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Sunnis
Complain of “State Terror” in Iraq
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“They (Iraqi forces) are trying to hide the truth and cover up those behind the killings,” Dari said.
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By
Samir Haddad, IOL Correspondent
BAGHDAD,
May 17, 2005 (IslamOnline.net) – The gruesome discovery of mutilated
bodies sparked fears sectarian killings in Iraq, with Sunni leaders
accusing the dominant-Shiite newly-formed security forces of pursuing
a policy of “state terror” against Iraq’s Sunni Arabs.
“The
mass killings and the crackdown and detention campaigns in
north-eastern Baghdad over the past two days by members of the Iraqi
police or by an Interior Ministry special force, known as the ‘Wolf
Brigade’, are part of a state terror policy,” Mothana Harith
Al-Dari, spokesman of the Association of Muslim Scholars, (AMS) told
IslamOnline.net Monday, May 16.
Up
to 48 bodies were found slain and mutilated across Iraq Sunday and
Monday, Fifteen of them uncovered in a Baghdad’s predominantly Sunni
neighborhood after they were shot in the head.
“The
bodies were of Iraqis detained by the Iraqi security forces during a
crackdown operation in the neighborhood on Sunday,” the AMS said in
a statement.
Two
of the victims, who were still alive, said the “Wolf Brigade”, an
interior ministry special force, was responsible for their killing.
“They
arrested us and fired bullets at our heads after having our mouths
muzzled and hands tied behind backs,” the statement quoted the
survivors as saying.
The
two victims were immediately admitted to a Baghdad hospital but the
Iraqi national guardsmen stormed the building and took away one of the
victims to an unidentified area.
“They
(Iraqi forces) are trying to hide the truth and cover up those behind
the killings as they did in the city of Madaen,” Dari said.
Earlier
this month, a 1,500-strong Iraqi force backed by US troops stormed the
Iraqi city of Madaen to rescue what they said were Shiite hostages in
the city, but there was no sign of hostage-taking in the city.
Brutal
Practices
The
AMS spokesman also cited examples of brutal practices exercised by the
Iraqi security forces against the Sunni scholars in the country.
“Sheikh
Abdul Karem, a Sunni mosque imam, was subject to severe torture by the
Iraqi forces to admit crimes he never committed,” Dari said, quoting
a Sunni mosque imam who was detained along with Sheikh Abdul Karem by
the Iraqi forces but was later released.
Iraqi
national guardsmen, however, denied carrying out any detention
campaign in the predominantly Sunni neighborhood in the Iraqi capital.
“Iraqi
national guardsmen have no connection with the detention campaigns in
the area over the past two days,” head of the Iraqi national
guardsmen said in a message to the AMS, the highest Sunni authority in
Iraq.
“The
detention campaign was conducted by the ‘Wolf Brigades’, which was
responsible for taking the slain Iraqis to a camp in central
Baghdad.”
Fears
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Shiite leaders are calling for “sectarian harmony”. (Reuters)
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The
gruesome discovery of the mutilated bodies raised fears of tit-for-tat
sectarian killings between Shiites and Sunnis, prompting Shiite
figures to call on their armed militiamen to avoid such acts.
“Any
action targeting unarmed civilians is forbidden under any
circumstances,” firebrand Shiite leader Muqtada Al-Sadr said in a
rare public appearance in Najaf, Agence France Presse (AFP) said
Tuesday, May 17.
“All
Sunnis cannot be held responsible for the terrorist deeds of the
occupiers and Nawaseb,” he said, referring to what he sees as
“Sunni hardliners” inspired by the Wahhabi creed dominant in
neighboring Saudi Arabia.
A
similar call was echoed by Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim Al-Jaafari,
who went to the holy city of Najaf to meet the reclusive Shiite
scholar Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.
“Sayyed
Sistani insisted on the brotherhood between Shiites and Sunnis and the
need to include our Sunni brothers in the constitution-drafting
process,” Jaafari told reporters.
Desecration
In
another development, the AMS spokesman accused US occupation forces of
desecrating the Noble Qur'an during a crackdown operation on mosques
in the western Iraqi city of Ramadi.
Crosses
were drawn on the Noble Books and the walls of the mosque, Dari said.
“Al-Quds
Al-Sharif mosque in the city was stormed by US occupation forces and
the Iraqi national guardsmen on May 14, where the faithful were denied
access to perform dawn prayers,” Dari said.
“The
faithful filmed the grisly attack and brought it to AMS headquarters
as evidence.”
US
Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, during a surprise visit to Iraq
Sunday, highlighted Us concerns over sidelining Iraqi Sunnis in the
political process, citing their meager representation in the committee
tasked with drafting the permanent constitution.
Of
55 members, mainly Shiite and Kurds, only 2 members of the committee
are Sunnis.
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