NAJAF, IRAQ - OCTOBER 31: A Shiite woman walks in front of the Imam Ali shrine as dawn breaks October 31, 2003 in Najaf, Iraq. The shrine will soon fill with worshipers taking part in morning prayers. Powerless under Saddam Hussein and predominately poor, the Shiites of Iraq now find themselves as major players on the world stage, often at odds with the world's only remaining superpower. Making up over 65 percent of Iraq's population the success or failure of the United States' occupation of Iraq rests squarely on the shoulders of this previously marginalized group of people. The Shiites of Iraq are a diverse people whose beliefs range from the radical, as seen in Muqtada al-Sadr's morals court, to the progressive, as seen at Baghdad's elite universities where Shiites, Sunnis, and Christians mix freely. They are a people who have survived Saddam's killing fields, found solace in their religious rituals, and are now poised to take the reins of power for the first time in modern history. (Photo by Matt Moyer)
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