Iraqi Muslim shiites flagellate themselves 01 May 2003 to mark the death anniversary of Prophet Mohammad that coincides also with the birthday anniversary of their sixth Imam Jaafar bin Mohammad, knows as Jaafar As-Sadek, in the holy city of Najaf, 180 kilometers (110 miles) south of Baghdad. Imam Jaafar (702-765) is so important for Twelve-Imam Shiite law that is named the "Jaafari school". This was the second time since the fall of Saddam Hussein's Sunni-dominated regime that Iraq's Shiite majority has been able to mark a religious event openly.