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| Iraq |
| 8 Sunni mosques attacked after Shiite shrine bombing |
| 2006-02-22 |
| Groups of armed men attacked eight Sunni Muslim mosques in Baghdad on Wednesday as sectarian tension ran high between Shiite and Sunni Muslims after the bombing of a holy Shiite shrine in Samarra, an Interior Ministry source told Xinhua. "Gunmen attacked the Hamza Sunni mosque in the Ghazaliyah district in western Baghdad before noon, setting the building ablaze," The source said on condition of anonymity. Another mosque in the al-Elam district in southern Baghdad was also attacked by groups of angry armed men, who attacked six other Sunni mosques in different parts of the capital, causing damage,the source said. The attacks caused no casualties as the mosques were empty at the time, he added. Tens of thousands of the Shiites took to the streets in Baghdad,Samarra, Najaf and Karbala and other Iraqi cities, waving greenflags and Iraq's national flag and vowing to avenge those responsible for the attack at one of the most celebrated Shiite shrine. U.S. and Iraqi forces cordoned off Samarra city, some 120 km north of Baghdad, preventing people from entering or leaving the troubled city. Angry protestors rocked local police, accusing them of collaboration with the attackers on the shrine, a source from Salahudin provincial police said. Iraqi security forces were urgently deployed near mosques and districts shared by Shiite and Sunni Muslims to prevent conflicts between the two sects, the Interior Ministry source said. Earlier Wednesday, the holy shrine of Ali al-Hadi in Samarra was attacked with its golden dome badly damaged. The shrine of Ali al-Hadi, or the al-Hadhrah al-Askariyah,contains two tombs of Ali al-Hadi, who died in 868 A.D., and hisson Hassan al-Askari who died in 874 A.D.. The two are the 10th and 11th of the Shiite's twelve most revered Imams. Shiite pilgrims visited the shrine from all over the world. |
| Posted by:tipper |
| #17 Amen, SPo'D. I think the Kurds would be happy to host us, too, lol. |
| Posted by: .com 2006-02-22 22:50 |
| #16 The Turks have shown a lack of good sense in regards to the Kurds and Iraq. Iran will not sit by either nor will AQ. We would have to stay in "Kurdistan" for a long time into the future. |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet O' Doom 2006-02-22 22:46 |
| #15 Fingers crossed here, NS... |
| Posted by: .com 2006-02-22 16:50 |
| #14 .com, I agree but I suspect it could happen very quickly. Pencilneck falls when Iran gets put in its place. The Kurds get told to end the PKK nonsense in exchange for a route to the sea via northern Syria. The Turks are left in a position to close it off if the PKK renege on the deal. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2006-02-22 16:45 |
| #13 Lol, lotp. Well, since you've reiterated your thoughts, I'll do the same... I think Iranian influence in the South becomes moot if we act against them. I do not believe we would simply go after the nuke sites - and leave the MM regime intact to try again. That would be demonstrably stupid, IMHO. So I see their influence waning dramatically in Iraq. Especially if phil_b's observations are accurate and Iraq may disintegrate as an entity. That wouldn't bother me much, lol. I also expect to see Syria collapse with a short time frame - or pulling a Libya if pencilneck can survive the fallout and has his Daddy's survival sense. Regards Kirkuk and Mosul... IIRC, Kirkuk was definitely a Kurdish city - pre purge. Not sure about Mosul - do you know? Regards Turkey and Kurdistan... They keys are wiping out the PKK and preventing a nice chunk of Turkey from trying to join, no? If the Iraqi Kurds helped in the first effort - and absorbed those Kurds from Turkey that want to go there, doesn;t Turkey have a much easier time swallowing Kurdistan? And add in that the Northern pipeline benefits them... that should help, too. I think a Syrian collapse might open up a path to the Med, lol, but then I still have a little dreamer deep inside... There sure will be a lot of changes over the next decade. I doubt we could anticipate all of them, but it's interesting to work through what we can see... Peace. ;-) |
| Posted by: .com 2006-02-22 16:17 |
| #12 Could be indeed that the experiment in Iraq will fail. Doesn't look all shiny and golden success at the moment - although I rather suspect that the violence is directly correlated to progress towards a directly elected government. so yeah, we may see Iraq splinter. Not an outcome I'm sanguine about, though, for several reasons. As I mentioned a day or two ago, I think that would immediately result in Iran controlling (de facto at first) southern Iraq, and thereby menacing the smaller Gulf states more directly. I also think it would lead to more, not less, violence because the Sunni are NOT going to let go of Kirkuk and Mosul without a fight. And landlocked Kurdistan will draw the opposition of the Turks, the Iranians and Syria. That oil has to get out to the ports if it is to finance all the progress the Kurds have made and can make. I sure hope we don't see partitioning, because I think it will lead to much bigger problems in the area. |
| Posted by: lotp 2006-02-22 15:59 |
| #11 I agree, YS. The Kurds have done so much more with their lot in life - since way back in the No Fly Zones era and right on through the war - that they've completely won me over. I do not pretend to know what to do with the Arabs. That they can't seem to move forward is beyond disheartening. As I said the other day, the US had to try, had to give them a shot at liberal democracy. That they are still playing sectarian games, no change since Day One of the Shi'a sect's birth, is a huge disappointment. But they, not the US, are about to fail - by flushing the golden opportunity of a lifetime - rather many lifetimes - handed to them on a silver platter. Wow, what many people on the planet would give for such an opportunity... or so I presume. Perhaps that's a foolish statement, hard to tell. I do know enough about Arabs not to be surprised, however... just disappointed by Sistani & Co and the Sunni Sheikhs. A bridge too far. The Kurds, on the other hand, have made the most of it. Bravo! |
| Posted by: .com 2006-02-22 15:47 |
| #10 I agree w/ Sonia. Iraq should be split up. The Kurds definately deserve it, the Shia sorta deserve it and the Sunni should get the leftovers. The think that does concern me though about that is what would the Shia do? Would they be tempted to be annexed by Iran? Also, what would Turkey do if Kurdistan was created? All big questions but I really think these people are too tribal to be forced together. |
| Posted by: Yosemite Sam 2006-02-22 14:51 |
| #9 Angry protestors rocked local police, accusing them of collaboration with the attackers on the shrine, a source from Salahudin provincial police said. Wouldn't suprise me in the least. The damage from photos seem to indicate a good amount of explosives. It takes time and info to set something like this up. |
| Posted by: Charles 2006-02-22 14:19 |
| #8 PL, No, but I think it's safe to make a cartoon of the photo of the video of the mosque bombing. If a mob shows up and burns down your house, please accept my apology in advance. |
| Posted by: Dreadnought 2006-02-22 13:21 |
| #7 Can we draw cartoons of the mosque bombings, or is that politically incorrect? |
| Posted by: plainslow 2006-02-22 12:35 |
| #6 Yup, A-Q playing mind games would be my bet. Keep a close eye on Tater-tot, he'll be in this up to his fat neck. |
| Posted by: mojo 2006-02-22 12:21 |
| #5 Sonia Wow your husband is really really lucky. But on these bombings it has Irans fingerprints all over it. Zark in the East now Davila area being backed by Iran, Iran on the ropes speeding to clash with the west even the EU/UN sees it this time. The cartoon riots didnÂ’t quiet pan out so plan B. Zark hits Shia mosque then Sadr running around blaming the US calling for sectarian war (on the US and Gov thou). This is a win win for Iran lessens the Iraqi Shia religious clout, radicalizes them, puts Sadr up as credible, pulls the US into defense and mediator between the Shia & Sunni. I think right now we should have SOF moving to take Sadr out preferable with a bomb (that way we can blame it on Zark). Sadr is an Iranian pawn and can whip up a lot of trouble. Take him down now blame it on Zark and it will be easier to calm things back down without the SadrÂ’s firebrand. This is going to be real interesting in the next couple of weeks. This could turn into 04Â’ again real quick. Very dangerous |
| Posted by: C-Low 2006-02-22 12:11 |
| #4 Get the popcorn ready, break out the soda or beer and enjoy the show ... ummm ... errr ..... huh ... I'm referring to the upcoming Mosque vs. Mosque Show in Iraq, not the Sonia Belle site. You pervs, whadduya thinking? This is a family show! |
| Posted by: Happy 88mm 2006-02-22 12:00 |
| #3 wow! Brilliant marketing. It is a rare woman indeed who both walks naked, writes poetry, is an expert in the details in the war on terror - and looks like that. Far be it from me to spoil the fantasy, you go girl! (that is if you really are one :-) The downside is that it could become a bit of a liability as the war drags on. I'd develop a second character as well. So far, a good site, so one really can go just for the articles ...... |
| Posted by: 2b 2006-02-22 09:47 |
| #2 I'm in luuuuuve But: I did but see her passing bye, and I shall love her till I die. Or something like that. And yes I agree with your argument. |
| Posted by: tipper 2006-02-22 09:34 |
| #1 There is only one solution to the ongoing civil war between the Sunnis and the Shiites in Iraq... |
| Posted by: Sonia Belle 2006-02-22 09:28 |