Iraq fears renewed violence

By Emad Al-shara

A recent spate of attacks largely directed at Baghdad's Shia neighborhoods is fueling concerns that sectarian and political violence may be returning to the city. Residents are especially worried, given that American forces are to withdraw from Iraqi cities by next week.

Shias haven't been the only victims. Car bombings have also occurred recently in the Dora district, which is predominantly Sunni. But some fear that the high number of incidents aimed at Shia targets indicates that sectarian and political violence is on the rise.

"This environment is really scary," said Mohamed Ali, a Baghdad resident. "There are whispers of the possibility of more sectarian violence and sectarian political parties taking control." Ali al-Allaq, a member of the Shia-led United Iraqi Alliance bloc, said he believes Shia areas are being targeted "to stir up a sectarian war."

Many recall that the bombing of the Shia al-Askari shrine in Samarra in 2006 ignited bloody sectarian battles that brought the country to the brink of civil war. "Iraqi citizens have been burned by sectarian fire," said Abdulmunam al-Asam, a writer and political analyst. "They fear [sectarianism] will return."

The latest attacks have prompted more checkpoints around Shia areas. Other precautions, such as a street-parking ban and bus inspections, are being vigorously enforced.

So far, the Shia-led government has little to say about the uptick in violence. Nor have any of the groups associated with violence claimed responsibility for recent attacks.

A source in the Iraqi military's Baghdad command said the military believes al-Qaeda and other Sunni fundamentalists carried out the bombings. He cited intelligence that vehicles used in attacks entered Shia neighborhoods from Al-Radhwaniyah, an area just southwest of Baghdad known as a Sunni militant hotbed. The source added that security forces believe that cars laden with explosives are still moving freely in the capital.

But Sheikh Ali Hatim al-Sulaiman, a Sunni leader, said he doubted al-Qaeda or Sunni groups were behind the attacks. "It's difficult for al-Qaeda to blow up three booby-trapped cars at the same time in the same place, given the fact that it doesn't have a solid base in the capital," he said.

Whoever is behind the attacks has rekindled fears. Othman Ahmed, a Sunni shop owner in a majority-Shia neighborhood, was with his father at a Kadhimiyah hospital when the Musa al-Kadhim shrine was hit. As bodies were rushed to the hospital, Ahmed said, he feared retaliation.

"I immediately called a Shia friend," he said. "I asked him to come and get us out quickly, because I was afraid that my father and I would be killed if the Shias reacted to the bombing."

But others counsel calm. Sheikh Jassim al-Mindilawie, an imam in the mainly Shia Al-Shurta Al-Rabia neighborhood, said Shia religious leaders "don't want to be dragged into a sectarian conflict again. Terrorist attacks should be dealt with by the elected government, not by us."