Iraqis march against 'terror'

2003-12-05 16:19

Baghdad - About 1 000 Iraqis, mostly Shi'ites, rallied in central Baghdad to condemn "terrorism" against Iraqis and United States "liberation" forces on Friday as four Iraqis and a US soldier died in a bomb attack elsewhere in the capital.

Dozens of children aged between five and 10 marched at the front of the protest, with flowers in their hands, under white banners proclaiming in red letters: "Children - innocent victims of terrorism" and: "Terrorism blocks any future for children".

Organiser Sabih Hassan, head of a child protection association set up since the US-led invasion, said they had all "become orphans because of terrorism".

Hassan said the march, the second here in a week, was against "all operations, including those targeting Americans".

"Our children have a vital need for peace and security".

While the protest was under way, four Iraqis and a US soldier died and at least 15 people were wounded when a homemade bomb exploded as an American convoy drove down a crowded shopping street in Baghdad.

Forced out of business

The "Iraqi democratic trend", set up after the war by tribes in the Shi'ite areas of Karbala and Babel in central Iraq, organised the demonstration, said general secretary Aziz al-Yassiri.

Sheikh Abdul Jalil Cherhani, 55, a leading member of the group said: "We are against those who kill Iraqis, those who fight the Americans who liberated the country."

Abed Salman Ali, 43, a former second-hand clothes dealer said he had joined the demonstration to protest against the insecurity that has forced many street vendors like him out of business.

"It doesn't matter who the target is. This violence is blocking the reconstruction of our country," he complained.

Police escorted the demonstrators as they marched down Saadoun Street, the capital's main commercial thoroughfare, on the Muslim day of rest.

But no US military presence was visible, unlike the last such demonstration a week ago.

The protestors marched in groups of around 100, each carrying the banners of their tribes.

A series of similar demonstrations have been organised around Iraq in recent days with the coalition's blessing.

- AFP