"We reject this foreign occupation, which is a new imperialism. We don't want it anymore," Sheikh Kaazem al-Abahadi al-Nasari told thousands of worshippers at the mausoleum of Imam Hussein, a grandson of the Prophet Mohamed who is revered by Shiites.

"We don't need the Americans. They're here to control our oil. They're unbelievers, but as for us, we have the power of faith," he said.

Friday prayers resumed at the sacred site in Karbala last week after being banned in May 2002 by president Saddam Hussein, fearful of Shiite opposition to his rule.

The vast golden and blue sanctuary of Hussein was not big enough to accommodate all the worshippers Friday, who crammed onto the carpets to offer prayers and touch the Torba, or holy stone. Women clad in black crowded at the entrance of the holy mosque.

Tens of thousands of worshippers were expected in Karbala, 80 kilometers (50 miles) southwest of Baghdad, in the coming days to mark the death of Hussein in battle in the year 680.

The commemoration, which will culminate Tuesday, will also provide an opportunity for the Shiites to flex their new political muscle.

"I'm feeling good. I can at last be a good Muslim. You get more when you pray in a group than when you're alone at home," said Ali Nehma Lafta, a nurse who worshipped Friday at Hussein's tomb.

Saddam's ousted regime included no Shiites in senior leadership positions, even though the sect makes up more than 60 percent of Iraq's population.

In his sermon Friday, Sheikh Nasari denounced "these politicians who are coming back to Iraq supported by the Americans and the British, who given the opportunity would only obey American orders".

He also called for Shiites to stand united behind the Hawza, the Shiite religious school in another holy city, Najaf, about 100 kilometers (60 miles) to the south.

"Yes, yes, yes to the union (of Shiites)! Yes, yes, yes to the Hawza!" chanted the imam, with the worshippers repeating his words.

Merchant Yasim Mohamad said he agreed with the imam's attack on the United States.

"One must say no to occupation. We must govern ourselves and remain united, not only among Shiites but also with the (Arab) Sunnis and the Kurds," he said.

Spirits were also high in the Shiite slums of Baghdad, where the Al-Hikma mosque held the first Friday prayers since 1999 riots sparked by the assassination of the imam, Mohammed Sadeq Sadr.

Some 50,000 people jammed the mosque in Sadr City, formerly Saddam City, and the surrounding streets patrolled by Kalashnikov-wielding guards.

Under Saddam's rule, and particularly after the murder of Sadr, Shiites often chose not to hold Friday prayers to avoid giving a required invocation to the Iraqi president.

SPACE.WIRE