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| Iraq crisis: Shia militia show of force raises tensions | Iraq crisis: Shia militia show of force raises tensions |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Thousands of Shia militia loyal to the powerful cleric Moqtada al-Sadr have paraded through the streets of Baghdad, raising sectarian tensions amid continued fighting in areas of Iraq. | Thousands of Shia militia loyal to the powerful cleric Moqtada al-Sadr have paraded through the streets of Baghdad, raising sectarian tensions amid continued fighting in areas of Iraq. |
| The cleric, whose Mehdi Army fought the US in Iraq for years, had called for a military parade across the country. | The cleric, whose Mehdi Army fought the US in Iraq for years, had called for a military parade across the country. |
| Correspondents say the show of force will be seen as a very disturbing development by the Baghdad government. | Correspondents say the show of force will be seen as a very disturbing development by the Baghdad government. |
| Sunni extremists have seized control of large swathes of territory across Iraq. | Sunni extremists have seized control of large swathes of territory across Iraq. |
| On Saturday, the militants - led by jihadist group Isis - were reported to have seized a strategically important border crossing to Syria, near the town of Qaim, killing 30 troops after a day-long battle. | |
| Thousands of largely Shia Iraqis have volunteered to fight Isis, urged on by a call from the country's highest Shia religious authority, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. | Thousands of largely Shia Iraqis have volunteered to fight Isis, urged on by a call from the country's highest Shia religious authority, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. |
| But the BBC's Jim Muir, in northern Iraq, says the impressive-looking parade of men in battle fatigues accompanied by serious military hardware will only raise sectarian tensions at at time when the government is under pressure to rally the country together against the extremists. | But the BBC's Jim Muir, in northern Iraq, says the impressive-looking parade of men in battle fatigues accompanied by serious military hardware will only raise sectarian tensions at at time when the government is under pressure to rally the country together against the extremists. |
| Iraq's sectarian split | Iraq's sectarian split |
| Sunnis and Shias: What's the story? | Sunnis and Shias: What's the story? |
| Jeremy Bowen: Why Sunni-Shia tensions have returned | Jeremy Bowen: Why Sunni-Shia tensions have returned |
| Iraq crisis: Voices from Iraq | Iraq crisis: Voices from Iraq |
| US Secretary of State John Kerry is expected to travel to Iraq soon to press for a more representative cabinet, hoping this could ease tensions between the country's rival Muslim sects. | US Secretary of State John Kerry is expected to travel to Iraq soon to press for a more representative cabinet, hoping this could ease tensions between the country's rival Muslim sects. |
| Meanwhile, US President Barack Obama said Isis - which has an estimated 10,000 fighters in Iraq and Syria - had exploited a power vacuum in Syria to amass arms and resources, but denied this was because the US had not moved to back moderate rebel forces fighting President Bashar Assad. | Meanwhile, US President Barack Obama said Isis - which has an estimated 10,000 fighters in Iraq and Syria - had exploited a power vacuum in Syria to amass arms and resources, but denied this was because the US had not moved to back moderate rebel forces fighting President Bashar Assad. |
| "We have spent a lot of time trying to work with a moderate opposition in Syria, but... when you get farmers and dentists and folks who have never fought before going up against a ruthless opposition in Assad, the notion that they were in a position suddenly to overturn not only Assad but also ruthless, highly-trained jihadists if we just sent a few arms is a fantasy," he told CBS News. | "We have spent a lot of time trying to work with a moderate opposition in Syria, but... when you get farmers and dentists and folks who have never fought before going up against a ruthless opposition in Assad, the notion that they were in a position suddenly to overturn not only Assad but also ruthless, highly-trained jihadists if we just sent a few arms is a fantasy," he told CBS News. |
| The US, which pulled out of Iraq in 2011, is sending some 300 military advisers to Iraq to help in the fight against the insurgents there. | The US, which pulled out of Iraq in 2011, is sending some 300 military advisers to Iraq to help in the fight against the insurgents there. |
| But in the face of Iraqi calls for US air strikes, the White House is insisting that there is no purely military solution to the crisis. | But in the face of Iraqi calls for US air strikes, the White House is insisting that there is no purely military solution to the crisis. |
| The BBC's John Simpson, in Baghdad, says Mr Obama believes Iraqi PM Nouri Maliki has endangered the country by ignoring Sunni concerns and governing in the interests of the Shia majority. | The BBC's John Simpson, in Baghdad, says Mr Obama believes Iraqi PM Nouri Maliki has endangered the country by ignoring Sunni concerns and governing in the interests of the Shia majority. |
| Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani's call for a new government to be quickly formed aiming for "broad national acceptance" and to "remedy past mistakes" is being seen as less-than-veiled criticism of the Iraqi PM, correspondents say. | Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani's call for a new government to be quickly formed aiming for "broad national acceptance" and to "remedy past mistakes" is being seen as less-than-veiled criticism of the Iraqi PM, correspondents say. |
| The UN estimates that about one million people have been displaced within Iraq as a result of violence this year. | The UN estimates that about one million people have been displaced within Iraq as a result of violence this year. |
| About 500,000 people fled their homes in the country's second-largest city, Mosul, which Isis captured last week. | About 500,000 people fled their homes in the country's second-largest city, Mosul, which Isis captured last week. |
| Since then, rebels have made further gains. They claim to have seized parts of Iraq's largest oil refinery, at Baiji, and have also taken seized a disused chemical weapons factory in Muthanna, 70km (45 miles) north-west of Baghdad. | Since then, rebels have made further gains. They claim to have seized parts of Iraq's largest oil refinery, at Baiji, and have also taken seized a disused chemical weapons factory in Muthanna, 70km (45 miles) north-west of Baghdad. |
| The capture of the border crossing at Qaim in western Iraq could help Isis transport weapons and other equipment to different battlefields, analysts said. | |
| Isis in Iraq | Isis in Iraq |
| Isis grew out of an al-Qaeda-linked organisation in Iraq | Isis grew out of an al-Qaeda-linked organisation in Iraq |
| Jihadi groups around the world | Jihadi groups around the world |
| Are you in Iraq or do you have family there? Have you been affected by recent events? You can send details of your experiences to haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using 'Iraq' in the subject line. | Are you in Iraq or do you have family there? Have you been affected by recent events? You can send details of your experiences to haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using 'Iraq' in the subject line. |