Leading Shiite cleric says new Iraq must embrace Islamic law

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

By Steven Komarow, USA TODAY
BAGHDAD — A high-ranking Shiite cleric who helped a coalition of religious parties to apparent victory in Iraq's elections eight days ago said Sunday that the new constitution must embody Islamic law.

"We will accept no compromise," said a statement by Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Ishaq al-Fayad, one of the three top Shiite clerics who serve beneath the most senior religious leader, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. Al-Fayad said separation of religion and state must be "completely rejected."

Story with Cheney explaining how this won't happen: http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2005-02-06-iraq-shiite_x.htm

[truebrit71]

1. Umm, methinks that Halliburt..I mean..the U.S. govt won't like that..

Great, just great, ANOTHER bunch of loonies running a mid-east country...thanks georgie..I am sure the women of Iraq are specially thrilled with this.. :eyes:

[Sydnie]

2. Who wants to bet they (women) had their first and last voting opportunity

on the same day?

[PsychoDad]

27. If the Iraqi Shia government...

Is anything like Iran - women will retain the right to vote and to hold office.

I know, who woudda thunk!

[barb162]

30. Yes, the the first and last time those Iraqi women saw a ballot ....

[hector459]

23. Why shouldn't the US like this? Isn't Bush trying to combine church

and state in the US?

[Kinkistyle]

34. CHURCH and state not MOSQUE and state.

Subtle but major difference.

[VegasWolf]

3. Guess there won't be many adultress women there but with stoning

and all!

[fshrink]

4. Welcome to a sister nation!

United under god. With no separation between state and church. With rulers inspired by a savior. With all the beauties attached to it. And the myriad of ways to submit and manipulate human beings so they be obedient, terrified and productive.

[VegasWolf]

5. Yes, but they can't agree on a definition of god and are therefore

destined to fight to the last drop of impure blood!

[fshrink]

8. And since believers here don't agree with any of them either...

Mine is better than yours.

[charlie]

6. This is going to be really weird

when the rightwing amen chorus get to work spinning the introduction of Sharia and burqas as newly minted Freedom and Democracy in the mideast.

Hey Likudniks! Looks like Good Friend Dubya just created another Muslim theocracy in your back yard. Send Bibi back over here to remind us again why this war was necessary, we could use a good laugh.

[Why Syzygy]

7. m'kay. we can be pretty sure Chainyank is not

a prophet.

Cheney predicted Iraqis would try to avoid recreating what they've seen next door in Iran: "a religious theocracy that has been a dismal failure."

"Prediction" with no warrant for same.

"dismal failure"? They have nukes? Or no?
If Iran is such a failure, why is the boy king in such a hurry to bomb 'em?

Oh, America, the land of the brave and free only strikes out at dismally failed nations?

Do they even believe their own propaganda, the lies?
Impossible to imagine.

[reprobate]

29. why is the boy king in such a hurry to bomb 'em? It's the euro.

Iran is developing a new oil marketplace and planning to use the euro as petro currency, which will mean the dollar is no longer the governing currancy.

It's the same thing saddam did in 2000, and why we are in iraq right now.

[buddysmellgood]

32. Yes. Thank you. That's got to be it.

[deacon2]

33. Believe you are right on the mark here.

China's making the same noise. Will this be our ultimate punishment for overt imperialism? More folks around the globe appear to be seeing a currency shift as the big stick to whack the Emperor with. Sadly, we're between him and the hickory. Canned goods and candles...

[Moderator]

9. kick

[Oilwellian]

10. Leading Shiite cleric says new Iraq must embrace Islamic law

By Steven Komarow, USA TODAY
BAGHDAD — A high-ranking Shiite cleric who helped a coalition of religious parties to apparent victory in Iraq's elections eight days ago said Sunday that the new constitution must embody Islamic law.

"We will accept no compromise," said a statement by Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Ishaq al-Fayad, one of the three top Shiite clerics who serve beneath the most senior religious leader, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. Al-Fayad said separation of religion and state must be "completely rejected."

Vice President Cheney, on Fox News Sunday, cautioned against jumping to conclusions about what kind of document Iraq's Transitional National Assembly will write. He indicated the United States plans a hands-off approach. "We need to step back a bit now," Cheney said. "The bottom line for everybody to remember here is, this is not going to be, you know, an Iraqi version of America. This is going to be Iraqi."

Cheney predicted Iraqis would try to avoid recreating what they've seen next door in Iran: "a religious theocracy that has been a dismal failure."

Iraqi Shiite Muslims chant religous
slogans as they celebrate their preliminary
success in the country’s historic elections.
Wathiq Khuzaie, Getty Images

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2005-02-06-iraq-shiite_x.htm

[bluestateguy]

11. 1449 Americans dead to install a theocracy

Now if that's what they want to have, fine, but I'll be damned if Americans should spill their blood to install a 21st century Ayatollah run government.

[Not_Giving_Up]

12. I've been saying this for days...Iran is next

* will say that they messed with the Iraq elections, which is why they turned out they way they did. Hide your children, I feel a draft!

[purduejake]

13. Or lets move out and stop funding the slaughter machine.

Easier said than done. I'm still here.

[Oilwellian]

14. Iraqi women must be pleased

At least under Saddam they lived in a secular society, were very well educated, working, and somewhat Westernized. It should be interesting to see how these clerics approach womens rights.

[Freedom_from_Chains]

15. Opps

This isn't going to go over big.

[w4rma]

16. This is the only way out, from what I can tell. Note that OBL is partying.

An Islamic government over Iraq is *exactly* one of the priorities that he has been fighting for all these years.

So, Freeper lurkers. You just supported a bunch of traitors who spent hundreds of billions of our dollars and thousands of American lives to make OBL's dream come true.

I want the whole !@#$ing Republican leadership to eat crow and be kicked far far out of power over this. We DUers tried to tell you they were incompetent and untrustworthy. Isn't this proof enough?

[regnaD kciN]

17. Not exactly...

An Islamic government over Iraq is *exactly* one of the priorities that he has been fighting for all these years.

ObL wants an Islamic state patterned on Wahabi principles, i.e. fundamentalist Sunni. They regard Shi'ites as infidels.

I'm sure, though, that he's quite happy at how the Iraq invasion has helped his recruiting efforts. He'll be even more happy should BushCo panic over the election results and try to keep the Shi'ites out of any real power under U.S. colonial oversight, or, better yet, try to overturn the elections altogether.

[w4rma]

20. Interesting. I agree. (nt)

[dutchdoctor]

18. can anyone say "Sharia"?

This is great. If helping the Taliban into power in Afghanistan led to 9/11 ,I wonder what this will lead to..
BTW I don't think Iraq's Shia population see Iran as a "dismal failure" as FU Cheney would have you believe.

[Oilwellian]

22. Particularly since...

Sistani was exiled to Iran for the past 20 years. And let's not forget Chalabi's special relationship with Iran.

[dutchdoctor]

24. Eggsactly,

And since Iran is the only country in the world where the Shia hold power, they will find enough reason to cooperate closely with the new Iraqi government, creating a new middle eastern (nuclear?) powerhouse with a grudge against the U.S. the size of, let's say, Texas?

[despairing optimist]

26. Vanna, can I have another "i," please?

She'll have to cover up if she wants to take Wheel of Fortune on the road, though.

It looks like the moo-lahs are playing good-cop bad-cop. Sistani says "secular Islamic state" and his underlings cry for Sharia.

[hootinholler]

19. Sure they weren't speaking about Dobson and Strict Constructionist Judges?

-Hoot

[Jeff in Cincinnati]

21. Crap!

Who could have seen that one coming?!

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

25. For some reason, everyone except the Bush Amin.

http://www.cafepress.com/bushbytes

[tabasco]

28. Oil Baron Cheney and the Bush cabal will let Iraq elect a ...

ham sandwich as a government as long as the Cheney gangsters control the oil. All the talk about installing a democracy is plain bullshit (remember that wasn't the first ostensible reason for war).

Nothing about this tragedy makes sense unless you look at it as an oil grab, which is exactly what it is.

[applegrove]

31. LOL

LOL Ham sandwich!!

[PurityOfEssence]

35. just cuz you guarantee there'll be no clerics in government doesn't mean

it won't be TOTAL THE0CRACY!

Junior likes god, but he's never seen real godcontrol.

Bummer.