(AP/Houston Chronicle) Tanalee Smith - Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak told the Arab satellite channel Al-Arabiya on Saturday that civil war "has almost started" in Iraq and an American troop withdrawal would only make the situation worse, adding that the current unrest was Saddam Hussein's fault. He also questioned the loyalty of Iraq's Shiite Muslims to their home country. "Defiantly Iran has influence for Shiites....Most of the Shiites are loyal to Iran, and not to the countries they are living in," he said, reflecting a concern among Arab nations that Iran has too much influence in Iraq and that its Shiite-majority Islamic theocracy could spill over into their largely Sunni countries.
2006-04-10 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive