Friday, April 06, 2007
Leader of Muslim Scholars Association criticises security plan
Politics, Security
(KUNA) Muslim Scholars Association Secretary-General Sheikh Harith al-Dari on April 3, criticized the Baghdad security plan, saying it unfairly targets Iraqi civilians, KUNA reported on April 4. Speaking at the Egyptian Journalists' Association in Cairo, al-Dari said the security operation is displacing Iraqis and creating a state of siege, all under the pretext of fighting terrorism.
He claimed that the aim of the security plan is to kill and torture Iraqis who are opposed to the presence of foreign forces in Iraq. He went on to praise the resistance, stressing that it is "carrying out its role courageously in confronting the occupation forces." Al-Dari also described the current security crisis in Iraq as "discord between all sects," and said it will not develop into a full-scale civil war.
COMMENT: The Hayat Al-Ulama Al-Muslimin [Association of Muslim Scholars (AMS] is also known as the Ulema Council. Ulema is the community of legal scholars of Islam and the Sharia. The Ulema Council was created on 14 April 2003, five days after the fall of Saddam Hussein. It grouped all the country's Sunni ulema. The Muslim Ulema Council is the highest Sunni authority in Iraq. Shaykh Dr Harith Sulayman al-Dari is its secretary general. The Council comprises several religious institutions that existed before the occupation of Iraq in April last year. It has many activities on the political, social, economic, and religious levels.
The Ulema Council had called for calm among its followers in the face of provocations from some Shias. They also accuse neighbouring Shia-dominated Iran of trying to fuel growing religious tensions in the country by reaching out to Moqtada al-Sadr. Sunni clerics in the Muslim Ulema Council became increasingly vocal and teamed up with some influential Shias to oppose the occupation. The Muslim Scholars Association issued a statement in its weekly "Al-Basa'ir" urging Iraqi police and military forces not to partake in operations in support of U.S.-led multinational forces. They as of yet have not joined the newly formed government and remain as opposition group due to the fact that they believe joining the process whilst iraq is under occupation is unjust. COMMENT ENDS.
Labels: Muslim Scholars Association, Sheikh Harith al-Dari
