A student strike backed by radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi army shut down Baghdad university yesterday, writes Jack Fairweather in Baghdad
Officials at the largest university declared the strike in honour of al-Sadr and resistance forces in Falluja. "All Iraq is united in demanding and end to the occupation," said an administrator.
It is the first indication that the outlawed cleric is succeeding in broadening his support base beyond a radical Shia fringe.
The university had been a bastion of secular values, with an equal mix of Shia and Sunni students.
Demonstrations in support of al-Sadr began on Monday when black-shirted militiamen belonging to al-Sadr's Mahdi army arrived at the campus and joined several hundred Shia students in protesting.
Professors at the university said that al-Sadr's forces had hijacked the campus, and coerced students into protest. Many students stayed away.
But in Iraq where the voice of protest has silenced quieter tones, no one complained.
By Wednesday the demonstrations of up to 2,000 had largely been taken over by student unions, with demonstrators chanting al-Sadr's name and "death to the Americans in Falluja".
"Sadr has become the leader of the national revolt against the American occupation," said Sinam Salem, one of the few students on the deserted campus yesterday. Such sentiments will be music to al-Sadr's ears.
With the US threatening to hunt him down, one of his only avenues of escape rests in transforming himself into a national leader who American forces dare not attack.
Since heavy fighting ended in Sadr City two days ago, the cleric's offices there have taken on the atmosphere of an election campaign. Black-shirted men mix with sheikhs from the slums, issuing orders and overseeing repair work at the office, badly damaged by American bombing.
The message was simple: al-Sadr is the leader of a national revolt.
"The Shia and Sunni are one," said Sheikh Amir al-Husseini, head of the office.
Outside the office, a crowd of 100 parroted the slogan. Al-Sadr's advocacy of Shia support for the Sunnis has yet to bear fruit. Yesterday, of the dozens of aid convoys heading to Fallujah, only one came from Sadr city.
There has been no contact between the Mahdi army and Fallujan guerrillas.
But al-Sadr's office is confident that in the waiting game being played between themselves and American forces, they are gaining the upper hand each day.
"American forces dare not attack. More and more people are being converted by Seyed Moqtada's words," said al-Husseini. He was interrupted by a militia leader requesting permission to attack the American troops in his neighbourhood.
Out on the streets of Sadr City - one of the poorest in Iraq - the source of Sadr's strength is plain to see.
Rubbish fills the streets, along with crowds of the unemployed. American tanks - in charge of security during the day, under attack at night - stand watch.
Sadr City is a place of harsh realities, not a place to breed scepticism.
In a crowd, residents declare their support for Sadr and willingness to die with their brothers in Fallujah.
But caught alone, residents of Sadr City say they are tired of the fighting and fear a broadening of the revolt.
"I don't want Sadr City to become like Fallujah. Things are bad here at the moment. But Fulljah is hell," said Hassan Ali, a shop owner.