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Politics : Idea Of The Day -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: IQBAL LATIF who wrote (45625)	3/1/2004 5:18:35 PM
From: IQBAL LATIF	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 50167

Shiites are free in new Iraq...2m mourners observe Ashura in Karbala KERBALA: Thousands of Shia, lashing themselves with chains to the beat of drums, from across the world, observed Yaum-e-Ashur here on Monday, which was banned for decades under Saddam Hussein regime. An estimated two million Shias from Iraq, Iran, Pakistan and as far away as Canada have descended on Karbala to mark Ashura. For more than 30 years under Saddam’s regime, public processions to mark Ashura were banned, forcing Shias to perform the rituals in the secrecy of their homes. "It’s an incredible feeling to be free and to renew these customs without the fear of persecution." Tens of thousands of pilgrims, most wearing black dresses as a mark of mourning, packed the inside of the shrine of Imam Hussain, praying fervently, beating their breasts and wailing for the loss of their martyr. Hundreds of thousands more coursed through the streets outside, waving green flags representing Islam and red flags for the blood of Hussain. Off to the sides, women dressed in black abbayas, dresses covering the whole of the body except the face, wailed or wept loudly as they watched, and cried out "Hussain!" The rituals are designed to express Shias’ sense of guilt for not having come to Hussain’s aid as he faced down an army of opponents, and allow believers to share in the suffering of the martyr, whose death was a key factor in the schism between Sunni and Shia Muslims. "It is thrilling to be here and see these ceremonies for the first time," said Zaman Khazaal, a young Iraqi woman who lived in exile in Iran for more than a decade before returning to Iraq after the fall of Saddam. "It is our duty to come and give our condolences to the Imam Hussein," she added, crying as the procession passed. With some fearing that pro-Saddam insurgents could use the festival to strike against Shias in an effort to foment civil war, security in Kerbala was tight but discreet.