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CNN Live At Daybreak

Shots Fired at Sunni Mosque in Baghdad

Aired September 05, 2003 - 05:03   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, to Iraq now. It is Friday, prayer day in the Muslim world, and in Najaf, where last Friday a bomb killed 83 people, including a leading Shiite cleric.
Our Ben Wedeman has been following things from Baghdad and we're just now getting word there that shots have been fired at a Sunni mosque in Baghdad -- hello to you, Ben.

Last week a Shiite mosque, today now a Sunni mosque? What's going on?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this morning at about 5:45 local time three men attacked a Sunni mosque in a Shiite neighborhood in north Baghdad. These three men were armed with automatic rifles and handguns. They opened fire as people were leaving the mosque. According to police there, three of the people coming out of the mosque were injured. At the moment, there's a very large police presence in that area, trying to keep security under wraps as more people are coming for the noon prayers, which are the main prayers of the week in -- for Muslims.

Now, meanwhile, in Najaf, security is very tight as people go back to the Imam Ali Mosque. It was just one week ago that that car bomb went off there, killing at least 83 people. Now, one interesting situation down there is that essentially the coalition forces are staying well out of the middle of the city. Their place has been taken, however, by Shiite militiamen and that's causing some concern because they are in obvious violation of orders from the coalition that no one should go out with a gun unless they have a permit.

Now, these Shiite militias have been involved in a variety of incidents in Najaf, clashes essentially between different clerical factions. So we are bracing for potential problems down there -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Ben, is there an early feeling that perhaps this shooting may be some sort of retaliatory strike?

WEDEMAN: Well, no one has actually claimed responsibility, but we don't know. But certainly there is a feeling that what may be emerging is a pattern of tit for tat here. An attack on a Shiite mosque, now there's an attack on a Sunni mosque. One phenomenon we've seen both in Najaf and in Karbala, another Shiite city, is that the small Sunni communities in those areas are beginning to feel very uncomfortable. We do know of a case of a Sunni mosque in Najaf, a predominantly Shiite city, that has been taken over by Shiite militiamen. So we do have, this is all indicative of rising tensions between Iraq's Sunnis and Shiites, who together make up about 80 percent of the population -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Ben Wedeman, thank you very much this morning.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired September 5, 2003 - 05:03   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, to Iraq now. It is Friday, prayer day in the Muslim world, and in Najaf, where last Friday a bomb killed 83 people, including a leading Shiite cleric.
Our Ben Wedeman has been following things from Baghdad and we're just now getting word there that shots have been fired at a Sunni mosque in Baghdad -- hello to you, Ben.

Last week a Shiite mosque, today now a Sunni mosque? What's going on?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this morning at about 5:45 local time three men attacked a Sunni mosque in a Shiite neighborhood in north Baghdad. These three men were armed with automatic rifles and handguns. They opened fire as people were leaving the mosque. According to police there, three of the people coming out of the mosque were injured. At the moment, there's a very large police presence in that area, trying to keep security under wraps as more people are coming for the noon prayers, which are the main prayers of the week in -- for Muslims.

Now, meanwhile, in Najaf, security is very tight as people go back to the Imam Ali Mosque. It was just one week ago that that car bomb went off there, killing at least 83 people. Now, one interesting situation down there is that essentially the coalition forces are staying well out of the middle of the city. Their place has been taken, however, by Shiite militiamen and that's causing some concern because they are in obvious violation of orders from the coalition that no one should go out with a gun unless they have a permit.

Now, these Shiite militias have been involved in a variety of incidents in Najaf, clashes essentially between different clerical factions. So we are bracing for potential problems down there -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Ben, is there an early feeling that perhaps this shooting may be some sort of retaliatory strike?

WEDEMAN: Well, no one has actually claimed responsibility, but we don't know. But certainly there is a feeling that what may be emerging is a pattern of tit for tat here. An attack on a Shiite mosque, now there's an attack on a Sunni mosque. One phenomenon we've seen both in Najaf and in Karbala, another Shiite city, is that the small Sunni communities in those areas are beginning to feel very uncomfortable. We do know of a case of a Sunni mosque in Najaf, a predominantly Shiite city, that has been taken over by Shiite militiamen. So we do have, this is all indicative of rising tensions between Iraq's Sunnis and Shiites, who together make up about 80 percent of the population -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Ben Wedeman, thank you very much this morning.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com