KARBALA, Iraq--Swaying and chanting, some bleeding from self-inflicted wounds of ritual mourning, an estimated 1 million ShiiteMuslims marched to this city's holy shrine Tuesday, celebrating theirfreedom from years of repression by Saddam Hussein's regime.
The large turnout for the pilgrimage, which ends Thursday,highlighted the power and potential of Iraq's majority Shiitecommunity. Despite bitter internal differences, the Shiites, whorepresent 60 percent of Iraq's 24 million people, were able to pulloff the event on short notice and thus far without violence.
Pilgrims, many with heads bleeding and limping from long journeysin 90-degree heat, pressed up against each other on roads. U.S.troops were largely out of sight, with a few members of the U.S.-backed Iraqi National Congress at checkpoints.
The collapse of Saddam's rule left a political vacuum, "So wemoved in a specialized and organized way to face this problem," saida Shiite official, Sheik Sadeq Jaafar al-Tarfi.
"All the religious leaders, Sistani and Sadr, united to make itsuccessful and had it not been for this unity it would have failed,"he said, referring to Grand Ayatollah Ali Hussein al-Sistani, Iraq'stop Shiite cleric, and Muqtada al-Sadr, the son of al-Sistani's slainpredecessor.
There was anti-American sentiment among the pilgrims Tuesday. Someheld signs that said "Bush equals Saddam" and "Down USA."
Anti-Saddam feelings, however, appeared stronger--perhaps because,in an apparent attempt to avoid friction with pilgrims, Americantroops mostly stayed clear of the city.
Pilgrims beat their chests and screamed: "You dirty Saddam, whereare you so that we can fight you?"
Water trucks were brought in for the pilgrims. Roving men sprayedworshippers with rose water, which cools and conveys a blessing.
Shiites from Iran joined those from Iraq and other countries toconverge on Karbala--site of the 7th century martyrdom of Hussein, agrandson of the prophet Muhammad. The extent of the Iranian presencewas unclear. The border between the two countries is officiallyclosed, but porous.
Division at UN
Despite a proposal by France to join in the U.S. call forsuspending economic sanctions against Iraq, the first SecurityCouncil meeting on the future of post-Saddam Iraq indicated that deepdivisions remain over who should disarm the country and how sanctionsshould be lifted.
Under council resolutions, sanctions cannot be lifted until UNinspectors certify that Iraq's nuclear, chemical and biologicalweapons have been destroyed along with the long-range missiles todeliver them.
But the United States has deployed its own inspectors to searchfor weapons of mass destruction--and U.S. Ambassador John Negropontemade clear Tuesday that the Bush administration doesn't want UNinspectors to return any time soon.
Chief UN weapons inspector Hans Blix said he didn't see "anyadversarial arrangement" between his inspectors and the U.S.-ledcoalition's teams. "We're all interested in finding the truth aboutthe situation, whatever it is," he said.
"But at the same time I am also convinced that the world and theSecurity Council . . . would like to have inspection and verificationwhich bear the imprint of an independent institution."
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Baghdad celebrated the beginning of the end Tuesday of adevastating three-week power outage. Still, more than 80 percent ofthe city remained in darkness--and doctors reported the firstsuspected cases of cholera and typhoid, with no clean running wateryet.
Despite a lack of power, water and phones--in addition toshuttered shops, hourslong lines at gas stations and closed schools--Baghdad's people on Tuesday showed signs of bouncing back from theU.S. military invasion and the mob pillaging and burning thatfollowed the collapse of Saddam Hussein's regime.
In crowded streets, pickups carrying families returning fromwartime havens in the countryside scraped up against trucks ferryingoranges to market.
Some drivers reveled in the once-forbidden act of stopping onBaghdad's bridges over the Tigris River--coming out of their vehiclesto stare down into the lavish riverside palace compounds of Saddam.
Residents across Baghdad have left their light switches flipped onfor weeks--waiting for electricity to return.
The money trail
Piles of U.S. currency, hundreds of millions of dollars so far,are being found in Iraq, even though the country has been undereconomic sanctions for nearly 13 years.
Investigators--on the ground in Iraq and in the United States--are trying to track the money back to where it came from, a Herculeantask, both officials and outside experts say.
In Baghdad, U.S. soldiers--trying to stop looting--discovered morethan $600 million in tightly wrapped packets of new $100 dollar billshidden behind a false wall, U.S. military officials said Tuesday.
The New York Post reported Tuesday that four soldiers with theArmy's 4th Battalion of the 64th Armored Division have been arrestedfor trying to steal $1 million of the cash and now face courts-martial.
Occupying Mosul
The U.S. Army occupied Mosul from the air and on the groundTuesday with little resistance except scattered small-arms fire,taking custody of a northern city they said was in good shape forquick rehabilitation once the security situation improves.
Marines had been holding parts of Mosul, including the airfield,awaiting the Army's arrival. Last week, 17 Iraqis were killed inconfrontations with American forces in Mosul, local hospitalofficials said.
"If people would stop shooting at each other, then the place wouldbe all right," said Maj. Gen. David Petraeus, commander of the 101stAirborne Division. "The bottom line is, if we provide security inMosul, it will blossom on its own."
AP
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