For his part, Shiite cleric Sayyed Hussein al-Sadr issued a statement earlier on Jan. 5, warning about targeting innocent people in the operations against terrorism. Other Shiite political leaders, such as Muqtada al-Sadr and Ammar al-Hakim, stressed the necessity of a professional work on the part of the army and the need to distance it from the political conflicts and from the massacres that are being carried out against innocent people.
Fourth, the conflict in Anbar has taken a different turn when tribal forces, such as the Abu Risha group joined forces with the army, with the support and coordination between the Iraqi government and the US. The representative of the religious authority in Karbala praised this cooperation between the tribes and the army.
In his latest initiative titled "Our Steadfast Anbar," Ammar supported this coordination.
He stressed the need to solely authorize the Iraqi armed forces to defend the country's border in Anbar against terrorism, and said that the region's people ought to join the ranks of the army in their fight against terrorism. This is not to mention the government's pledge to set up economic projects to speed up the reconstruction process in the province. This further confirms the decision of the religious authority in Najaf not to interfere, as mentioned before, and the need to wait for the situation to calm, because any interference on its part is likely to impede the initiatives.
According to Sistani's political vision, the religious authority ought not to lead the political process in the country, which is in direct conflict with velayat-e faqih (which advocates clerical rule in a country). Sistani insists that the religious authority should limit its missions to the advisory and guiding role within the general framework of democracy, without any discrimination on sectarian or political basis. Sistani regards the religious authority as a social institution with humanitarian missions, and not as a political party with a political vision to rule the country.
Finally, the situation in Anbar has yet to degenerate into a sectarian conflict as happened previously in 2006 to necessitate an urgent interference on the part of Sistani to help bring needed calm. Therefore, Sistani will continue to play his role as guarantor of peace and security by preventing sectarian tension among sects and religions, and coordinating with all parties without interfering in political affairs, which would be seen as an attempt to apply clerical rule in Iraq. It's clear for observers that Sistani's position and savvy in dealing with the political crisis will eventually tip the balance in favor of the political and social system in Iraq in the long run.
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