BAGHDAD -- Sunni Muslims expressed outrage Saturday over an assault by Iraqi National Guard troops, backed by U.S. soldiers, on their most revered mosque in Baghdad.
The raid came just after Friday prayers at the Abu Hanifa mosque, as U.S. fighters encircled the property and Iraqi soldiers charged into the complex, setting off stun grenades, arresting dozens and leaving at least two people dead, the Washington Post reported Saturday.
The assault was aimed at clerics who support the insurgency, which continues to churn violently in the sections of Iraq dominated by the country's minority Sunni Muslim population.
"In the more than 55 years I have been praying at this mosque, it was hit twice," said Abu Numan, 65. "The first was in April 2003 when the Americans entered Baghdad, and the second was today, again at the hands of the Americans and the National Guard.
"Why? This is a holy place and the tomb of one of Islam's most revered figures. There should be some sanctity and respect for our shrines. This is unacceptable."
