Senior Shiite Aide Murdered

(Baghdad) According to this report, Shiite Muslim Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani supports the upcoming elections but isn't running for office. Nonetheless, he and his followers have been targeted by Sunni Muslim militants eager to create civil war. Today, it's being reported that Sheikh Mahmoud al-Madahaini, a senior Sistani aide, was murdered in Salman Pak, south of Baghdad, along with his son and four guards.

Also today, another aide working on legal issues in Ayatollah Sistani's Najaf office was found dead. Iraqi officials are blaming Sunni militants for all the deaths.

Worth mentioning is the consistently irksome difficulty associated with Arab names. In various reports, Sheikh Mahmoud al-Madahaini is identified as Sheik Mahmoud Finjan, Cleric Mahmoud al-Madaen, Sheikh Mahmoud al-Madaini, among others. There is apparently no correct way to identify individuals when the names undergo translation. I still don't know how to correctly spell or pronounce the name of Libya's leader. Is it Qaddifi or Kadiffi or Quddafi or Qudaffi or Qaddaffi? Hell if I know. With regard to translating from Arabic to English, ballpark accuracy in language necessarily replaces precision. Unfortunately, the practice occasionally leads to misidentification.

Hat tip: In The Bullpen, The Jawa Report