Claims of training insurgents inside Iran

San Francisco Chronicle ^ | 4/15/7 | Phil Sands

[SmithL]

Baghdad -- Iraqi Shiites are being trained in advanced guerrilla warfare tactics at a secret camp inside Iran, according to two militants who say they have spent time there.

Seasoned guerrilla fighters said large numbers of Mahdi Army volunteers have gone to a base near Tehran for instruction in how to shoot down helicopters and destroy armored vehicles.

The Mahdi Army, the militia loyal to anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, has frequently battled against U.S. and British forces in Iraq, most recently in Diwaniya. The militia, estimated to range up to 20,000 men, has also been linked to death-squad killings of Sunnis and political assassinations.

The fighters' assertions could not be independently verified. But Peter Harling, an Iraq analyst at the International Crisis Group, an influential Brussels-based research organization, and a leading authority on al-Sadr, said Mahdi Army fighters were now being trained in Iran.

"I have had confirmation that some of the Mahdi Army's 'historic' commanders have sought refuge in Iran, where, according to their family members and friends, they are currently receiving military training" in preparation for further fighting inside Iraq, Harling said.

Harling said this "in no way implied" the operation was sponsored by the Iranian authorities, although he suggested they were aware of it and chose to turn a blind eye.

The Bush administration and its top ally, Britain, have repeatedly charged that Iran is supplying arms, training and intelligence to Iraqi Shiite militants to use against the U.S.-led coalition, although the United States has not presented incontrovertible proof of its contentions. Iran vehemently denies arming or aiding the militants.

[FixitGuy]

"Iraqi Shiites are being trained in advanced guerrilla warfare tactics at a secret camp inside Iran, according to two militants who say they have spent time there. "

Don't we have some cruise missiles left?

[wingsof liberty]

Maybe Pelosi can get a tour of the training facilities during her upcoming visit