Unity of the Iraqi people against US occupation is the only guarantee for solving the current political crisis
from Iraqi Democrats Against Occupation (www.idao.org)
26.2.06

The destruction of the Askariya Shrine, loved by Muslims of the Shiite and Sunni faiths alike was no sectarian action.

For 1200 years the Shrine was protected by the people of the historic city of Samurra, of the Sunni faith, and visited by millions of the Muslims of the Shia faith every year.

Tens of thousands of supporters of Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr have marched in Baghdad to denounce the US presence in Iraq and call for a speedy trial of Saddam Hussein on the second anniversary of his overthrow.

Friday 08 April (al Jazeera, Agence France-Press)

Iraqi leaders have called for a mass demonstration against the US-led troop presence on the second anniversary of the overthrow of Saddam Hussein's government.

An Old U.S. Foe Rises Again in Iraq
Shiite Mahdi Army Growing Bolder in South
By Anthony Shadid
Washington Post Foreign Service
Friday, April 8, 2005; Page A01

GHARAF, Iraq - Over the loudspeakers set up in this small town in a backwater of southern Iraq, the commands came in staccato bursts. "Forward!" a man clad in black shouted to the militiamen. "March!"

Iraqi people seek unity to end the occupation and establish true democracy

10.2.05, Iraqi Democrats Against Occupation

With the 'election process' behind them, forces that have boycotted the elections or took part in it are combining voices, calling for a time-table for ending US occupation and the extensive corruption it has brought with it.

David Hirst in Beirut
Thursday September 16, 2004
The Guardian

When George Bush first identified the two Middle East members of his "axis
of evil", Iran clearly ranked as a far more formidable adversary than Saddam
Hussein's Iraq. But President Bush went after the easier target instead. So "did we invade
the wrong country?" asks a leading commentator, Charles Krauthammer,
speaking for many neo-conservative hawks as the US refocuses on Iran.

It Takes a Following to Make an Ayatollah
By Juan Cole
Sunday, August 15, 2004; Page B04

The battle for Najaf has catapulted the names of Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani and lower-ranking cleric Moqtada Sadr onto the front pages of American newspapers once again.

August 10, 2004 statement from www.idao.org, the Iraqi Democrats Against Occupation, followed by an August 10 report on the widespread uprising occurring in response to the US aggression in Najaf.

From juancole.com

The same techniques used to get up the Iraq war are now being applied by the political Right in the United States, including President Bush, to Iran. These include innuendo, guilt by association, vague fears, and hyped capabilities. If Bush gets a second term, it seems very likely that his administration will make war on Iran.

Shiite Struggle: City suffers as sect
fights for freedom. By ALISSA J. RUBIN
Los Angeles Times

NAJAF, Iraq - Since the fall of Saddam Hussein last year, worshipers from across the Muslim world have thronged to the Imam Ali shrine on Fridays to hear the sermon and celebrate the Shiite sect's newfound freedom.