Perspective: Interview with Harith al-Dhari

Dec. 11, 2006 issue - Harith al-Dhari is a wanted man. In early November, the Shiite-dominated Iraqi government accused the influential Sunni leader of inciting terrorism and issued a warrant for his arrest while he was out of the country. Al-Dhari, who also heads Iraq's influential Muslim Scholars Association, declared the warrant illegal, and continued traveling around the region as part of his campaign to get other Arab states to deny recognition to Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's administration. The warrant has further inflamed tensions in Iraq, where many consider al-Dhari—a longtime supporter of violent resistance against American troops—a hero. He spoke to NEWSWEEK's Michael Hastings at his current home in Amman, Jordan. Excerpts:

HASTINGS: Why did you think the Iraqi government issued the warrant?

AL-DHARI: Because of the chaos and lack of security and the killings, and the destruction. There is a psychological crisis in the government. Our political speech is realistic and very honest and is starting to disturb them. It uncovers a lot of facts that they don't want to reveal.

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