Contrary to popular belief, Imam Ali isn't nothing to Sunni Muslims. His shrine is definitely valuable. Don't rule out Iran's reaction to any damaging of this shrine either. You won't even come close to realizing how much Shiite Muslims value this shrine. It's not just Iraqis. It would be really really incredibly foolish to even touch it. I am Sunni and I would be none too happy about it. Thankfully, George Bush actually believes strongly in religion and understands this... DaDakota on the other hand doesn't, which is why he WANTS this shrin to be destroyed. We all know you hate anything resembling a religion DaDa.
Delegate: Al-Sadr Agrees to Withdraw From Shrine By ABDUL HUSSEIN AL-OBEIDI, Associated Press Writer NAJAF, Iraq - Radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr accepted a peace plan Wednesday to end the fighting in Najaf that would disarm his militia and remove them from a holy shrine where they are based, according to a letter read by a delegate at the Iraqi National Conference. There was no immediate confirmation from al-Sadr's office of the acceptance, which came shortly after Iraq (news - web sites)'s defense minister threatened to raid the Imam Ali Shrine in a final push to root out the Shiite militants. Al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia has been battling U.S. and Iraqi forces in the holy city of Najaf for nearly two weeks. A previous effort to broker a truce collapsed over the weekend, and al-Sadr, whose forces fought a two-month insurgency in the spring, has made contradictory statements in the past. On Tuesday, an eight-person delegation from the conference traveled to Najaf to present a peace proposal to al-Sadr. It demanded the cleric's militia disarm, leave the Imam Ali Shrine where it has taken refuge, and transform itself into a political party in exchange for amnesty. Al-Sadr declined to meet the peace delegation, and earlier Wednesday Iraqi Defense Minister Hazem Shaalan said the government could raid the shrine within hours. On Wednesday evening, however, Safiya al-Suhail, an independent Shiite delegate at the conference, said she had received a letter from al-Sadr's Baghdad office saying he accepted the proposal. "Muqtada al-Sadr has agreed on the conditions set by the National Conference," she said reading the letter to the conference. "We call on the Iraqi government and the National Conference to participate in implementing what is proposed by Muqtada al-Sadr, otherwise everybody will bear the responsibility," the letter said. After Shaalan's threat to raid the mosque, renewed bombing and gunfire were heard near Najaf's Old City, the center of much of the previous fighting. The defense minister had said Iraqi forces were trained to raid one of Shiite Islam's holiest sites, and reiterated that U.S. forces would not enter the shrine, which almost certainly would cause an uproar among the country's majority Shiites. "The only American intervention would be aerial protection and also securing some of the roads that lead to the compound," Shaalan said on Al-Arabiya. While never referring to al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia by name, Shaalan referred to those who occupied the shrine as a "gang dressed in the clothes of religion." The latest fighting in Najaf, which began Aug. 5 after the breakdown of a two-month cease-fire, is presenting the greatest challenge yet to interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi's fledgling government. The U.S. military says the fighting in Najaf has killed hundreds of militants, though militants deny that. Eight U.S. soldiers and at least 40 Iraqi police have been killed. In the capital, conference delegates suggested they were fed up with al-Sadr. "If there were anyone sympathizing with him in the past, there will be none from now on because of this stand," delegate Abdul-Halim al-Ruhaimi said. Delegates prepared to vote for members of a new National Council, a 100-member body that will serve as a watchdog for the interim government until January election. As they did, a mortar round hit the roof of Iraq's Foreign Ministry building, causing no damage or injuries, Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari told The Associated Press. The blast shook the convention center where the National Conference was being held inside the heavily fortified Green Zone enclave, home to Iraqi government offices and the U.S. Embassy. Zebari said he believed the Green Zone was the target. The conference, a gathering of more than 1,000 religious, political and civic leaders, was extended a fourth day into Wednesday because of disagreements over how to elect the council. Smaller parties were concerned they would not have enough of a voice. The fighting in Najaf, especially near the shrine, has angered many among the country's majority Shiite population and cast a pall over the conference intended to project an image of amity and inclusiveness on Iraq's road to democracy.
And a job well done by the Iraqi government too. See, it isn't THAT hard for Iraqis to come up with diplomatic solutions to these types of situations. It would have been FAR worse for us in Iraq had we raided the shrine.
Is it me or we have heard this kind of peace agreement before. This will buy some time for Al-Sadr and his followers to re-group, and come up with new tactics. I would not be surprised if he stirs up some more trouble in a few month.
Maybe so, but at least WE didn't stir up the entire world's Shi'ite population by attacking al-Sadr in their holiest of temples.
If they had been listening to some of the ... distinguised posters ... in this thread, we would have simply leveled the Shrine and been done with it.
So are you saying that the democrats have not politicized the Iraq war? Excuse me while I enjoy a hearty belly-laugh!! I understand how it goes, liberals. You whine, whine, whine about the Iraq war and the Bush administration, then when a positive development occurs, you are quick to make sure the Republicans don't politicize it, even though you yourselves have been politicizing it from the get-go. Truly preposterous.
What should you do when (for one side) it's okay to launch RPGs from a "Holy Shrine" and/or just kill infidels in general. If it's okay to do that isn't it okay to "take one for the team" as well?
What you should do is not immediately level it to the ground. Nobody is saying it's ok for Al Sadr's folks to use it as a base for military operations. The recent developments are a perfect example that there is a better way than just demolishing the shrine. The negative consequences have been stated. Instead of just a knee-jerk reaction to strike out, cooler heads prevailed. Apparently it's worked out for the best for everyone. The U.S. doesn't become the 'badguy' for blowing up a holy shrine, and Al Sadr vacates the place. The problem with just blowing it up is that the shrine is holy to more peaceful Iraqis as well. If it were only holy to Al Sadr it wouldn't be a big deal to wipe it out. Because it's holy to all Shi'ite Muslims then it would be a bad idea to demolish it because a few took it over to use as a military headquarters. This is especially true when other options are available. It seems strange given the positive outcome here that you would still argue for the shrine's destruction. I don't understand.
You know what, I was clicking on this thread and thought exactly the same thing...almost. The difference is when people criticize the administration on the war, they're not celebrating the fact that it hasn't gone right. "Woohoo, two American soldiers killed today, that's bad for the Bush administration." As much as many conservatives want to believe that happens, it doesn't.
I agree with this, although I'll say some of glynch's posts have come pretty darn close to stepping on or over the line.
I wasn't arguing for the shrine's destruction; I was arguing against its being regarded as some kind of safe haven. Let's see if Al-Sadr keeps his word.
