Maliki commemorates top cleric Sadr on death anniversary

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki commemorated late top Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Mohammed Mohammed Sadeq al-Sadr, who was assassinated in 1999, on the 10th anniversary of his death, according to an official statement on Friday. “We offer the Iraqi people and the Muslim nation heartfelt condolences over the 10th anniversary of the martyrdom of Imam Sadr and his two sons, praying for God Almighty to bestow mercy on all the martyrs of Iraq on top of them the struggling scholars,” read the statement as received by IraqiNews.com news agency. “The revolt of Martyr Sadr was a resounding shout of opposition and an illuminating milestone in the history of strife in the face of injustice and tyranny. The believing masses had rallied behind his calls to revive the Friday prayers that have acted as a pulpit for reform and resistance of despotism,” the Iraqi premier said in his statement. Sadr’s 1999 assassination was blamed on the authorities then, given the fact that Sadr adopted attitudes taken as running counter to the ruling regime. AmR (P) 1