Karbala citizens – amid blocs’ struggle, hope to forget past

arbala-Citizens-Features KARBALA / IraqiNews.com: A number of Karbala citizens expressed concern over the repetition of former conflicts between the blocs that won the recent provincial council elections. Analysts assert that the minimal number of these blocs will decrease these conflicts inside the council. “What causes us to worry are the winning lists in the elections and their former conflicts,” Ahmad al-Massoudi, an employee, told IraqiNews.com news agency. He expressed hope that these lists cooperate with each other and eliminate our concern. “No one can forget the armed conflicts the city witnessed during Ziyara al-Shaabaniya , or the mid-Shaaban visit, and the same blocs which clashed in the past won the elections, which causes us worry because weapons were the common language between them,” Ammar Hussein, another employee, said. “We hope that everyone provide us with the service we need,” he said. Ibrahim al-Taie, another local resident of Karbala, thought that the clashes of the al-Ziyara al-Shaabaniya , or the mid-Shaaban visit, pilgrimage were “the deadliest and most ferocious”. On August 28, 2007, clashes erupted between Iraqi security personnel and gunmen in Karbala during the rituals of the Shiite pilgrimage that commemorates the birth of the Messiah-like Imam al-Mahdi, the 12 th holiest figure for Shiite Muslims. Hundreds of thousands of Shiites from inside and outside Iraq flowed into the city in processions to perform the rituals of the visit. The clashes left hundreds of Iraqi security men and civilians killed or wounded. However, political analysts, Abdul Wahed Mahdi, said “the next stage does not pose any threat of conflict because four out of five blocs won.” “The personal conflicts exist before the partial conflicts in Karbala, and what citizens fear in Karbala is that these conflicts appear to become political conflicts,” Mahdi explained. “A number of former Karbala council members won the elections, most from the Dawlat al-Qanoon list, including Governor Aqeel al-Khazaali, and they should use this experience to provide services to citizens and to avoid conflicts which serve no one,” he also said. Karbala, with an estimated population of 572,300 people in 2003, is the capital of the province and is considered to be one of Shiite Muslims’ holiest cities. The city, 110 km south of Baghdad, is one of Iraq’s wealthiest, profiting both from religious visitors and agricultural produce, especially dates. It is made up of two districts, “Old Karbala,” the religious centre, and “New Karbala,” the residential district containing Islamic schools and government buildings. At the centre of the old city is Masjid al-Hussein, the tomb of Hussein Ibn Ali, grandsone of the Prophet Muhammad by his daughter Fatima al-Zahraa and Ali Ibn Abi Taleb. Imam Hussien’s tomb is a place of pilgrimage for many Shiite Muslims, especially on the anniversary of the battle, the Day of Ashuraa. Many elderly pilgrims travel there to await death, as they believe the tomb to be one of the gates to paradise. On April 14, 2007, a car bomb exploded about 600 ft (200 m) from the shrine, killing 47 and wounding over 150. SH (I)/SR 7