Iraq's most influential Shi'ite cleric will return to the country within hours and wants Iraqis to march on the "burning city" of Najaf, where fresh fighting erupted near a sacred shrine on Wednesday. Aides to Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani refused to say when he would arrive or if he would go straight to his home in Najaf after getting heart treatment in London for three weeks. The call to march on Najaf by the Shi'ite moderate, who has said little about a crisis that has killed hundreds and undermined the authority of interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, could escalate passions among the majority Shi'ite community.
"Najaf is burning. Ayatollah al-Sistani is on his way back and calls on Iraqis from all provinces to join him in the holy city," aide Hamed al-Khafaf said by telephone from Beirut. The logistics of the march would be known shortly, he said, without commenting on its purpose. Another aide said the militia should leave the mosque and U.S. forces not interfere. Sistani's departure for London coincided with the outbreak of the rebellion by the militia of Moqtada al-Sadr, a young cleric who has challenged the collegiate leadership of the Najaf clergy led by the elder Sistani. |