This article appeared in the "Globe & Mail", a Canadian newspaper. I thought I should share it as it mentions briefly the fact that Imam Hussein is burried in Karbala, and that Najaf is the burial site of Prophet Muhammad.
Scholars urge U.S. to respect sacred Shia sites
By GRAEME SMITH
Tuesday, March 25, 2003 - Page A6
As helicopters and rockets filled the skies above the golden mosques at Karbala and Najaf yesterday, Islamic experts urged the U.S. military to tread carefully around these two holy cities that could be essential to winning favour with Iraq's Shia Muslims.
Reports of attack helicopters blasting elite Iraqi Republican Guard units around these cities will be nerve-racking for Iraq's 60-per-cent majority of Shiites, said Samer Shehata, an assistant professor of Arab politics at Georgetown University in Washington.
"The question becomes, what happens if missiles or rockets or bullets go astray?" Mr. Shehata said. "It would be outrageous. I can't even imagine what could happen. Oh my God."
Karbala and Najaf lie about 100 kilometres and 160 kilometres south of Baghdad respectively, with populations of about 500,000 each. Both attract tens of thousands of Muslim pilgrims every year. Unlike Mecca in Saudi Arabia, these are not sites that must be visited by every Muslim who is able, but they have historically served as replacements for Mecca when conflicts have made trips to Saudi Arabia difficult.
Even as war loomed, Mr. Shehata said, the streets of Karbala were full of Muslim visitors -- many from neighbouring Iran -- when he visited the city in early January.
The gleaming golden dome and spires of the central mosque in Karbala are the central attraction, Mr. Shehata said, but the mosque is also surrounded by other sacred sites. These include the tomb of Imam Hussein and a graveyard for the martyrs of the battle of Karbala, which is encircled by gardens and groves of fruit and palm trees. Offices and classrooms for religious education are also concentrated in neighbourhoods around the mosque.
"It's not just a mosque. It's more like the Vatican," Mr. Shehata said.
Shia Muslims worship at Karbala because it is where Imam Hussein, a grandson of the Prophet Mohammed, fought against Yazid, the son of Caliph Muawiya. Both men claimed succession rights to lead the Muslim faithful.
When Imam Hussein and his 72 followers were killed in 680 AD near Karbala, the event divided Islam, and gave rise to the Sunni and Shia sects.
Najaf is important for similar reasons. It is the legendary burial place of Ali, the Prophet's son-in-law and Imam Hussein's father. He was killed 19 years before the battle at Karbala.
The more recent battles around these holy cities will be closely watched among Shiites in Iraq, said Yitzhak Nakash, a professor at Brandeis University in Massachusetts and author of The Shi'is of Iraq.
Although Shiites are Iraq's largest religious group, the country has long been dominated by the Sunnis, and Iraqi soldiers have been known to desecrate Shia holy sites.
Showing respect to the sites means leaving them alone, the experts said, adding soldiers would be expected to stay out of mosques and other sacred places.
Current affairs - Iraqi cities of Karbala and Najaf
Go ahead make my day
I think may be we can spare Najaf and Karbla and annihilate the whole place. They are the same people who put the dagger in the back of my First Imam and beheaded the 2nd. Plus, I am an American with Persian blood that makes me double the trouble.