-Caveat Lector- http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID= 2443643 Leave After War, Iraqi Opposition Group Tells U.S. Tue March 25, 2003 08:13 AM ET
TEHRAN (Reuters) - The leader of Iraq's main Shi'ite opposition group warned Washington on Tuesday that U.S. troops would face armed resistance if they stayed in Iraq once President Saddam Hussein was toppled. "Iraqis are against foreign dominance, and if they (the Americans) don't want to leave Iraq, the nation will resist," said Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir Hakim, head of the Tehran-based Supreme Council of the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI). "One of the legitimate ways of resistance against occupiers is force and weapons," he told a news conference. The gray-bearded, black-turbaned Hakim said SCIRI, which draws its support from Iraq's Muslim Shi'ite majority, said he had tens of thousands of troops stationed inside and outside Iraq, ready to resist any foreign occupation. The group's armed wing, known as the Badr Brigade, has paraded hundreds of lightly armed fighters in Kurdish- ruled northern Iraq. But it has tended to keep the size and whereabouts of its other forces a closely guarded secret. Iran, which fought an eight-year war against Iraq in the 1980s, has given aid and shelter to the group for more than two decades due to their shared Shi'ite Muslim beliefs and enmity for Saddam. But Tehran has said it will not allow its soil to be used as a launch pad for an attack on Iraq. Hakim said Badr had no military or operational contacts with Washington, and no decision had been taken yet for his forces to confront the Iraqi government. His men would respect "international rules and regulations" on crossing the Iranian border, he added. The United States is thought to be wary of Hakim's group because of its strong ties to Iran. Hakim, a 62-year-old cleric who fled to Iran in 1979, said Washington had told some Iraqi opposition groups to stay out of the current conflict. But he said it was for Iraqis to shape the future -- a hint to Washington to stay out of post-Saddam politics. "We believe the best way is to establish a national government instead of an appointed or imposed one from outside Iraq," he said. Iraq's divided opposition has been trying to patch up feuds to form a transitional government should Saddam be defeated, but Washington doubts their ability to fill a post-war power vacuum. The Shi'ite leader also warned U.S.-led forces to avoid any attack on Iraq's holy Shi'ite cities of Najaf and Karbala. Forwarded for your information. The text and intent of the article have to stand on their own merits. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this material is distributed without charge or profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this type of information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe simply because it has been handed down for many genera- tions. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumoured by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is written in Holy Scriptures. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of teachers, elders or wise men. Believe only after careful observation and analysis, when you find that it agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all. Then accept it and live up to it." The Buddha on Belief, from the Kalama Sutra <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html <A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html";>Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http://archive.jab.org/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="http://archive.jab.org/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/">ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
