Sahel Nasseri weeps next to masonry smashed by a mortar blast at a gateway to the Imam Ali shrine, Iraq's holy of holies for Shi'ite Muslims.
But his wrath is not directed at the United States, who many radical Shi'ites say is waging a crusade against their faith, but toward the top Iraqi cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.
"This tears me apart as every Shi'ite should rise up. Where is our Marjayeh?" said the 34-year-old seminarian, using the name to describe Sistani's supreme religious authority. "Why is it silent? Is this not their religion and Imam Ali's tomb?"
Tuesday's mortar strike on the tomb of the 7th-century leader whose descendants founded the Shi'ite branch of Islam piled more pressure on Iraq's Shi'ite religious hierarchy, who are strongly opposed to young rebel cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.
Sadr's uprising has challenged their power and derailed their policy of peacefully promoting the influence of the 60 percent majority Shi'ite community in post-war Iraq.
And although Sadr's fighters now appear to be pulling back from their confrontation with U.S. troops, opponents and some supporters of Sistani say indecisiveness has hit his widespread support, which he enjoys partly due to his status as a figure who appears capable of rising above Shi'ite factionalism.
"Sistani is between two difficult choices. He doesn't want to support Sadr -- that would raise his popularity. But he cannot openly stand against him as he would become a supporter of the occupation," said Najaf cleric Sheikh Hassan Abadi.
Sistani's calls to respect holy sites have appeared increasingly irrelevant as U.S. troops intensify attacks on militia loyal to Sadr, who has taken refuge among the shrines.
Fighting between U.S. troops and guerrillas has come to close to Najaf's most sacred places. It was unclear who was responsible for damaging the mosque in the mortar strike on Tuesday. U.S. forces denied responsibility.
DIVIDED LOYALTIES
In the dusty street near both Sistani's and Sadr's offices, supporters of the firebrand leader approach the more senior cleric's office with provocative slogans.
"Resistance, resistance. The people of Najaf are with you. Moqtada all the people are with you. You are our only leader," supporters of the young rebel chant.
As coffins of Shi'ites killed fighting the Americans are carried around the shrine before burial, angry men ask what has prevented Sistani from calling for holy war against U.S. forces.
"What is making Sistani wait before giving us a fatwa on Jihad?" asked Haider Zubaidi, 26, a Sistani follower.
Some even say the elder, reclusive cleric may be unfit to lead Shi'ites in such pivotal times, although millions of supporters in southern Iraq would dismiss criticisms of one of their most respected religious figures.
"Our hopes were on Sistani but he has not done anything. I am afraid he may not have the qualifications to lead Iraq at this stage," said Hassan Sharmani, 39, a policeman.
Sadr supporters say Sistani's reluctance to back him has split Shi'ites and encouraged U.S. soldiers to mount attacks close to shrines.
"If he had given us the orders to fight the Americans, and the clerics had united, the Americans would not have dared violate our holy sanctuaries," Sharmani said.
Unlike Sadr, who comes from a respected Arab clerical dynasty, Iranian-born Sistani could never support the national aspirations of Iraqis, his critics say.
"If Iraq burns they don't care," said Sadeq Fatalawi, 26. "The Pope was outraged by the Abu Ghraib prison scandal but our Marjayeh did not issue one statement, not even a symbolic one."