There are growing suspicions in Iraq that the official story of the battle outside Najaf between a messianic Iraqi cult and the Iraqi security forces supported by the US, in which 263 people were killed and 210 wounded, is a fabrication. The heavy casualties may be evidence of an unpremeditated massacre.

A picture is beginning to emerge of a clash between an Iraqi Shia tribe on a pilgrimage to Najaf and an Iraqi army checkpoint that led the US to intervene with devastating effect. The involvement of Ahmed al-Hassani (also known as Abu Kamar), who believed himself to be the coming Mahdi, or Messiah, appears to have been accidental.

The story emerging on independent Iraqi websites and in Arabic newspapers is entirely different from the government's account of the battle with the so-called "Soldiers of Heaven", planning a raid on Najaf to kill Shia religious leaders.
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/...cle2201103.ece


It seems that the recently touted victory over a "cult" in Iraq may have been a massacre started by the the Iraqis and then pulling the US into it thusly giving us even less credence amongst Iraqis. IF this is true what will it mean for the success of Bush's Surge? What will it mean for the region if we stay and we helped perpetrate a massacre? Finally, is this just another reason why we need to get the hell out of dodge?