Tuesday, Oct 14, 2003
Clashes between rival Shia militias erupted on Monday night and continued on Tuesday in the Shia holy city of Karbala, days after Muqtada al-Sadr (pictured), leader of one of the groups, declared the formation of a separate Iraqi government.
Police in Karbala said two people were killed and up to two dozen injured during riots on Monday night outside the Mukhayim mosque in Karbala, which Mr al-Sadr uses as a headquarters in the city.
The mosque was pock-marked with bullet holes and Mr al-Sadr's supporters gathered behind barricades next to the mosque on Tuesday, shouting insults and threats at police and journalists trying to enter the area.
Sheikh Mohammed Kinaani, a religious figure in Karbala, told reporters that Mr al-Sadr's forces, known as the Jaysh al-Mahdi, had tried to take over the shrine of Imam Hussein in the centre of town, one of the holiest shrines in Shia Islam. He said they had been repulsed by forces loyal to Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, spiritual leader of a majority of Iraqi Shia.
Police had a different version, however. Mohammed Rida Hussein, a policeman standing guard in front of the shrine of Imam Hussein on Tuesday, said the dispute between backers of Seyd Akram Yasseri, the US-backed Karbala governor, and backers of Mr al-Sadr had started over the latter's arrest of a prominent sheikh known as Maytham on Saturday.
A demonstration by the sheikh's backers outside Mr al-Sadr's headquarters on Monday had turned violent, they said.
Tempers in Karbala seemed ready to flare again on Tuesday, as unarmed Jaysh members patrolled downtown in military style formations, while police loyal to governor Yasseri cradled Kalashnikov assault rifles and eyed them warily.
Mr al-Sadr tried to distance himself from the violence, telling journalists in Najaf on Tuesday that he blamed elements "acting in his name" for the violence. "Evil forces are co-operating to sow sectarian strife."
His group is the most radical of the Shia political parties in Iraq. On Saturday he announced the formation of a separate cabinet of ministers to challenge the US-backed Governing Council.
Charles Clover in Karbala and Nicolas Pelham in Najaf
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