The Bush statement at the Korean DMZ about "The Axis of Evil" was taken seriously by those in North Korea, Iraq and Iran. The invasion into Iraq sealed the deal for all those now a target of the Bush/Cheney administration.
The people of Iraq had longed for their freedom for a very long time. Their holy men no longer wanted oppressive governments.
The Shi'ites had survived in violent regimes across the Middle East and they wanted it all ended. In Iraq, much to the credit of the Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, considered the peace Ayatollah, he ministered to his people in ways that held them in religious piety while living within the oppression they faced daily.
Their land was everything to them. Their holy cities were places of pilgramage and with that came local economies of tourism. But, their resolve with the end of Saddam was cemented. The Shi'ites would no more be held captive by any power.
The people of Iraq had longed for their freedom for a very long time. Their holy men no longer wanted oppressive governments.
The Shi'ites had survived in violent regimes across the Middle East and they wanted it all ended. In Iraq, much to the credit of the Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, considered the peace Ayatollah, he ministered to his people in ways that held them in religious piety while living within the oppression they faced daily.
Their land was everything to them. Their holy cities were places of pilgramage and with that came local economies of tourism. But, their resolve with the end of Saddam was cemented. The Shi'ites would no more be held captive by any power.
