A 'psychological crisis'
Harith Al-Dhari is a wanted man. In early November, the Shiite-dominated Iraqi government accused the influential Sunni leader of inciting terrorism and issued a warrant for his arrest while he was out of the country. Al-Dhari, who also heads Iraq's influential Muslim Scholars Association, declared the warrant illegal, and continued traveling around the region as part of his campaign to get other Arab states to deny recognition to Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's administration. The warrant has further inflamed tensions in Iraq, where many consider al-Dhari -- a longtime supporter of violent resistance against American troops -- a hero. He spoke to Newsweek's Michael Hastings at his current home in Amman, Jordan.Hastings: Why did you think the Iraqi government issued the warrant? Al-Dhari: Because of the chaos and lack of security and the killings, and the destruction. There is a psychological crisis in the government. Our political speech is realistic and very honest and is starting to disturb them. It uncovers a lot of facts that they don't want to reveal. My visits to the Arab countries have established pressure on them. Also what happened in Washington ... the (midterm) elections made the (Iraqi) government afraid of the unknown. They (carried out) a number of irresponsible procedures, and one of them was the warrant for my arrest. One of the reasons for this warrant is that they say I incite divisions, sectarian divisions between the Iraqi people, that I am provoking them. That's what they claim. Do you blame the Americans for the warrant?
I don't blame them because I'm not sure that the US was behind it. I blame the Iraqi government. Whether it was al-Maliki or others behind it, I don't know. In practical terms, this warrant cannot have come out without the prime minister's knowledge. Can al-Maliki stop the death squads?
I don't think he is unable to stop it. And if he is unable to stop it, he should step down from his position. If he really cares about Iraq and the Iraqi people because he is the person responsible for Iraq, and if he is unable to stop the death squads and crimes against the Iraqi people, he should resign. If it goes on and he's unable to stop it, that means he approves of it. The recent violence has been the worst since the war began. What's your solution?
(In Washington), they're all getting solutions they're not capable of doing. It could be very easily done. To stop the political process, and find an alternative, a strong defining alternative that is able to give them security for Iraq and Iraqis. To end this mockery, what they call democracy, what they call this political process, that is considered one of the stupidest jokes in history. You're called a terrorist by some in the government.
They claim this because I support the resistance. (They say that) as long as I support the resistance, I'm a terrorist and I support al-Qaeda. So you distinguish between the resistance and al-Qaeda?
al-Qaeda is part of the resistance. But the resistance (consists of) two kinds. The resistance that only resists occupation -- this we support 100 percent -- and the resistance that mixes up resisting occupation and killing the innocents and the Iraqi people. Even if it calls itself resistance, we condemn (this). We do not support it at all. But much of the violence is Sunni versus Shia. So what do you tell your followers?
There is a resistance that only resists occupation, and there are groups that are in the same tunnel as the occupation, and they help and support the occupation by fighting the resistance. And the resistance answers these parties. (Shiite cleric) Moqtada al-Sadr called upon you to issue a fatwa condemning violence after the latest wave of attacks.
He knows very well (that) we were the first to issue these fatwas, three years ago. The most important was that it was sacrilegious to kill a Muslim, and we spoke about this. There was a comprehensive agreement, and we wanted the declaration to be signed by all the (religious schools), and also the Sadrite group. The government rejected it and mocked it. (So) why is Sadr saying it now? Is he trying to provoke a problem? When the Americans attacked Sadr and surrounded him in Najaf and Kufah, we made a fatwa to stop Muslims from killing Muslims. We stood by (Sadr), and the Iranian marja (religious schools) and Lebanese marja stayed away. We stood by him and helped him anyway. So is Sadr a friend or an ally now?
He will not come back as a friend or ally unless he lets go of supporting the occupation, and denounces the division of Iraq, sectarianism and federalism. Are you worried about Iran's designs on Iraq?
No. The Iraqi people are real people, strong people -- they will resist. (c) 2006, Newsweek Inc. All rights reserved. Reprinted by arrangement.
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