Anniversary fireworks

National | IRAQ: The White House stands by its June 30 plan to hand over sovereignty to Iraqis. But on the first anniversary of Saddam's ouster, U.S. and coalition forces have their hands full | Bob Jones

Perhaps no one really expected fireworks for the anniversary of Saddam Hussein's fall, but a firefight was the last thing anyone would have hoped for.

One year after American troops entered Baghdad, the city—and much of the country—was convulsed by violence against the soldiers once hailed as liberators. From the capital's vast slums, through the always-dangerous Sunni Triangle and south into the Shiite region, Iraq seemed to explode in anti-American fervor. Dozens of U.S. troops died in fighting more intense than anything seen since the early days of the invasion itself, and military planners faced the specter of a united Muslim struggle against the occupation.

The Pentagon had long feared that Sunnis loyal to Saddam would mark the anniversary of his fall with increased violence. What no one seemed to foresee was the rise of Moqtada al-Sadr, a radical young Shiite cleric with a literal army of impassioned followers. On April 2, after American forces shut down a pro-Sadr newspaper and arrested a top aide suspected in the murder of a rival cleric, Mr. Sadr unleashed his rage. He urged his black-clad followers, known as the al-Mahdi Army, into the streets of Baghdad and four other cities. "Strike terror in the heart of your enemy.... We can no longer be silent in the face of their abuses," he said.