[Peace-discuss] al-Hakim

[patton paul]

Exiled Shiite Chief: Iraqis Should Rebel
2 hours, 44 minutes ago

By ALI AKBAR DAREINI, Associated Press Writer

TEHRAN, Iran - The exiled leader of the biggest Iraqi opposition group
called Thursday on Iraqis to converge in the Shiite holy city of Karbala
to oppose a U.S.-led interim administration and defend Iraq's
independence.

Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim, leader of the Supreme Council of the
Islamic Revolution of Iraq, chose the southern Iraqi city and the date
next Tuesday  because of their connections to Hussein, the grandson of
Islam's Prophet Muhammad and one of Shiite Islam's most revered heroes.

"I call on Iraqis to converge in Karbala to oppose any sort of foreign
domination and support establishment of an Iraqi government that protects
freedom, independence and justice for all Iraqis," al-Hakim was quoted by
state-run Tehran television as saying.

Council spokesman Abu Eslam al-Saqir confirmed the call had been issued.

"To the Iraqi people, U.S. domination is no better than the dictatorship
of the ousted brutal regime of Saddam Hussein," al-Saqir told The
Associated Press.

Al-Hakim will return to Iraq soon, his younger brother told The Associated
Press, a move that could galvanize his followers. U.S. officials have
expressed strong concerns about Al-Hakim's Supreme Council, claiming it is
supported by the Iranian government and fearing it wants to create an
Iranian-style Islamic government in Iraq.

The Supreme Council  which claims thousands of its fighters are ready to
take up arms  boycotted this week's meeting of Iraqi opposition groups to
begin planning for Iraq's future government, charging the U.S. role as
organizer "harms Iraq's independence."

The meeting called in Karbala would mark the 40th day after the
anniversary of the death of Hussein, who is seen by Shiites as a symbol of
freedom who sacrificed himself to resist corruption and tyranny. He was
killed in a battle on the plains of Karbala in A.D. 680, and his tomb is
in the city.

Shiite Muslims traditionally gather to mark the 40th day after a death.

Also Thursday, al-Hakim's younger brother said the ayatollah will soon
return to Iraq.

"He will be in Iraq when the time is suitable and we are waiting for
that," Abdul Aziz al-Hakim told the AP in Kut, Iraq, where the council has
set up offices, some 40 miles from the Iranian border.

Al-Hakim's return would be a critical moment in attempts to form a
post-Saddam Hussein government. It would command the attention of the
majority Shiite population, oppressed for years by minority Sunni Muslims
from Saddam's Baath party.

The younger Hakim was greeted by thousands of people in Kut, where he said
he was visiting to prepare for his brother's return after 23 years in
exile.

Analysts say al-Hakim's appeal to religious feeling and imagery is
reminiscent of the tactics used by the late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini
ahead of the 1979 Iranian Revolution.

"Al-Hakim is resorting to tactics used by Iran's religious leaders in the
'70s to topple the pro-U.S. shah: provoking people's religious sentiments
and winning their hearts," said leading Iranian political commentator
Davoud Hermidas Bavand.

Al-Hakim's brother said his group would work with other opposition parties
in the new Iraq.

"I don't know why America is scared of us, we don't want to make a
revolution, but we want to create safety and stability in Iraq," he said
at council headquarters in Kut. "We are looking forward to establishing a
democratic Iraqi government chosen by the people themselves."

The Supreme Council's military wing, the Badr Corps, has thousands of
fighters already in Iraq able to go to battle at the call of religious
leaders, said Hakim, who is the corps' leader.

He said the forces  who are lightly armed, but may have acquired heavier
weaponry since the war  have been ordered not to fight U.S. forces.

The fighters will go into action "when the people are in real danger,"
Hakim said, and will "stand side-by-side with the people and help them
stabilize the country."