Radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr vowed to go ahead with a planned march to a devastated shrine in central Iraq but insisted the goal was not to confront Sunnis who live along the way. Instead, al-Sadr said the march was aimed at bringing Shiites and Sunnis closer together and breaking down the barriers imposed by the Americans and Sunni religious extremists. The march is set for July 5 to the Askariya shrine in Samarra, which was bombed for a second time June 13. Sunni organizations and government officials have urged al-Sadr to cancel the march, fearing it will escalate sectarian violence that already has claimed thousands of lives. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's office issued a statement calling on people not to go to the central city because securing the road between Baghdad and Samarra will take some time.
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