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Sunnis Learn Shia Customs to Bluff Baghdad Death Squads

[Telegraph-UK] Ahmad Ali and Oliver Poole - As the sectarian violence that followed the destruction in February of the Golden Mosque at Samarra, a revered Shia shrine, shows no sign of abating, Sunnis in Iraq are studying Shia religious history and customs to enable them to bluff their way through illegal checkpoints set up by Shia death squads. Omar, a van driver with a recognizable Sunni name, paid for another ID card with his name as Haider, a typical Shia name. He also carries a round piece of clay, which Shia Muslims place on their foreheads when they pray, and a green cloth, the traditional symbol of the Shia, to place over his car's gear shift when he enters Shia neighborhoods.
2006-10-10 01:00:00
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