| Submit your comments on this article |
| Syria-Lebanon |
| Qabalan calls on leaders to unite for benefit of Iraq |
| 2003-04-15 |
| Lebanonâs Shiite clerics on Monday condemned the current tension in Najaf, an important Shiite religious center, and called on the allied forces to protect it. One of the leading religious leaders, Ayatollah Ali Sistani, had been under house arrest by 50 armed pro-Iranian Iraqis since Saturday, who had demanded that the cleric leave Iraq within 48 hours. A Kuwaiti Shiite cleric said that several tribal chiefs from the Euphrates area had intervened and put an end to the ayatollahâs captivity. "Mahmoud! Ali Sistani's in trouble! Get some gunnies over there to protect him, quick!" The group of armed men were reportedly from the same group which had brutally killed pro-Western Shiite cleric Sayyed Abdel-Majid al-Khoei in Najaf on Thursday. "Die, infidel dog! And you, too, whoever you are!" The vice-president of the Shiite Higher Council in Lebanon, Sheikh Abdel-Amir Qabalan, played down reports about tension in Najaf. Speaking to a group of Shiite clerics who gathered at the Higher Shiite Council to discuss the latest developments in Najaf, including leading cleric Mohammed Ibrahim Amin and other clerics from Lebanon and abroad, Qabalan called on all Shiites to work together for the good of their common cause. He added that Lebanonâs Shiites wanted Iraq united without clashes between the Shiites and the Sunni, or among Muslims and non-Muslims. âWe call upon our brethren in Najaf to defend the religious authorities, Ayatollah Sistani and Mohammed Said Hakim, and other religious authorities in Najaf,â Qabalan said, stressing the closeness of the links between Lebanese Shiites and Najaf. Qabalan called on Shiite religious leaders to join hands and urged all Iraqis to unite for the countryâs benefit. "Just be patient. Hold off on killing each other until the infidels are gone..." Qabalan said that the gathering of ulema was aimed at condemning what was going on in Iraq, especially in Najaf. âWe are totally opposed to the invasion forces remaining in Iraq and we call on all Iraqis, Arabs, Kurds, Shiites and Sunnis to work together,â Qabalan said. "Yeah. We didn't need them to get rid of Sammy, so what do we need them for now?" |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |