SAMARRA, Iraq: The holy shrine of the 10th and 11th Imams -- Ali Al-Hadi and Hassan Al-Askari (AS) in Samarra was altered over the centuries, with the last remodeling done in 1868. On February 22, 2006, it was destructed by the terrorists.

The massive golden dome, about 20 metres (66 feet) high and with a diameter of 68 metres (223 feet), was added in 1905. It was covered in 72,000 gold pieces and surrounded by walls of light blue tiles.

The government has vowed to rebuild the bombed holy shrine but officials warn that they will first need to bring security to the town.

The shrine has been closed since the attack, and the city's skyline is still disfigured. Between the shrine's remaining golden minaret and the blue onion dome of an adjacent mosque – maqam-i-ghebat-i-Imam (AS) - there is only a crude mound of rubble.

US and Iraqi officials pinned the bombing on a local man named Haitham al-Badri whom they say is a member of Al-Qaeda, but many in Samarra blame outsiders.

"It was a professional job, so I think it had to be the Americans or the Iranians," said Abu Abdullah, 39, a former civil servant who lives near the mosque. He also blames the government in Baghdad.

The widespread paranoia has complicated reconstruction efforts.

Both the government in Baghdad and local tribal sheikhs have asked the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the UN Development Program (UNDP) to help repair the sacred shrine.

Earlier this year, a Turkish company was selected to carry out the first phase of the project, which "is related to the urgent preventive works and the preparation of the final restoration project," said Mohamed Djelid, director of UNESCO's Iraq office.

But a government official, requesting anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the project, said "at this point there is no trust between us because they think it is too dangerous to work in the city."

"There are a lot of threats against people working on this project. Many people inside and outside the city do not want it to be carried out and because of this I am doing all of this work in secret."

The company doing the rebuilding will provide on-site security, but the Iraqi government is responsible for the city itself and the road from Baghdad.

"We want to rebuild the mosque and the people here need the work, but the security situation is getting worse and worse," said Abu Mahmoud.