April 09 2007 at 11:44AM
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Najaf - Hundreds of thousands of Iraqi Shi'as burned and trampled on US flags in the holy city of Najaf on Monday at an anti-American rally called by firebrand cleric Moqtada al-Sadr on the fourth anniversary of the fall of Saddam Hussein.
Large crowds of men, women and children holding Iraqi flags and anti-US banners massed in Najaf and the nearby city of Kufa to protest against what they said was an American occupation of Iraq.
The rally is seen as a show of strength for the cleric who has not been seen for more than two months, since the launch of a security crackdown in Baghdad aimed largely at reining in his militiamen accused of killing Sunni Arabs.
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The US military has said he has gone to Iran but his aides deny the claims and insist he is still in Iraq.
'Down with Bush, Down with America'
Security was tight in Baghdad, where four years ago on Monday a giant bronze statue of Saddam was torn down, dramatically symbolising the fall of his regime.A 24-hour vehicle curfew was in place and all main roads and bridges were deserted as people remained indoors for fear of attacks.
Jubilant Baghdadis who welcomed the invading US troops on April 9, 2003, now blame the rampant bloodshed and chaos on what even some of Iraq's most senior leaders brand an unwanted occupation.
The Shi'a demonstrators are marching from Kufa to Najaf's central Sadrain Square where top aides of Sadr - regarded by the Americans as the most dangerous threat to stability in Iraq - are expected to address the crowds.
Hundreds of banners saying "Down with Bush, Down with America" were carried by protesters as Iraqi police and soldiers guarded checkpoints in and around Najaf and Kufa.
Many people, draped in Iraqi flags, set US flags ablaze and some trampled on and struck US and Israeli flags painted on the ground with their shoes, an act considered one of the worst insults in Arab culture.
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