Editing Soldiers of Heaven (section)

==Activities==
On January 28, 2007, the group apparently fought a bizarre [[Battle of Najaf (2007)|battle with Iraqi and U.S. forces]] near [[Najaf]] where it is alleged about 200–300 of their members were killed, including its leader, and 300–400 were captured.<ref>[http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30200-1249248,00.html Cult Leader is Killed] - Sky News, January 29, 2007</ref> [[Asaad Abu Gilel]], the [[governor]] of [[Najaf]] has claimed that members of the group, including women and children, planned to disguise themselves as [[pilgrims]] and kill leading Shi'a [[cleric]]s during the [[Ashoura]] holiday.<ref>[http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/us-iraqi-forces-kill-250-militants-in-najaf/2007/01/29/1169919241141.html?page=2 Page 2], US, Iraqi forces kill 250 militants in Najaf, The Age, January 29, 2007</ref>

Significant questions remain regarding the group and the combat effectiveness it displayed, including shooting down an American [[AH-64 Apache]] [[helicopter gunship]]. Virtually all information about the group and the battle has come from Iraqi officials, who have released incomplete and sometimes contradictory accounts.<ref>[https://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070130/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_what_happened Analysis: Najaf battle raises questions ] - Yahoo! News, January 30, 2007</ref> Iraqi officials, including Najaf deputy governor [[Abdel Hussein Attan]], had claimed that the group had links with [[al-Qaeda]], but given that [[Sunni]] [[jihad]]ists are fiercely anti-Shia, this seemed unlikely.<ref>[https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6313433.stm Bizarre tale of Shia messianic cult plot], BBC, 30 January 2007</ref>

After the battle, Iraqi police rounded up hundreds of sect members and put them on trial. On September 2, 2007, the criminal court passed judgement on 458 accused. Ten leaders of the Soldiers of Heaven were [[death penalty|sentenced to death]], 54 members were released, and the rest were sentenced to jail terms ranging from 15 years to life, Najaf [[police chief]] [[Brigadier General]] [[Abdel Karim Mustapha]] said.<ref name=sentenced-MET-2-9-2007>"10 Iraqi cult members sentenced to death", ''[[Middle East Times]]'', September 2, 2007</ref>

On January 18, 2008 the Soldiers of Heaven were involved in [[2008 Iraqi Day of Ashura fighting|fighting]] in [[Basra]] and [[Nassiriya]].<ref name=cult-guardian-19-1-2008>[https://www.theguardian.com/Iraq/Story/0,,2243389,00.html Troops clash with Shia cult in southern Iraq], Kim Game, Associated Press, ''[[The Guardian]]'', January 19, 2008</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7197473.stm|title=Iraqi Shia pilgrims mark holy day|date=19 January 2008|access-date=27 November 2021|website=News.bbc.co.uk}}</ref>