The bomb attack against the holy Shiite shrine north of Baghdad was "clearly aimed at provoking sectarian strife and undermining further the peace and stability of Iraq," UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said Wednesday, according to DPA. Annan said he was "deeply shocked and saddened" by the attack against the Shrine of Imam Al-Hadi mosque in Samarra and he urged maximum restraint by all sides. "The UN will continue to do everything possible to assist the Iraqi people to promote inter-communal dialogue and national reconciliation," he said. Gunmen wearing Iraqi National Guard uniforms stormed the mosque in Samarra early Wednesday and detonated explosive devices in one of Shiite Islam's holiest shrines.
