Thousands of Shi’ites, many waving Islam’s holy book over their heads, protested the United States-led occupation in Iraq on Thursday, setting off clashes in at least one southern city as they answered a call by a radical cleric to paint Israeli and American flags on the ground and stomp on them.
A mortar barrage hit the main mosque in the Iraqi city of Kufa on Thursday, killing 27 people and wounding 63 others as they prepared to march on the violence-wracked city of Najaf, hospital officials and witnesses said. Hours after the attack, unidentified gunmen opened fire on thousands of Shi’ite Muslim marchers heading to Najaf, killing at least one, witnesses said.
Helicopter gunships opened fire on Shi’ite militants hiding in Najaf’s massive cemetery on Tuesday as United States patrols armed with speakers warned the militants to leave the city immediately. US tanks drove into the cemetery, explosions shook the streets and black smoke rose over parts of the city.
Violence spreads in Iraq