Btw, I accidently provide the wrong address for the comments about Sistani, here is the correct one:
http://msnbc.com/news/998188.asp
Reread the Memri site. The one that I linked and check the note I mentioned. It references the arrest warrant and similar stuff to an article from an Arabic Newspaper dated NOVEMBER 2003.
Actually, the text mentions:
"However, this initiative has petered out because the CPA has threatened to take Moqtada Al-Sadr to court for the murder of Abd Al-Majid Al-Khoui, as referred to earlier. [15]"
This not a mention of a warrant issued in November.
There is no doubt (as far as actual evidence states) that Sadr's followers were involved in the incident, directly or indirectly. From the aricle from CBS:
"And back in April, the Ayatollah al-Khoei, who was also friendly toward America, returned from exile in England, only to be hacked to death by a Shiite mob days later.
One of the suspects: Muqtada al-Sadr.
“I condemned this during my Friday sermon, but … I did say we may have acted in a way that lead to this incident, unfortunately,” says Sadr.
Two of his guards were arrested for involvement in the murder. “Just because the majority of Shiites follow me doesn’t mean I’m responsible for every one of their actions,” adds Sadr.
The majority of Shiites in Iraq don’t actually follow him, but there certainly are parts in Iraq where his word is gospel. A Baghdad slum that used to be called Saddam City is a good example of how much has changed in Iraq in the last few months. Once Saddam fell, the 2-3 million Shiites who live here renamed the place Sadr City, after Sadr’s revered and radical father."
Guilt is something else, as well as the actual technicality regarding the date of issue of the warrant.
In other words - someone was writing an article on it (the warrant) back in November. The reason you haven't heard about it is that it wasn't "sexy" (newsworthy) until now.
That's why I was rather annoyed at your continued assertion that the thing was trumped up and lied about. There was no evidence of that and plenty to indicate the contrary. It's not DIRECT evidence because the new services didn't consider it terribly newsworthy or important until now.
If you can refer me to an actual disclosure of this warrant
being produced for public consumption before April, I will accept.
As for "sexy", that may or not be true. Sadr ahs been in the news since before the actual invasion, as has the murder of Al-Khoiy. A warrant would be quite sexy, as it was when it was produced after the fighting.
Indeed, that was very likely intentional. Making a big stink about it could also set off that riot. So it was done quietly. Not hidden, but not touted either would be my guess. Remember, at one point Sadr tried to start a riot by releasing the information he had been arrested and then trucking people into Najaf for his "arrest riot" when, in fact, he was sitting in his office making the entire thing up to try and create an incident.
http://www.aljazeerah.info/News%20archives/2003%20News%20archives/July%20/21%20n/10,000%20Iraqi%20Shiites%20rally%20in%20Najaf%20against%20US%20occupation.htm
If the riot Conlin was refferring to is this one, the above address reports different reasons for the riot.
What he represents is the Iranian extremist brand of the Shi'a religion. He's nothing but another yuk trying to turn Iraq into a theocracy by any means he can. Indeed, much of his rhetoric (and more importantly his actions) are decidely 'Taliban-like'.
You do realise this is mostly rhetoric. He is an extremist, true, but the references to Taliban (from the MEMRI article, this was a reference to his student-judges) and Iran are just comparisons attempting to demonise the guy. He prefers a theocracy, that much I know. I don not agree but I do believe he can reasoned with.
This message last edited by Monotonous Mantra on 4/16/2004 at 9:17:01 PM.
