Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They
AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e
BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German
Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who
By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an
My Profile
Top News
Reuters top ten news stories delivered to your inbox each day.
Subscribe
You are here:
Home
>
News
>
International
>
Article
Home
Business & Finance
News
U.S.
Politics
International
Technology
Entertainment
Sports
Lifestyle
Oddly Enough
Health
Science
Special Coverage
Video
Pictures
Your View
The Great Debate
Blogs
Weather
Reader Feedback
Do More With Reuters
RSS
Widgets
Mobile
Podcasts
Newsletters
Your View
Make Reuters My Homepage
Partner Services
CareerBuilder
Affiliate Network
Professional Products
Support (Customer Zone)
Reuters Media
Financial Products
About Thomson Reuters
Iraqi army weathers first security test
Sat Jul 18, 2009 1:36pm EDT
Email | Print |
Share
| Reprints | Single Page
[-]
Text
[+]
By Wathiq Ibrahim
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's first major religious festival since U.S. troops pulled out of its cities ended largely peacefully Saturday, officials said, a sign Iraqi forces may have passed a first serious solo test.
Over the weekend, millions of pilgrims, mostly dressed in black, streamed to the golden domed Imam Moussa al-Kadhim shrine in northern Baghdad, site of some of the deadliest attacks on Iraqi civilians since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.
The ritual to commemorate the death of Imam Moussa al-Kadhim, a medieval Shi'ite Muslim figure, culminated on Saturday under heavy security without any of the catastrophic violence that has characterized Iraqi pilgrimages since 2003.
National elections loom in January and Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has staked his reputation on better security.
Baghdad security spokesman Qassim al-Moussawi told the BBC Arabic service some five million pilgrims had attended.
He said not a single attack had happened in Khadimiya itself. But some bombers nonetheless managed to attack pilgrims in different parts of Baghdad as they traveled to the shrine.
A roadside bomb targeting groups of pilgrims in Zaafaraniya, in southeastern Baghdad, killed one pilgrim and wounded six on Friday, police said. Police said another bomb in the area killed two pilgrims, although an Interior Ministry source said no one was killed in that blast. Other bombs placed on roads teeming with pilgrims wounded many in different districts.
But the strong turnout was a sign of just how far security has come in Baghdad since the 2006 and 2007 sectarian conflict.
"This is the biggest (pilgrimage) figure for some time in Iraq," Moussawi said. "It was a real test for our security forces and thanks be to God, they have succeeded."
SECURITY PACT
Shi'ite gatherings are often targeted by Sunni Islamist al Qaeda. In April, suicide bombers killed 60 people by the shrine.
During the pilgrimage in 2005, rumors of a bombing on the Bridge of the Imams, leading to the shrine, triggered a stampede that killed 1,000, clogging the river below with bodies.
Prime Minister al-Maliki praised Iraqi troops.
"This proved their abilities in performing their duties in a complete way which leaves no room for doubts," he said in a statement.
U.S. troops withdrew from Iraqi cities last month as part of a security pact that paves the way for full withdrawal by 2012, raising doubts in many Iraqis' minds about whether Iraq might backslide into greater sectarian or ethnic bloodshed. Continued...
View article on single page
Share:
Del.icio.us
Digg
Mixx
Yahoo!
Facebook
LinkedIn
Next Article:
U.S. fighter jet crashes in Afghanistan, 2 dead
Swine Flu
H1N1 virus spreading too fast to count
The World Health Organization says that the H1N1 flu pandemic is the fastest-moving pandemic ever and that it is now pointless to count every case. Full Coverage | Slideshow
Flu outbreak means lost summer for Mexican tourism
Blog: Graphic timeline of global flu pandemics
Factbox: How to fight flu spread
More International News
Honduras crisis talks start as Zelaya vows return
| Video
Clinton meets Mumbai victims, serenaded by artisans
Investigators sift for clues from Indonesia bombs
| Video
Mexican troops fan out across state hit by drug war
U.S. ready for talks and sanctions for North Korea
More International News...
Video
Pilgrimmage tests Iraqi forces
Play Video
More Video...
Related News
U.S. State Dept helicopter crashes in Iraq, two dead
12:14pm EDT
Iraq to consider unjustly accused from Saddam era
9:19am EDT
Editor's Choice
Slideshow
A selection of our best photos from the past 24 hours. Slideshow
Most Popular on Reuters
Articles
Video
Obama has tough-love message for African-Americans | Video
Obama tries to regain momentum in healthcare debate | Video
Ahmadinejad: Iran will "bring down" Western foes
New Harry Potter movie sets world opening record
Hillary Clinton rejects notion of diminished role | Video
Vinland Map of America no forgery, expert says
Earnings to decide stocks' fate
Legendary TV news anchor Walter Cronkite dies | Video
U.S. fighter jet crashes in Afghanistan, 2 dead
Yahoo board member Icahn wants Microsoft deal
Most Popular Articles RSS Feed
Video
CCTV video shows Jakarta blast
Campaign saves Escobar's hippo
Obama pushes healthcare reform
U.S. legend Cronkite dies
Miss Moscow can take the heat
Sarkozy stirs crowd in New York
Pilgrimmage tests Iraqi forces
Summers defends recovery efforts
Jakarta blasts halt Man U visit
Tehran demonstrators renew clashes
Most Popular Videos RSS Feed
We want to hear from you
Join the Reuters Consumer Insight Panel and help us get to know you better
Please take a moment to complete our survey
Reuters.com:
Help and Contact Us |
Advertise With Us |
Mobile |
Newsletters |
RSS |
Labs |
Archive |
Site Index |
Video Index
Thomson Reuters Corporate:
Copyright |
Disclaimer |
Privacy |
Professional Products |
Professional Products Support |
About Thomson Reuters |
Careers
International Editions:
Africa |
Arabic |
Argentina |
Brazil |
Canada |
China |
France |
Germany |
India |
Italy |
Japan |
Latin America |
Mexico |
Russia |
Spain |
United Kingdom |
United States
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.
NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.