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US marches mark Iraq war anniversary

Thousands of people were expected to converge on the center of the US capital yesterday and march on the Pentagon as part of a series of demonstrations marking the fourth anniversary of the increasingly unpopular Iraq war, organizers said.

"We're feeling a shift in the general population of the country who are now opposed to the war and are now thinking about doing something about it, not only about voting but becoming active in the anti-war struggle," said Bill Hackwell, a spokesman for protest organizer Act Now to Stop War and End Racism (ANSWER).

Late on Friday, about 100 peace activists, including members of the clergy, were arrested as they held a vigil on a sidewalk in front of the White House, ignoring police orders to disperse.

"Hopefully, I think it really speaks truth to power," said Kate Manzanares, a 29-year-old doctor from Virginia, who watched the arrests along with about 1,000 other protesters.

Earlier in the day, the group that organized the vigil, Christian Peace Witness for Iraq, held a service at Washington's National Cathedral that was attended by 3,500 to 4,000 people, organizers said.

The war has grown increasingly unpopular, with recent polls showing that a majority of Americans now say the invasion was a mistake and want the US government to set a timetable for the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq.

Hackwell said more Americans are demanding change because too much money is being spent on the war rather than social needs like health care, education and employment.

"It is not an exaggeration to make this connection about the funding that gets cut for needed social programs and the money going to the Pentagon," he said.

War veterans and their families were to lead the march starting at 12:30pm.

Other anti-war events are planned in the next few days across the country.

In Los Angeles, thousands of protesters were expected to take to the streets of Hollywood yesterday and another ANSWER demonstration was expected in San Francisco.

United for Peace and Justice, which describes itself as the largest anti-war coalition in the US, said it was expecting thousands of people to turn up at a protest in New York today.

"The anti-war movement is planning a unified surge of protest actions calling on Congress to end the occupation and for the immediate withdrawal of US troops," the group said in a statement.

The leftist group MoveOn.org is also organizing candlelight vigils for tomorrow in Washington and across the country, spokesman Steve Hoffman said.

The protests come on the heels of congressional votes on Iraq.

Democrats failed to pass in the Senate a plan to withdraw US troops by next March, although a measure calling for a pullout by next September passed a key panel in the House on Thursday.
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