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Najaf: Impasse in a War Zone

By Ivan Watson
Published August 23, 2004 at 11:00 PM CDT
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U.S. tanks have pulled close to the Imam Ali shrine in Najaf, but will not be allowed to clear out fighters loyal to cleric Muqtadar al-Sadr. The politics of the Shiite world have led to an impasse, and appear to have paralyzed the Iraqi government. But Najaf is now a real war zone. NPR's Ivan Watson reports.

Copyright 2004 NPR

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Ivan Watson
Ivan Watson is currently based in Istanbul, Turkey. Following the 9-11 terrorist attacks, he has served as one of NPR's foreign "firemen," shuttling to and from hotspots around the Middle East and Central Asia.