Shia revere Ali, the prophet Muhammad's son-in-law and Islam's fourth caliph.
Shia Muslims believe that Ali, Muhammad's son-in-law, was the rightful successor to the prophet, followed by 11 other imams.
These people are not even listening to Iraq's most prominent Shia cleric, Ayatollah Ali Sistani, whose repeated calls for restraint have been ignored.
BBC: NEWS | Middle East | Iran has limited influence in Iraq
Ayatollah Najati - who represents Iraq's renowned Shia cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani - and his family had not obtained their Bahraini passports "through the appropriate legal means", Bahrain's interior ministry said in a statement.
But their irritation is nothing compared to that of the country's leading Shia authority, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani.
An aide to Iraq's most senior Shia cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, called on both the Americans and Mr Sadr's militiamen to stop fighting and leave the city.
This appeared to be aimed at Iraq's most influential Shia cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, who had called for protests on Wednesday though he also urged restraint and said mosques should not be targeted.
By Friday, the American-led forces had taken the city centre, besieging Mr Sadr and his gunmen in their redoubt in the Imam Ali Mosque the holiest place in the city, revered by Shia Muslims worldwide as the burial place of Ali, the son-in-law and cousin of the Prophet Muhammad.
In that case the officers received 10 year terms for the beating to death of Ali Saqer, a Shia activist.
But they will have to convince, among others, the spiritual leader of Iraq's Shia Muslim majority, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, who has thus far insisted on full democratic participation.
Most of the main Shia parties now endorse the draft, as does the most influential Shia religious leader, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, though a radical preacher, Muqtada al-Sadr, has offered no clear guidance.
Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, the leading Shia cleric, has called for direct elections in Iraq by the end of June, sparking numerous demonstrations.
However, the possibility that Kurds could veto a permanent constitution seems to have caused Ayatollah Ali Sistani, a powerful Shia cleric, to have second thoughts about the interim document.
In Pakistan, for instance, he describes how the inclusive secular nationalism of the country's first leader, Muhammad Ali Jinnah (a nominal Shia) gave way to Sunni majoritarianism promoted by Shia-averse Saudi Arabia.
However, these may have been too much for Ayatollah Ali Sistani, a powerful Shia cleric who according to Associated Press reports seems to have been behind the last-minute objections from Shia members of the Governing Council.
The country's founding father, Mohammed Ali Jinnah, belonged to a Shia sect, the Khoja, whose followers are famous in the subcontinent for their business acumen.
The Shia Muslims' most influential cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, has confounded Mr Bremer's plans for appointed caucuses to choose an interim national assembly, insisting instead on direct elections.
The same could perhaps happen again, although the absence of Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the most revered Shia cleric, who is in London seeking medical care, will make it harder.
Jalal Talabani, one of the Kurds' two main leaders, is expected later this week to see Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the voice of Shia Iraq, in the hope of sealing a deal or, at any rate, agreeing to put off a final arrangement for Kirkuk until later.
But Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq's most influential Shia cleric, is a stickler for democratic form.
Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq's most influential Shia cleric, had played a notable part in creating the Alliance.
Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq's most influential Shia cleric, has issued a fatwa compelling the faithful to cast their ballots.
Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq's most influential Shia cleric, has restrained the hands of the most militant of the armed Shia groups, such as Muqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army.
Just before the attack on Fallujah, his followers quietly announced they had joined a pan-Shia electoral alliance sponsored by Iraq's foremost cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.
Her husband, current President Asif Ali Zardari, maintains a studied silence on the subject, an apparent attempt to attract Shia support without tempting fundamentalist Sunni ire.
Mr Chalabi, who has close relations with the Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani as well as Muqtada al-Sadr, a militant cleric, helped broker the Shia alliance that dominated last January's election and helped draft the new constitution.
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