LONDON, Aug 11 (AFP) - At least two Britons have taken up arms in Najaf on the side of Moqtada Sadr, and they say there are more foreigners like them in the radical Iraqi cleric`s militia in Najaf, The Times reported Wednesday.
"It is our country and there are invaders here," the older of the two Iraqi-born Britons told the newspaper`s correspondent in Najaf. "We have taken the side of Moqtada Sadr because we believe it is the right side."
The Times said the two men, an uncle and nephew just two years apart in age, spoke in "distinctive London accents" and refused to identify themselves beyond their noms de guerre.
Neither had weapons training or military experience, but within hours of arriving in Najaf they found themselves guarding the city`s sacred Imam Ali shrine, it said.
The uncle, aged 23, called himself Abu Hakid, or "father of fury", wrote Times correspondent Stephen Farrell in a front-page report illustrated with a photo of the duo with scarves over their faces and Kalashnikov rifles in hand.
"They insisted they were not the only foreign fighters in Najaf and expected some of their friends to follow their lead," Farrell reported.
Asked why he had travelled to Najaf to fight US forces in the city, Abu Hakid -- who conversed in fluent Arabic with his fellow fighters -- replied: "It is evil against the angels."
His nephew, 21, who goes by the name of Abu Turab, or "father of dust," linked his decision to go to Najaf to what US President George W. Bush had said after the September 11 attacks in 2001.
"Bush said you are either with us or against us," he said. "We had to decide whether to be with him or against him, so we are against him, obviously."
Asked to explain how they had travelled from Britain, Abu Hakid, who was born in Najaf but emigrated as a child, would only reveal that they had done so in a "non-legit" way.
"We went to fight last night. It was quite fun, actually," he added, before conceding: "It was dangerous. We were on the other side of the cemetery. We saw an American tank from far away, about 400 metres (yards)."
The Times said both men disavowed Osama bin Laden and his Al-Qaeda network, as well as deposed Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, and that they had taken up arms to fight the US-led occupation.
"Our family can`t stop us," Abu Hakid was quoted as saying. "When it comes to jihad (holy war), they said, `Yes, it is jihad time. Go and protect your country and be with your brothers."
A similar report, with several identical quotes, also appeared in the Guardian newspaper on Wednesday.