Shi'a Pundit

Devoted to the viewpoint of Islam of Muhammad SAW and Amir ul-Mumineen, Ali ibn Abi Talib SA, in the Shi'a Fatimi Ismaili Dawoodi Bohra tradition.

Handover in Karbala.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7065923.stm

good news, I suppose:

US forces are to hand over control of security in the Shia province of Karbala to Iraqi troops early next week, US and Iraqi officials say.

US troops will remain in reserve positions to assist if called upon

of course it's not as simple as that:

Iraqi and US military officials have downplayed concerns over rivalries between Shia factions in the province.

"This place is about a struggle for power and influence and there are indeed inter-Shia rivalries where different groups are trying to be in charge and sometimes they revert to violence," said the US commander in the province, Maj Gen Rick Lynch.

The benchmark here is simple: damage to the shrines. I find it hard to believe that any Shi'a sect would willingly damage or put at risk the holy shrines. Of course by their nature they are targets for anyone with a vested interest in promoting sectarian violence... which includes both shi'a and sunni factions alike. On the whole, thouhg, there's not much choice here; iraqis have to take responsibility for the safety of the holy sites. So this is good news.

sigh.

Labels: karbala

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About Shi'a Pundit

Shi'a Pundit was launched in 2002 during the run-up to the invasion of Iraq. The blog focuses on issues pertaining to Shi'a Islam in the west and in the Islamic world. The author is a member of the Dawoodi Bohra Muslim community. Bohras adhere to the Shi'a Fatimi tradition of Islam, headed by the 52nd Dai al-Mutlaq, Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin (TUS).

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