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Reuters News Iraqis hold anti-Jordanian protests over bombing Mon March 14, 2005 11:24 PM GMT+05:30 By Michael Georgy BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Thousands of Iraqi Shi'ites protested on Monday after hearing reports that relatives of a Jordanian suicide bomber suspected of killing 125 people in the town of Hilla celebrated him as a martyr. After breaking into the Jordanian embassy in Baghdad and tearing down the flag, protesters called on all foreign Arabs to leave the country and denounced Jordan's King Abdullah. Anti-Jordanian sentiment has been spreading since Iraqis read newspaper reports that Jordan's Raid al-Banna blew himself up beside people lining up for jobs in the Shi'ite town of Hilla last month in the single bloodiest attack in postwar Iraq. Al Qaeda's wing in Iraq, led by Jordanian militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, claimed responsibility for the blast. The Iraqi government said in a statement it strongly condemns "the expressions of joy" exhibited by the family of Banna, who it described as a terrorist. "Prime Minister Iyad Allawi spoke to the prime minister of Jordan personally today and asked him for a clear answer regarding the family's activities as the reports are affecting relations between the Iraqi and Jordanian people," it said. Most of the demonstrators were members of the Shi'ite Muslim majority newly empowered by Jan. 30 elections that stripped minority Sunnis of privileges enjoyed under Saddam Hussein. Hundreds protested in Baghdad and thousands took to the streets of Najaf, spiritual home of the Shi'ites. SHI'ITE RESTRAINT TESTED Iraqi government officials say Sunni Muslim militants from countries such as Jordan, Syria and Saudi Arabia are carrying out suicide bombings against Shi'ites in a bid to stoke sectarian tensions and spark a civil war. So far, Shi'ite leaders have urged their followers to show restraint. The protests were the biggest outpouring of Shi'ite fury over Sunni insurgent attacks that have killed thousands. In Amman, state news agency Petra quoted Prime Minister Faisal al-Fayez as saying Jordan stands by the Iraqi people in their struggle against terrorism targeting innocent civilians. But attempts to defuse growing anger over Hilla and other violence had little impact in the streets of Baghdad and Najaf. Near the Najaf home of Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq's top Shi'ite cleric who has always urged moderation, protesters waved posters mocking King Abdullah. "We call on the Iraqi government to close all Arab embassies," said a protestor in Baghdad's Shi'ite Sadr City district as others yelled "No to Syria." Petra quoted the Jordanian interior ministry as saying that the journalist who ran a story saying a Jordanian had carried out the Hilla bombing was arrested for publishing false information that harmed the country. His paper, al Ghad, ran a correction on Saturday saying Banna's family denied he carried out the Hilla bombing and said they were only told he had undertaken an insurgent mission. Whether Banna was the bomber or not, the demonstrations underscored growing Iraqi frustrations with a security crisis that shows no sign of easing. Iraqis had hoped that the elections would deliver a new government with a plan to tackle suicide bombings, kidnappings and beheadings plaguing their country. But politicians have been wrangling for weeks, with the main Shi'ite alliance and a Kurdish coalition expected to form a government deadlocked in negotiations as violence rages. A suicide bomber blew up his car at an Iraqi police and army checkpoint south of Baghdad on Monday, killing two policemen and two civilians in the town of Yusufiya, local police said. In the northern city of Mosul, the U.S. military said two Iraqi civilians were killed in fighting between insurgents and American troops in a helicopter. Gunmen killed an Iraqi cameraman working for a Kurdish television station in Mosul, a Kurdistan Television official said. Hussam Habib was kidnapped 12 hours before he was killed. "They tried to use Hussam to guide them to other employees, but he refused and they fired four rounds at him in front of passers by," station manager Akram Suleiman said. -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: [EMAIL PROTECTED]> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire' ------------------------ Yahoo! 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