The Iman Ali shrine is a big structure and it's surrounded by a nightmarish residential area reminiscent of a Gaudi architectural design.

Take a look at this satellite shot (not current ;-)

As you can see it's almost built like an old fortress. The area immediately surrounding it is a target alley where US forces are sitting ducks. And even the roads leading to it are surrounded with the worst nook and cranny nightmare a soldier trying to lockdown an area could ever face.

Stop.

Look again at those houses to the southeast of the shrine. In those areas are snipers for the resistance the things are linked like a honeycomb, except the honeycomb would be far easier to navigate for search & destroy missions. It's a miracle we don't have higher casualties when we engage in such "sensitive" warfare.

It would be easy to take the whole thing out but if you look at Najaf those type of ugly structures around are pretty much what's left. This shrine is IT - their only decent looking structure for miles and miles.

Here's another shot of Najaf centering on the shrine: (Najaf includes an area about ten times what is imaged below)

You see what I mean. If we destroy this shrine the whole town will go nuts. It would be like knocking down their Statue of Liberty. It's a shacktown - a highly religious shacktown where this particular shack is the most important structure around.

US forces can't move in without either risking unnecessarily high casualties or causing massive destruction. Neither option is a good one. Sadr can be anywhere inside or carefully hidden in any of these nightmarish residential areas.

If I had my druthers - I'd take the whole thing out with a GPS guided bomb. But it's bound to spark the birth of more Sadrs in the process, but it would take away one of the best fortified spots in the city.

Supposedlty the insurgents have handed the keys of the shrine to a religious caretaker, but that means little or nothing. This is a BIG shrine as you can see. Hiding hundreds of insurgents in one corner of it would be a piece of cake.

Hope that helps get a better feel on the whole Najaf/shrine thing. It's a messy nightmare and you can see why Bush had no desire to make a call saying "Take Sadr out, whatever the cost" Now that we are working with the new Iraqi leadership who respect/worship these structures even more, that call just wont be made unless Sadr gives the new Iraqi government no choice.

Okay Tom.... this post and imagery will self destruct in less than 12 hours...you make the call.

How do you get Sadr and his hundreds of insurgents?

;-)

SDAI-Tech1