Thursday witnesses the first anniversary of the bombing on UN headquarters in Baghdad, which stired no interest in the Iraqi capital, as it is busy with the fighting in Najaf, 180 km south of Baghdad and several other cities.

Explosions shook the Old City of Iraq's Najaf while suspected US AC-130 gunships pounded positions held by Sh'ite militiamen in the holy city late Thursday, witnesses said.

The intesive shelling took place hours after interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi issued a final call to militants loyal to Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr to drop their arms and give up their fight there.

Najaf, together with some other holy cities in the country, has been the site of fierce clashes between Sadr militiamen  and US forces for about two weeks, during which hundreds of Iraqis have reportedly been killed and thousands wounded with some casualties from the US-led multinational forces.

Though Baghdad stired no interest in the UN bombing anniversary,New York, Geneva, and Amman held ceremonies separately to remember the victims of the explosion which killed 22, including the UN special envoy, Brazilian Sergio De Mello.

The bombing of the UN headquarters was described as a massacre for peacemakers and it would be very difficult to recall any act of sabotage to the UN institutions like such a violence attack.

It is clear that the bombers did not want the Unted Nations to play a role in Iraq, and after a few days, they bombed the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

Consequently, the United Nations and the ICRC withdrew their employees from Iraq.

Salam Al Shamaa, a journalist, said the Baghdad bombing and the withdrawing of UN employees greatly impacted the situation in Iraq and delayed the reconstruction projects.

Khalid Atta Mohamed, owner of bookshop, said targeting the UN headquarters in Baghdad complicated the Iraqi situation, adding that the armed groups had also threatened to kill the UN envoy Al Akhdhar Al Ibrahimi while he is in Baghdad this year.

During the past year, the United Nations has been showing interest to return to Iraq and sent Al Ibrahimi to supervise the forming of a new interim government after the United States announced the end of the occupation and handed the power over to Iraqis in late June.

Al Ibrahimi also prepared a mechanism for forming an interim national assembly, which would prepare for the comprehensive elections next January under the supervision of the United Nations.

The feelings of rage and rejection prevailed on the Iraqi streets after the UN headquarters' bombing, as the Iraqis not only condemned the bombers, but also complained the American forces not to provide enough protection for the UN headquarters, said Nasser Al Nahar, an journalist.

The bombing proved that the UN flag did not protect anyone, said Saadi Ibrahim, brother of one of the victims in the bombing.

Amir Al Ani, a retired police officer, said that the bombing of the UN headquarters in Baghdad showed the need to reformulate the Iraqi police and transfer the security mission from the American forces to the Iraqis.

Source: Xinhua