After years off-stage, Iraq's Sistani takes charge

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By Alexander Dziadosz and Raheem Salman NAJAF Iraq (Reuters) - Najaf is far from Baghdad's palaces and the battlefields of northern Iraq. Over his past three Friday sermons, Iraq's top cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, an ascetic 83-year-old of almost mythological stature to millions of followers in Iraq and beyond, has seized his most active role in politics in a decade. From his spartan office in the holy city of Najaf, down an alleyway protected by armed guards, Sistani has asserted his dominance over public affairs, demanding politicians choose a new government without delay and potentially hastening the end of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's eight-year tenure. The cleric, a recluse who favors a behind-the-scenes role, kicked off his newly assertive stance on June 13 with a call for Iraqis to take up arms against a Sunni insurgency - the first fatwa of its kind in a century, clerics familiar with Sistani's thinking say, motivated by his fear the state faced collapse. *** Tens of thousands of men have heeded the call, bolstering an army that at times seemed close to implosion.




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