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Iraqi PM's paper portrays Al-Jazeera as nest of vipers
 The newspaper of Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari published a political cartoon attacking the pan-Arab Al-Jazeera satellite channel and accusing it of defaming Shiite religious leaders. The channel's intricate Arabic calligraphy logo was rendered as a nest of intertwined vipers by cartoonist Ali al-Saadi, following the airing on Jazeera of an interview with an Iraqi writer criticizing the Shiite leaders. "In response to the tongues of vipers, Iraqis shout with a single voice: 'You are our crown, Sayyed Ali Sistani,'" said the paper's headline, referring to the most revered Shiite cleric in Iraq, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.In a debate on Al-Jazeera last week, Fadel al-Rubaye, a London-based writer, said Shiite religious leaders, particularly Sistani, had "favored the entry of American troops in Iraq" and had urged Iraqis not to resist the occupation. On Saturday, Jaafari accused the satellite chain of wronging the Iraqi people and called on it to mend its ways. Jazeera has said that the views of its guests, which in this case caused major demonstrations in Iraq, did not necessarily reflect its own. Posted by: Fred 2005-12-19 |
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