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The spokesman for cleric Sayyed Moqtada Al Sadr announced on Monday that Al Sadr received feedback from religious authorities over the extension of US troops term in Iraq beyond 2011.
Religious authorities rejected the extension of US Forces term in Iraq, the spokesman said.
Al Sadr affirmed to the religious authorities that Washington is pressuring the Iraqi government to “legalize” the non-withdrawal of US Forces, a source from Al Sadr Front revealed.
Sadr Front leader Sayyed Moqtada Al Sadr sent referendums to a number of Sunni and Shiite authorities over their stand if US Forces remain in Iraq beyond 2011. Religious authorities rejected the extension of US troops term which they believe is a violation to the country’s sovereignty and an aggression against the people’s integrity, Salah Al Ubaidi told Alsumarianews.
After receiving the answers of religious authorities, Al Sadr stressed the necessity for the people including Iraqi tribes to mark a stand against the extension of US troops term in Iraq, Al Ubaidi added.
In this regard, Al Sadr addressed the following religious authorities: Kazem Al Ha’iri, Isaac Al Fayad, Mahmoud Al Hashemi Al Husseini, Ali Al Akbar Al Ha’iri, Mortada Al Moussawi Al Kazwini and head of the Supreme Shiite Islamic Council Abdul Amir Qabalan Al Tofaili in addition to Muslims Scholars Association and Al Azhar Al Sharif as well as Cardinal Emmanuel, a source from Al Sadr Front told Alsumarianews.
The referendum was based on three questions namely: “What if the occupier stays in Iraq without the approval of the Iraqi government. How can we legally back the government? What would be our stand if the occupier stays in Iraq by the consent of the government? Kindly advise about this issue”, the source speaking on condition of anonymity said.
Religious authorities rejected the extension of US troops in Iraq beyond 2011, the source said.
Al Sadr’s letter read out: “The occupier has implicit intentions that are close to settling in beloved Iraq. The occupier wants to pressure the Iraqi government in order to ratify a law that legalizes their presence in the country with the authority to make arrests and interfere in the interior affairs of a country that enjoys an Islamic history and future”.
Speaker Ousama Al Nujaifi affirmed on Sunday night that any decision regarding the new security agreement with the United States would be difficult to take in light of the complicated political situation in the country.
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