Muqtada
al-Sadr A profile
Aljazeera
Muqtada
al-Sadr has recently emerged as a Muslim Shia leader who vociferously
rejects the US-led occupation in Iraq.
He is seen by many
Shia and politicians as a zealous leader who has chosen the wrong time
for this escalation of protests.
About 30 years old,
al-Sadr is a son of the Grand Ayat Allah Muhammad Sadiq al-Sadr, a prominent
Iraqi Shia leader who was killed in 1999 along with two of his other
sons.
Hardly known outside
Iraq, and lacking the religious education and degrees required by Shia
doctrines, al-Sadr bases his religious authority on his lineage.
His father
Saddam Hussein backed
his father, Muhammad Sadiq al-Sadr, to head the al-Hawza (the main centre
for Shia instruction in Iraq) in Najaf. Hussein backed al-Sadr because
he was an Arab Muslim and he wanted to rid the al-Hawza of its non-Arab
leaders.
"I do not believe
that
any sensible human being would kill a leader such as Muhammad Sadiq
al-Sadr"
Muhammad Sadiq al-Sadr used that backing to consolidate his hopes to
change Iraq's religious, political, and social outlook to comply with
Islamic rules.
He reportedly gained
popular support to an extent that worried the Iraqi government. Unconfirmed
reports suggest he has been killed by the Iraqi secret services.
But sources close
to former Iraqi foreign minister Naji Sabri quoted Sabri as saying before
the war on Iraq: "I do not believe that any sensible human being
would kill a leader such as Muhammad Sadiq al-Sadr."
Muqtada's rise
Continuing his father's
attempt to lead the al-Hawza in Najaf, his followers surrounded the
home of Grand Ayat Allah Ali al-Sistani, an Iranian citizen, asking
him to leave the country soon after occupation. This followed the murder
of the prominent Shia cleric Abd al-Majid al-Khoei who had returned
to Iraq with US forces after years in exile.
Muqtada al-Sadr
found a great deal of space for manoeuvre - as is the case with all
Iraqs political and religious factions. He consolidated his power
base among his father's supporters and started a conscious anti-occupation
campaign.
He has repeatedly
expressed opposition to the US-led occupation of Iraq; however, he has
preached non-violence.
He did not recognise
the US-appointed Iraqi Governing Council and declared a shadow cabinet.
Al-Sadr founded
paramilitary militias, al-Mahdi Army, saying it would fight for the
interests of the Iraqi people.
Towards resistance
On 28 March 2004,
the US occupation authorities ordered the closure of al-Hawza newspaper,
published by Muqtada al-Sadr, alleging it was inciting violence.
Al-Sadr's followers
demonstrated in their thousands in several cities, protesting against
the closure.
Declaring that peaceful
protests had become useless, al-Sadr urged his followers to "terrorise"
their enemy on 5 April 2004.
His call came only
one day after thousands of his followers took to the streets in protest.
Armed supporters, mostly impoverished young men belonging to al-Mahdi
Army, have reportedly engaged in gun battles with coalition forces.
Eight American soldiers,
one Salvadorean combatant and at least 20 Iraqi demonstrators were reported
killed in the day-long fighting.
Seen as the worst
outbreak of Shia resistance in the year-old US-led occupation of Iraq,
al-Sadr's backers demanded the reopening of their Al-Hawza newspaper.
Al-Sadr's supporters
also demanded the end of a siege that was imposed on al-Sadr's offices
and the release of Mustafa Yaqubi, a top aide who was arrested a week
earlier.
Muqtada al-Sadr
has maintained his rejection of the US-appointed Iraqi Governing Council
and has actively advocated the so-called "faithfully Islamic government".
A spokesman for
the US-led occupation of Iraq has said an arrest warrant has been issued
for al-Sadr.