Hazim al-Araji, a senior aide to radical Shiite cleric Mutada al-Sadr, center,holds a ceremonial sword during the festival of Ashoura, when faithful Shiite Muslims show their grief over the 7th-century killing of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson, Imam Hussein, in Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, Dec. 27, 2009.
(AP Photo/ Karim Kadim)