Zeyad is one of the more intelligent Iraqi bloggers. He posted this about the current activity in Najaf. A question I've had is: Why does a certified scumbag like Muqtada Al-Sadr have the "keys" to the shrine of Imam Ali? What idiot would give Sadr such authority? Apparently the keys were originally trusted to a Shiite cleric named Radhwan Al-Rufai'i. Supposably one of Sadr's goons took the keys by force from Al-Rufai'i. Also, why is Sistani playing games with Sadr in terms of enabling Sadr to retreat from the Imam Ali mosque? Supposably there is a huge religious treasure of gold and jems stored in the mosque that Sadr has already looted. The disappearance of this treasure will make kicking Sadr's thugs out of the mosque very tricky indeed. What Sadr would want is for someone outside to launch a military assault, then have his guys dynamite the mosque and then claim the attacking army looted the treasure. Of course, Allawi and the USMC commanders are hip to Sadr's scheme which is why no one is in a big hurry to enter the mosque.

Gary