers clashed with the US military in Baghdad’s Sadr City, a slum of two million people and Iraq’s largest Shiite enclave, where the young cleric holds sway. The battle left two US soldiers and at least one attacker dead. Al-Sadr’s newly founded militia, Imam al-Mahdi Army, breaks a US military ban on carrying arms in public without a licence. On Friday, Sheikh al-Sadr, said to be 30, told worshippers in the town of Kufa, south of Baghdad, that he had formed a rival government and called on Iraqis to express their support for "our new state" through peaceful demonstrations. "This poses some danger to me personally," he told worshippers, "but the interest of the public takes precedence. I have formed new ministries for our new state, the state of dignity, pride and freedom." Such announcements are likely to reinforce the view held by the US authorities that Sheikh al-Sadr remains a source of potential unrest in Iraq - largely through his appeal to poor Shiites at a time when 60 per cent of the country’s adult population is unemployed and the US-sponsored plan to restore Iraqi sovereignty is moving slowly. "We are still waiting to determine the future of Iraq. The demonstrations will help in that decision," Sheikh Hassan al-Zargani, an al-Sadr aide, said. "It is the determination of the people. They will decide whether they want a new government, a new rule, whether they want the Governing Council, or whether they want to elect new ministers." >>>