"Yes to Moqtada, yes to Iraq, yes to liberation," chanted tens of thousands of demonstrators as they poured into the revered Shiite cities of Kufa and Najaf Monday calling for US troops to leave Iraq.

The event – on the fourth anniversary of Baghdad's fall – was a clear message from Moqtada al-Sadr that the radical Shiite cleric remains a force to be reckoned with despite the fact he has been in hiding for months. His movement is under growing military pressure from US forces, including battles with Sadr's Mahdi Army militia in the city of Diwaniyah, south of Baghdad, that have killed at least 11 Iraqis since Friday.

"It proves that he's the only man capable of amassing such a huge demonstration and shows the weakness of the government and its allies," says Wamidh Nadhmi, a political science professor at the University of Baghdad.

"He's also trying to prove to all that he's the moving spirit among Shiites and that he has not changed his mind about the presence of US forces."

The demonstration, in which only Iraqi flags were allowed, was also an opportunity for Sadr to mend fences with moderate Sunnis given that his militia has been implicated in the wave of sectarian killings that have engulfed the country, according to Mr. Nadhmi.

Monday's marchers included some Kurds in traditional dress as well as Sunni clerics, many of whom were bused by Sadr's movement from the city of Basra in the south. "Let's put out the fire of discord and chop off the snake's head," chanted some in reference to Iraq's ongoing sectarian strife.

Sadr issued a statement Sunday calling for an end of fighting in Diwaniyah between members of his militia and US and Iraqi forces. "The forces of darkness led by the occupiers [US forces] are planting discord among the sons of the same nation.... My brothers in the Mahdi Army and the security forces, stop fighting because otherwise you are promoting the agenda of your common enemy," said the statement.

"To the Iraqi Army and police: do not follow the orders of the occupier because he is your enemy."

The majority of the Iraqi police and Army are Shiites, and some of the demonstrators were wearing Army uniforms.

On Sunday, tens of thousands of Sadr's supporters crammed into the backs of trucks or into minibuses draped with giant Iraqi flags to make the 100-mile journey south to Najaf. Passengers waved flags from honking vehicles. On arrival, people slept in parks, on sidewalks, and even inside Najaf's famed Valley of Peace cemetery, which was the scene of vicious fighting between Sadr's partisans and US forces in 2004. Huge vats were wheeled out into the streets to cook for the crowds.

The demonstration kicked off early on Monday morning amid tight security, including a ban on vehicle circulation inside Najaf and Kufa. In addition to the Iraqi police and soldiers, dozens of armed members of Sadr's movement fanned out among the crowds.

Protestors waving Iraqi flags and carrying banners emerged in groups from Kufa's Grand Mosque, walking about six miles to the 1920 Revolution Square in Najaf. The square, named after the Shiite uprising against British colonial rule, is also known as the Sadrain Square, in homage to Sadr's father and great uncle, both slain under Saddam Hussein's regime.

"No, No America. Death to America," read some of the banners.

Page: 1 | 2