A6
The World
by Leila Fadel and Aziz Alwan
baghdad — Followers of fiery anti-U.S. cleric Moqtada al-Sadr voted Friday to determine whom they would back to be Iraq’s next prime minister, flexing their new- found political muscle and poten- tially causing problems for in- cumbent Nouri al-Maliki. Sadr is emerging as a domi- nant player in deciding how Iraq’s next government will be formed. His followers waged tough military battles with U.S. forces and were eventually driven underground. They have since emerged as an astute political or- ganization, winning at least 39 seats in the new parliament. The group prides itself on re- sisting the U.S. presence here. Sadr, who is studying in Iran to be a grand ayatollah, is being court-
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SATURDAY, APRIL 3, 2010
Iraqi Shiite cleric’s backers could pose problems for Maliki
ed by Iraqi politicians anxious for his support. “Those who say the Sadr trend is weak or marginalized should re-account and rethink this mat- ter,” said Sheik Hazem al-Araji, a close aide to Sadr. A representative of Maliki’s
State of Law bloc met this month with Sadr. Maliki, who went after Sadr’s Shiite militia in the south- ern port city of Basra and parts of Baghdad, is seen by Sadrists as a traitor. “The brothers in the State of
Law are trying to melt the ice,” said Amir al-Kinani, the head of Sadr’s political bloc. “Sayed Moq- tada let them return disappoint- ed.”
Sadrists may use the informal
referendum, which continues Saturday, as an excuse not to back Maliki, who endured a blow this week when another Shiite party appeared to back former prime
minister Ayad Allawi’s Iraqiya bloc. “The Iraqiya list received many votes. We shall not participate in a government that doesn’t have them,” the head of the Islamic Su- preme Council of Iraq, Amar al- Hakim, said on the party’s Web site. The group, seen as backed by Iran, ran in the same Shiite coali- tion as the Sadrists for the elec- tions. Maliki, whose bloc won 89
seats, and Allawi, whose alliance won 91, are trying to build coali- tions large enough to form the next government. Other political groups have requested meetings with the young cleric, Sadrist offi- cials said. Thousands of Shiites in the capital and southern provinces went Friday to makeshift polling centers set up in colorful tents. There were no rules or observers. Young children, women and men
marked the blue ballots, and some even voted more than once. They chose from five candidates, including Allawi and Maliki, or could write in another choice. The ballots were emblazoned with the words: “The choice of the people is our choice.” Whoever comes out on top is the person the group will back for prime minister. The Sadrists are emerging from a difficult period. The group had lost its way when Sadr’s mili- tia, once revered as the protectors of Shiites from Sunni insurgents, grew out of control and was blamed for some of the worst sec- tarian violence in Iraq. The organization originally was seen as one of the few Shiite movements independent of Iran because it was founded in Iraq under Saddam Hussein’s brutal government. Hussein is thought to have ordered the slaying of
Sadr’s father, Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Sadiq al-Sadr, a re- vered religious leader who spoke for the masses of the Shiite poor. Sadrists had stood staunchly against foreign intervention in Iraq, by either the United States or Iran. With Moqtada al-Sadr studying in neighboring Iran, it is unclear how much influence the country has on the group. Iran is said to have supplied funding and weapons for the militant wing. Although some political par- ties here with ties to Iran fared poorly in last month’s election, Iran has wide influence in Iraq. Iraqi politicians view the country as an important, if meddling, neighbor that could help or hurt their country’s future stability. The Sadr party is intent on ap- pearing distant from Iran, de- spite Sadr’s presence there. “The Iraqi government should form by the hands of the Iraqi
people themselves,” Araji said. “In general, we reject the interfer- ence of any country in our af- fairs.”
Also Friday, in a worrying sign of the country’s tenuous security, 23 prisoners broke out of a cen- tral prison in the north. Officials said all the men were members of al-Qaeda. At least four were high- level members of the Islamic State of Iraq, an al-Qaeda front organization that has promised to undermine the political proc- ess and target political parties. Officials said the men dug a hole under the wall that sur- rounded the prison. The guards responsible for the prison’s secu- rity were arrested, officials said.
fadell@washpost.com
Alwan is a special correspondent. Special correspondents Dalya Hassan and Jinan Hussein contributed to this report.
Karzai clarifies remarks in phone call to Clinton
by Joshua Partlow
kabul — A day after Afghan President Hamid Karzai railed against the foreign presence in his country, the White House said Friday that his remarks were cause for “genuine concern,” in an exchange that has undercut the political benefits this week of President Obama’s first visit to Afghanistan as commander in chief. In his speech to a group of Af- ghan election officials here, Kar- zai accused the United Nations of orchestrating electoral fraud and said foreigners were intentional- ly undermining his government. His remarks raised questions about whether his planned visit to Washington would proceed and prompted him to make an explanatory phone call Friday to Secretary of State Hillary Rod- ham Clinton. U.S. Ambassador Karl W. Eikenberry also met with Karzai “to clarify what he meant by those remarks,” according to State Department spokesman Philip J. Crowley. Clinton and Karzai spoke about 12:30 p.m. Eastern time in a “cordial environment,” accord- ing to Karzai’s spokesman, Wahid Omar, who said the Afghan lead- er emphasized the need for “re- newed cooperation and partner- ship.” Omar said that some as- pects of Karzai’s speech had been “misinterpreted,” but he did not disavow the president’s remarks. “There were no apologies,” Omar said. “He said that the part- nership requires utmost sensitiv- ity to the concerns and aspira- tions of the Afghan people. ” Asenior State Department offi- cial who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a diplo- matic exchange described Kar- zai’s conversation with Clinton as “constructive” and said Karzai “expressed surprise that his com- ments had created what he called ‘a stir.’ ” “They reached a good under- standing at the end of the call,” which lasted 25 minutes, the offi- cial said. “We’re moving on and focused on the work ahead.” “It was instructive that he
called,” the official added. “He understood his comments had had a broader impact than he probably intended.” Karzai’s speech came four days after Obama’s visit to Afghani-
stan. In it, he described at length the chaos surrounding the Aug. 20 election, in which a U.N.- led commission stripped him of nearly one-third of his votes, cit- ing fraud. He squarely blamed the United Nations, including the mission’s former No. 2, Peter Gal- braith, for conspiring against him, saying the foreigners want- ed a “puppet government.” The accusation that the inter-
national community was behind the irregularities in the Afghan election was “preposterous,” Crowley said. But White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said that Karzai’s scheduled May 12 visit to Washington, which the White House considers some- thing of a reward, was still on, “as of right now.”
Afghan politicians also jumped into the fray Friday. Abdullah Ab- dullah, who came in second to Karzai in the elections, held a news conference to denounce the remarks. He said Karzai’s erratic behavior is undermining the gov- ernment’s war against the Tali- ban and was “treason to the na- tional interest.” “As a former colleague and
doctor, I think this is beyond a normal attitude,” Abdullah said. Obama and Karzai had a tense
exchange during their meeting here Sunday. Obama pressed Karzai to crack down on govern- ment corruption, ensure inde- pendently monitored elections and make plans for reintegrating Taliban fighters into Afghan soci- ety.
One of Obama’s requests, that Karzai place two international members on the U.N.-backed Electoral Complaints Commis- sion, the body that investigates fraud, is a particularly sore sub- ject for the Afghan leader. In Feb- ruary, alleging that the body had conspired against him, he issued a decree that gave him power to appoint its members, although he conceded the inclusion of two foreign members. The Afghan parliament’s lower house voted Wednesday to reject that decree. Also Friday, three German sol- diers were killed when their de- tachment was attacked in the northern province of Kunduz, the German Defense Ministry said.
partlowj@washpost.com
Staff writer Mary Beth Sheridan in Washington contributed to this report.
MASSOUD HOSSAINI/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE VIA GETTY IMAGES
Afghan youths survey the damage to a guesthouse in Kabul, the capital, after two attacks that killed seven Indian nationals in February.
India pays steep price for Afghanistan efforts
afghanistan from A1
also fears upsetting the delicate balance in its relations with Is- lamabad. “Let’s be honest with one an- other: There are real suspicions in both India and Pakistan about what the other is doing in Afghan- istan,” Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates told reporters after a re- cent trip to New Delhi. Washington is feeling pressure
from Pakistan to limit India’s role in Afghanistan. Each nation fears, to a degree that outsiders often find irrational, that an Afghani- stan allied with the other would be threat to its security. Pakistan considers Afghanistan, another majority-Muslim nation, a natu- ral ally and is deeply suspicious of India’s efforts there. “We don’t want to be flanked by hostile elements,” said Mansoor Ahmad Khan, deputy chief of mis- sion in the Pakistani Embassy in Kabul, referring to Pakistan’s lo- cation — sandwiched between Af- ghanistan to the west and India to the east.
ly and ideologically linked with terrorist organizations like al- Qaeda, then caution is advised,” Jayant Prasad, the Indian ambas- sador to Afghanistan, said in an interview at his residence, which is patrolled by armed guards and heavily fortified with sandbag bunkers and razor wire. New Delhi’s diplomatic offen- sive in Afghanistan is on display at a dusty Kabul construction site, where Indian engineers are work- ing with Afghans to build a $90 million parliament, funded by In- dia. The floors and walls of the pal-
EMILY WAX/THE WASHINGTON POST
Indian engineer Madan Kumar, shown against the backdrop of a former palace, is head of the parliament building project in Kabul.
U.S. and NATO officials said
they feared militant groups linked to Pakistan would step up attacks on Indian aid workers and other India-linked targets in Af- ghanistan, complicating efforts to stabilize the country. Indian officials have publicly
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stated that they suspect a Paki- stani role in the attacks against Indians; Pakistani officials have rejected the charges. Indian and U.S. intelligence officials have linked Pakistan to the 2008 bombing of the Indian Embassy in Kabul, which killed more than 50 people, saying Pakistani intel- ligence had collaborated with militants. Indian officials also suspect Pakistani involvement in a suicide bombing at the embassy in October, which killed 17 people. In the guesthouse attacks, Af- ghan intelligence officials pub- licly blamed Lashkar-i-Taiba, a Pakistan-based militant group that has been implicated in the 2008 siege in Mumbai that killed 165 people. The guesthouse bombings
shocked many Indians and in- tensified widespread popular an- ger against Pakistan. Indians and Afghans were partly enraged be- cause Bhola Ram, the Chelebaak engineer, and several other vic- tims were Indian nationals work- ing on aid projects. “Bhola Ram’s project was al- most done when he was killed,” said Giliani Lutfi, 45, an Afghan co-worker at the new electrical plant just outside Kabul. “Please tell India, we are so sorry. Ram gave our people power, and that means life to us. It wasn’t the Af- ghan people who stole his life.” While war still rages in parts of
Afghanistan, India and Pakistan are building roads, hospitals and schools, as well as undertaking ir- rigation and power projects — all while claiming closer links to Ka- bul.
“Our longest border is with Af- ghanistan. We have deep cultural and economic and people-to-peo- ple ties,” said Khan, the Pakistani official in Kabul. “India may be very vocal about their aid projects here, but we don’t need to pub- licize our position. Pakistan’s role speaks for itself.” Indian officials note that their
country has educated many of Af- ghanistan’s top leaders, including President Hamid Karzai, who has a master’s degree from an Indian university.
And when the U.S.-led coalition
invaded Afghanistan in 2001 to oust the Taliban, India provided intelligence and other military support, according to Rani Mul- len, an upcoming fellow at New Delhi’s Center for Policy Re- search. The competition between the
two nations can seem silly at times: When India donated a fleet of buses in the western city of He- rat, Pakistan began donating bus- es decorated with painted Paki- stani flags. But the rivalry also has serious
implications for the U.S.-led war. Karzai favors attempts to negoti- ate a settlement with the Taliban, an idea supported by Pakistan. In- dian leaders fear that any Afghan settlement with the Taliban would give Pakistan more influ- ence in Kabul, which they view with alarm.
“If you want to try to reconcile with people who are institutional-
acelike structure, a gleaming symbol of the new Afghanistan, are to be inlaid with green and rose marble from the Indian state of Rajasthan. Such Indian-sponsored proj-
ects are sprouting from Kabul to Herat, widely considered Afghan- istan’s cultural heart and home to poets, painters and Sufi mystics. And they continue despite the tar- geted violence against Indians. In February, Nawab Khan, an
Indian musician who plays a per- cussion instrument known as a tabla, came to Herat to play a con- cert sponsored by the Indian gov- ernment. “He was sitting right here after the performance,” said Tara Chand, consul general of the heavily guarded Indian consulate in Herat. “He played to a full house. All the Afghans took pho- tographs of him with their cell- phones. It was a lovely night.” Khan returned to Kabul, to fly home to New Delhi. But during the guesthouse bombings that also killed Bhola Ram, the father of six was crushed to death when the roof collapsed on him. The guesthouse deaths out-
raged many Afghans, and Ram’s co-workers gathered to pray for him after the attack.
Outside Kabul one recent day,
at the Chimtala substation where Ram worked, young Afghans proudly inspected the power plant wearing new work boots and coats donated by India. Sitting in a sun-streamed class- room, Sayed Arif, 25, and other young engineers were learning how to run the power plant. “We very much want the Indi- ans here,” Arif said, looking out at the power lines that India brought to his country. “That much in Afghanistan we are sure of.”
waxe@washpost.com
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