Update 03 mfi Feb 23rd 23:00:I’m finishing a posting on this now - however in response to many enquiries from people a bit unsure of the basics or who wanted their memory refreshed I’ve done a background briefing here
Further updates are at the bottom of this posting.

I started to write about this early yesterday - it’s now 02:05 A.M. I’ll finish doing so tomorrow, later today, when I’ve slept a bit, and thought a bit more about it. The attack was conducted with impeccable technique, and timing, the reaction predictable. This doesn’t presage anything good, for anybody.

I’ve spent a lot of time today on various message boards reading the reaction, here’s a sample anything between square brackets [like this] is an editorial comment from me:

“No Muslim would do this, this came from a crusader’s mind.”

“My Muslim brothers this will force more crusader patrols = more targets.”

“Cover story for a Predator Hellfire strike.”

“A Shi’ite mosque and a Sunni mosque are the SAME!. ALL mosques are dedicated to God’s worship. Why would Sunni’s attack their own mosque? This was the Americans and their filth [sic] English dogs.”

“My brothers this is no coincidence consider that in the space of a few days we have:

  1. The Danish cartoons.
  2. More photos of the evil the crusaders do in and are still doing in Abu Ghraib.
  3. We have the British army assaulting Muslim children.
  4. We have an “incident” at the jail. [I don’t know what incident this was but everyone else seemed to and this comment got lots of agreement. - mfi ]
  5. Our brother Shiite’s mosques in Pakistan have been bombed just yesterday.
  6. Just yesterday the massacre of Shiites and now;
  7. This most heinous act of desecration.

No reasonable person can believe that any of these acts are random, they were all planned and co-ordinated by the Americans and the Danes and the English to plunge us to war so they can continue to rape our land.”

“This was AMERICANS their soldiers are either nigger savages or white crusader filth from their sewers in their South. They are evil and stupid to think they could get away with this.

If I go into my home and find my baby dead with a knife in its back, my wife with her throat slashed and a lunatic escaped from the asylum covered in blood laughing at me. Then I must conclude that it is he who who has slain my wife and my child.

THIS WAS AMERICANS.”

“This serves the purposes of those who want civil war in Iraq, so they can keep stealing our resources.

It is logical to conclude unless they prove their innocence that it was planned by those same people.” [emphasis in original - mfi]

“Perhaps the Shiite collaborators will now rue the day that they decided to collaborate with the great Satan USA and its English *** [an obscenity meaning oh “catamite” is close enough - mfi.]

Update 01: mfi 3:50am CPH time. Forgot to mention that dusk to Dawn curfew declared by Baqer Jabr Solagh (Interior minister) in Baghdad and Salahuddin governorate. Curfew applies to other governorates from 20:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. Governors have the right to extend or cut the curfew term. Police and army placed on maximum alert. - Readers might like to note he is a member of SCIRI [Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq] Readers should also note that Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, SCIRI’s head has directly linked US Ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalizad [link opens in new window] recent heavy handed attempts to railroad politicians here to the bombing as follows:

“Of a certainty, the statements made by the ambassador were not made in a responsible way and he did not behave like an ambassador.

These statements were the cause of more pressure and gave green lights to terrorist groups. He therefore, shares in part of the responsibility.”

Update 02: mfi 4:40am CPH time. See round-up posting at Informed Comment. [link opens in new window]

Knight Ridder’s report “Violence rages in Iraq after bombing of Shiite shrine.” [link opens in new window]

Knight Ridder’s reporting of Khalizad’s attempted railroading coupled with threats [link opens in new window]

Update 03: at top of page.
Update 04: mfi Feb 24th 12:38 .Gordo has a timeline and discusses this in the light of the “Salvador Option” here [link opens in new window]