Turning The Shia Against Us?

In a new provocation of Iraqi citizens, American forces arrested a leading Shiite scholar overnight in the flashpoint town of Baquba northwest of Baghdad, the man's son told AFP Sunday.

U.S. soldiers picked up at midnight Ali Abdul Karim al-Madani, 48, the highest-ranking Shiite scholar in the Dyala region who had previously been jailed from July2-4, his son Hasan Abdul Halim al-Madani said.

Madani, whose brief arrest last month sparked demonstrations that left one man dead, was led away by 30 U.S. soldiers, who came in five Humvee vehicles, backed up by two tanks and a transport truck.

Twelve others were arrested along with him, Madani's nephew Haider Abdul Halim told AFP.

At the time of his previous arrest, U.S. troops suspected the scholar of a connection to a large weapons cache found in a Baquba mosque and also of calling for violence against the Americans.
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"There are no good relations with the Americans. Like all Iraqis, we are against the occupation, but we are for peaceful negotiations with them," Haider said.

He added Madani, the son of a former grand ayatollah, backed the line of Iraq's current senior Shiite scholar Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, who advocates a wait-and-see approach toward the U.S. forces.