SAMARRA, Iraq – It was the bombing of a revered Shiite shrine here that pushed Iraq to the brink of civil war, bloodshed that has left tens of thousands dead and this ancient city in ruins.
But reconstruction of the famed mosque amid the rubble filling Samarra is under way, once bitter Shiite and Sunni enemies jointly staff checkpoints, and locals hope tourists will return to see the shrine and help save the economy.
“It's a beautiful thing that they are rebuilding the mosque,” said Abdul Jabar Salah, an unemployed father of three standing in line last week outside the mayor's office, waiting to apply for a job helping with reconstruction of the shrine.
“We're hopeful that as the mosque rises, so, too, will our economic situation. All things, though, depend upon security,” he said.
This city has long used the Tigris River to support a strong agricultural base – its sweet watermelons are a prized crop. But for decades, it was the Shiite tourists who trekked here to see the golden dome of the Askariya mosque who pumped life into the local economy.
All that ended in February 2006, when a huge explosion destroyed the dome of the mosque and immediately ignited fierce sectarian fighting between Sunnis and Shiites across Iraq. In June 2007, another bombing brought down twin minarets on the mosque's compound, adding even more fury to the fighting.
Despite the recent history, Samarra is now one of the few Iraqi cities – if not the only one – where several major security players work together with a semblance of harmony, largely because of the destruction of the sacred shrine.
National police controlled by the Shiite-dominated Interior Ministry staff the same checkpoints as Awakening Council fighters, Sunnis who once sided with al-Qaeda but now work with coalition forces.
An Iraqi army battalion made up of Kurdish soldiers guards a security berm that encircles the city, while a separate mixed army battalion supports them.
“It has worked well – there is no shooting between the different forces. Everyone worked hard to get Samarra where it is,” said Capt. Juan Garcia, 28, of Miami.
Work on the mosque is in the demolition phase. Shards of glass – entire walls of the mosque were made up of small, hand-cut mirrors – are littered everywhere. Bits of hand-painted tiles that once lined the inside of the dome are buried in the debris. Hundreds of pieces of gold sheeting that covered the dome sit in a corner of the compound.
Restoring the shrine will cost an estimated $16 million, with $8 million coming from the European Union, $5 million from the United Nations and $3 million from the Iraqi government.
The Askariya mosque contains the tombs of the 10th and 11th imams – Ali al-Hadi, who died in 868, and his son Hassan al-Askari, who died in 874. Both are descendants of the Prophet Muhammad, and Shiites consider them to be among his successors.
The city is still prone to violence. Awakening Council members are routinely targeted by insurgents. A month ago, a suicide bomber drove a truck filled with explosives into the mayor's home, killing three security guards.
