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Iraqi Shiite Cleric Issues Call to Arms Against Sunni Militants IRAQ SHIITE CLERIC URGES FOLLOWERS TO FIGHT MILITANTS
(about 4 hours later)
BAGHDAD — Iraq’s top Shiite cleric exhorted all able-bodied Iraqis to take up arms Friday to combat the marauding Sunni extremist militants who have seized broad stretches of the country this week and are threatening the wobbly Shiite-led central government in Baghdad. President Obama said it was up to the Iraqis themselves to contain the crisis. BAGHDAD — The specter of sectarian war and partition of Iraq grew on Friday as the country’s top Shiite cleric implored his followers to take up arms against an insurgent army of marauding Sunni extremist militants who have captured broad stretches of northern territory this week in a sweep toward Baghdad.
The call to arms by the cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, was the most urgent sign yet of the growing desperation of the country’s Shiite majority in the face of a resurgent Sunni militant movement drawn from the insurgency in neighboring Syria and vestiges of the Saddam Hussein loyalists toppled from power by the American-led invasion a decade ago. The exhortation by the cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, came as President Obama told the Iraqis they need to resolve the crisis themselves and vowed not to redeploy United States forces in Iraq, a country where nearly 4,500 American soldiers lost their lives and the United States spent more than $1 trillion in an eight-year war that Mr. Obama had repeatedly claimed was history when the last troops left in 2011. While Mr. Obama said he would offer some help, it would not include troops, and he asserted that “we’re not going to allow ourselves to be dragged back into a situation in which, while we’re there, we’re keeping a lid on things.”
Ayatollah Sistani’s plea came as both the United States and Iran, adversaries on a range of issues including the Syria conflict, were both seeking ways to help the government of Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki and avoid a collapse in Iraq that would further destabilize the Middle East. Heeding the call to arms by Ayatollah Sistani, Shiite volunteers rushed to the front lines, reinforcing defenses of the holy city of Samarra 70 miles north of Baghdad, and helping thwart attacks by Sunni fighters of the radical Islamic State of Iraq and Syria in some smaller cities to the east. The confrontations suggested Shiites and Sunnis would once again engage in open conflict for control of Iraq, as they did during the height of the American-led occupation that ousted Saddam Hussein.
At the same time, the ayatollah’s plea also risked plunging Iraq further into the pattern of sectarian bloodletting between Sunnis and Shiites that convulsed the country during the height of the American occupation. That struggle between the sects has also helped shape the civil war in neighboring Syria and threatened to further destabilize the Middle East.
For the United States, the chaos now engulfing Iraq risks re-entangling the American military in a conflict that the Obama administration spent its first term winding down. President Obama, in a televised statement on Friday, said that Mr. Maliki’s government clearly needed more help and that the United States was weighing a range of options. But Mr. Obama said that he would not send troops back and that American military aid alone was not a solution. While it was unclear from Mr. Obama’s remarks what he might be prepared to do militarily to help the Maliki government, administration officials said the options included airstrikes by warplanes or drones, improved intelligence sharing and deploying small numbers of Special Forces.
“The United States is not simply going to involve itself in a military action in the absence of a political plan by the Iraqis that gives us some assurance that they’re prepared to work together,” he said. “We’re not going to allow ourselves to be dragged back into a situation in which, while we’re there, we’re keeping a lid on things” while the political leaders fail to address the underlying fissures dividing Iraqi society. The United States already has considerable military power deployed in the region, with 35,000 troops, in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and neighboring Gulf nations. In addition, the United States has an array of ships there, as well as the aircraft carrier George H. W. Bush with an accompanying Navy cruiser in the northern Arabian Sea. Two Navy destroyers from the Bush strike group have moved into the Persian Gulf, a Defense Department official said.
While it was unclear from Mr. Obama’s remarks what he might be prepared to do militarily to help the Maliki government, administration officials said the options included airstrikes by manned aircraft or drones, improved intelligence sharing and deploying small numbers of Special Forces. The sharp deterioration in Iraq represents a significant security issue to both the United States and Iran, adversaries in a range of disputes, including the Syria conflict. Both were seeking ways to help avoid a collapse in the government of Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki, a Shiite whose marginalization of Sunnis and other sects has been blamed by some critics for the dysfunction that has steadily worsened in Iraq since the American departure.
The United States already has considerable military power deployed in the region, with 35,000 troops, in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and neighboring Gulf states. In addition, the United States has an array of ships there, as well as the aircraft carrier U.S.S. George H. W. Bush with an accompanying Navy cruiser in the northern Arabian Sea. Two Navy destroyers from the Bush strike group have moved into the Persian Gulf, a Defense Department official said. For Iran’s Shiite leaders, the Iraq crisis represents a direct Sunni militant threat on their doorstep. The commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Quds Force, Gen. Qassim Suleimani, an architect of military strategy who has helped President Bashar al-Assad of Syria in his war against Sunni radicals, arrived in Baghdad this week and has been reviewing how Iraq’s Shiite militias are prepared to defend Baghdad and other areas.
For Iran’s Shiite leaders, the Iraq crisis represents a direct Sunni militant threat on their doorstep. The commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Quds Force, Gen. Qassem Suleimani, arrived in Baghdad on Thursday and has been reviewing how Iraq’s Shiite militias are prepared to defend Baghdad and other areas, according to a report on Iranwire, a website run by expatriate Iranian journalists. “The mobilization of the Shia militias, and Qassim Suleimani’s presence, is a very good indication of how seriously they’re taking this,” Hayder al-Khoei, an associate fellow at the London-based Chatham House research group, said in an interview with Iranwire, a website run by expatriate Iranian journalists. But reports that Iran had sent hundreds of Quds fighters into Iraq were not confirmed.
“The mobilization of the Shia militias, and Qassem Suleimani’s presence, is a very good indication of how seriously they’re taking this,” Hayder al-Khoei, an associate fellow at the London-based Chatham House research group, said in an interview with Iranwire from Baghdad. Even with their shared interests in a stable Iraq, there was no overt sign of cooperation or communication between the United States and Iran on the crisis. Marie Harf, a State Department spokeswoman, told reporters on Friday that “we are not talking to the Iranians about Iraq.”
Even with their shared interests in a stable Iraq, there was no overt sign of cooperation or communication between Washington and Tehran on the crisis. Marie Harf, a State Department spokeswoman, told reporters on Friday that “we are not talking to the Iranians about Iraq.” Thousands of Iraqi Shiites responded to the call by Ayatollah Sistani, 83, a respected figure among Iraq’s rival sects, whose statements carry particular weight among the Shiite majority. The statement, read by his representative during Friday Prayer, said it was “the legal and national responsibility of whoever can hold a weapon to hold it to defend the country, the citizens and the holy sites.”
Thousands of Iraqi Shiites responded to the call by Ayatollah Sistani, 83, a respected figure among Iraq’s rival sects, whose statements carry particular weight among the Shiite majority. The statement, read by his representative during Friday prayers, said it was “the legal and national responsibility of whoever can hold a weapon to hold it to defend the country, the citizens and the holy sites.” The representative of Ayatollah Sistani, Sheikh Abdul Mehdi al-Karbalaie, spoke in Karbala, a southern city regarded by Shiites as one of Iraq’s holiest. The sheikh said volunteers “must fill the gaps within the security forces.”
The representative of Ayatollah Sistani, Sheikh Abdul Mehdi al-Karbalaie, spoke in Karbala, regarded by Shiites as one of Iraq’s holiest cities. The sheikh said volunteers “must fill the gaps within the security forces,” but cautioned that they should not do any more than that. The statement stopped short of calling for a general armed response to the incursion led by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, which has emerged as one of the most potent opposition forces in the Syrian civil war and which now controls large areas of both Syria and northern Iraq.
The statement stopped short of calling for a general armed response to the incursion led by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, a Sunni extremist group that has emerged as one of the most potent opposition forces in the Syrian civil war and that now controls large areas of both Syria and northern Iraq. The insurgents have pledged to march on Baghdad, but seizing and controlling the sprawling Iraqi capital, with its large population of Shiites, is likely to prove much more difficult than advancing across a Sunni heartland with little sympathy for the central government. The sheikh emphasized that all Iraqis should join the fight, pulling together, so the country does not slide into all-out sectarian warfare. But in a time of mounting frictions and deepening distrust between the sects, it appeared unlikely that many Sunnis would answer the ayatollah’s call. Many Sunnis feel little sympathy either for the government or for the extremists of ISIS.
The sheikh emphasized that all Iraqis should join the fight, pulling together, so the country does not slide into all-out sectarian warfare. But in a time of mounting frictions and deepening distrust between the sects, it appeared unlikely that many Sunnis would answer the ayatollah’s call. Many Sunnis feel little sympathy either for the government or for the extremists of ISIS.
Volunteers began to appear at the southern gate to Baghdad, which leads to the predominantly Shiite south of the country, within an hour after Mr. Karbalaie broadcast Ayatollah Sistani’s call.Volunteers began to appear at the southern gate to Baghdad, which leads to the predominantly Shiite south of the country, within an hour after Mr. Karbalaie broadcast Ayatollah Sistani’s call.
At the police post there, by the soaring arches that mark the city limits, a pickup truck driven by elders pulled up with six young men in the back. For the first time since the Sunni insurgents routed the government security forces on Tuesday in Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest city, their southward advance appeared to stall. The insurgents fanned out on Friday to the east of the Tigris River, and at least temporarily seized two towns near the Iranian border, Sadiyah and Jalawla. But security officials in Baghdad said government troops, backed by Kurdish forces, counterattacked several hours later and forced the insurgents to withdraw.
“We heard Ali Sistani’s call for jihad, so we’re coming here to fight the terrorism everywhere, not just in Iraq,” said Ali Mohsin Alwan al-Amiri, one of the elders. Shiite militia leaders reported they had also collaborated with security forces to take back control of Dhuloaiya, a town about 60 miles north of Baghdad — the southernmost point of the Sunni insurgent advance.
The Sunni insurgents continued their offensive on Friday, fanning out to the east of the Tigris River, and at least temporarily seized two towns near the Iranian border, Sadiyah and Jalawla. Security officials in Baghdad said government troops, backed by Kurdish forces, counterattacked several hours later and forced the insurgents to withdraw, a rare success. Iraqiya, the state television channel, reported Friday night that a son of Ezzat al-Douri, one of the top leaders of the Hussein era who was never captured by the Americans and is collaborating with the ISIS fighters, was killed in an Iraqi Air Force strike on Tikrit. There was no immediate way to corroborate the report.
The Kurds control a semiautonomous region in northern Iraq and have long sought independence. As the militants advanced on Thursday, their forces took full control of Kirkuk, an oil center that had been contested by the Kurds and the country’s Arab leaders for years, after the Iraqi Army abandoned its posts there.
The apparent disintegration of some units of the American-armed Iraqi Army and the loss of control of Kirkuk and the Sunni areas overrun by the militants represented the worst security crisis in Iraq since the American withdrawal in 2011, threatening the country’s future as a cohesive state.
Both the United States and Iran have watched events with alarm and have issued warnings of possible intervention.
In its language and tone, Ayatollah Sistani’s statement portrayed it as a religious and patriotic act to volunteer either for the Iraqi Army or for a Shiite militia, two forces that are becoming difficult to distinguish.In its language and tone, Ayatollah Sistani’s statement portrayed it as a religious and patriotic act to volunteer either for the Iraqi Army or for a Shiite militia, two forces that are becoming difficult to distinguish.
When the ayatollah’s representative, Mr. Karbalaie, said, “Whoever can hold a weapon has to volunteer to join the security forces,” the call was greeted with cheers and shouts of “It will be done!”When the ayatollah’s representative, Mr. Karbalaie, said, “Whoever can hold a weapon has to volunteer to join the security forces,” the call was greeted with cheers and shouts of “It will be done!”
People in Ayatollah Sistani’s office said the statement was a response to one issued by the leadership of ISIS threatening to seize not just the predominantly Sunni areas of northern Iraq, but also Baghdad and the cities of Karbala and Najaf, which are sacred to Shiite Muslims.People in Ayatollah Sistani’s office said the statement was a response to one issued by the leadership of ISIS threatening to seize not just the predominantly Sunni areas of northern Iraq, but also Baghdad and the cities of Karbala and Najaf, which are sacred to Shiite Muslims.
“Iraq and the Iraqi people are facing great danger,” Mr. Karbalaie said. “The terrorists are not aiming to control just several provinces. They said clearly they are targeting all other provinces including Baghdad, Karbala and Najaf. So the responsibility to face them and fight them is the responsibility of all, not one sect or one party. The responsibility now is saving Iraq, saving our country, saving the holy places of Iraq.”“Iraq and the Iraqi people are facing great danger,” Mr. Karbalaie said. “The terrorists are not aiming to control just several provinces. They said clearly they are targeting all other provinces including Baghdad, Karbala and Najaf. So the responsibility to face them and fight them is the responsibility of all, not one sect or one party. The responsibility now is saving Iraq, saving our country, saving the holy places of Iraq.”
Since the insurgents captured Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest city, senior officers in the army have been meeting with local committees and Shiite militias in Baghdad and asking them to round up volunteers to bolster the government forces. Maj. Gen. Abdul Jabbar, commander of the 11th Division, went to a stadium in the Hussainiya neighborhood to speak to a gathering of local sheikhs, and called on each of them to produce 50 volunteers.
On the main axis of the insurgent advance, the highway running south from Mosul to the capital, there were no indications on Friday that the militants had succeeded in taking Samarra, 70 miles north of Baghdad, which is home to a Shiite shrine and is defended by Shiite militias. “We hope that all the Shiite groups will come together and move as one man to protect Baghdad and the other Shiite areas,” said Abu Mujahid, one of the militia leaders.
Iran’s state-run news media reported this week that Tehran had strengthened its forces along the Iraq border and suspended all pilgrim visas into Iraq, but had received no request from Iraq for military help. Reports that Iranian Revolutionary Guards troops had crossed the border into Iraq to assist the government forces could not be confirmed; Shiite militia leaders in the capital said they knew of no such move and had not asked Iran to send troops.
The insurgents have pledged to march on Baghdad, but seizing and controlling the sprawling Iraqi capital, with its large population of Shiites, is likely to prove much more difficult than advancing across a Sunni heartland with little sympathy for the central government.
For its part, the administration of Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki has seemed bewildered by the crisis. It was unable to muster a quorum in Parliament this week to approve a state of emergency.
On Friday, however, an spokesman for the Interior Ministry, Brig. Gen. Saad Maan, was quoted by Agence France-Presse as saying, “We put in place a new plan to protect Baghdad.”