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Pastimes : The United States Marine Corps -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Ish who wrote (2613)	4/7/2004 4:43:50 AM
From: goldworldnet	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 6227

Al-Sadr statement pledges death before surrender By Kevin Johnson, USA TODAY usatoday.com BAGHDAD — Defiant aides to radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, who is accused of instigating deadly clashes with coalition forces, said Tuesday that al-Sadr would not surrender. They warned of a new violent uprising if authorities try to take him by force. In a statement released by his office, al-Sadr said he was ready to die resisting any attempt to capture him. "America has shown its evil intentions, and the proud Iraqi people cannot accept it. They must defend their rights by any means they see fit," the statement said. Al-Sadr, who has been fiercely critical of the U.S.-led occupation, is wanted by the coalition on murder charges in last year's slaying of a rival Shiite Muslim leader. "Either we continue as a country, or it will be destroyed," said Iraqi Governing Council member Mouwafak Al-Rabii. Rabii and other Iraqi leaders were out in force in a clear attempt to rally the nation to reject the recent violence triggered by al-Sadr and the insurgency that has jeopardized security in Fallujah and other cities across Iraq. Sayaad Allawi, chairman of the Governing Council's national security committee, predicted that unrest will "escalate" as the U.S.-led coalition prepares to transfer full governing authority to Iraqis on June 30. But he urged Iraqis to stand against violence. "The Iraqi people have decided they are going to prevail," Allawi said. In Sadr City, the Shiite slum in Baghdad named for al-Sadr's revered father, the cleric's aides said it would be "impossible to imagine" handing over al-Sadr to the coalition. "If it happens that they (coalition or Iraqi forces) arrest him, I cannot imagine a limit on the blood that will be shed," said Amjed al-Saadi, an aide to al-Sadr. In an interview inside al-Sadr's heavily fortified headquarters, al-Saadi said al-Sadr had sought safety in the Imam Ali mosque in the holy city of Najaf. There were also reports that al-Sadr was inside his main office in Najaf, which is in a small alley near the mosque. Dozens of heavily armed, black-garbed gunmen were positioned outside Prominent Shiite clergy, including powerful Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, were said to be working behind the scenes to defuse the al-Sadr crisis and bring about a peaceful conclusion. There were reports Tuesday that al-Sadr was planning to give himself up to avoid further violence. But those reports could not be confirmed. In Washington, U.S. officials characterized al-Sadr's followers as little more than thugs. "We don't see them as representative of a religious cause, but rather as representative of political gangsterism," State Department spokesman Adam Ereli said. Al-Sadr's militiamen have been blamed for attacks on coalition forces that killed eight U.S. soldiers Sunday night alone and have killed and injured dozens of Iraqis. Meanwhile, Italian troops clashed with al-Sadr militiamen in the southern city of Nasiriyah on Tuesday, but Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said his country remains committed to keeping its troops in Iraq at least through June 30. Italy has about 3,000 troops there. "Despite everything, I believe that the sense of our presence in Iraq doesn't change," Berlusconi told Italian state television. Asked whether Italian forces would stay there until Iraqi elections can be held next year, Berlusconi, a staunch ally of President Bush, said he was sure Italy's Parliament "will confirm the mandate until it is carried out." * * *