Posted on 06/27/2008 8:40:41 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach
Seems like Moqtada al-Sadr, the anti-American Iraqi Shiite cleric hiding in Iran, has decided to become Iraq’s version of Benedict Arnold:
The Mehdi Army of Moqtada Sadr is evolving into a clandestine movement following Iraqi military operations targeting the group, intelligence suggests.The military wing of the Sadrist Movement, the political party loyal to Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr, is “turning itself into a secret armed organization,” an Iraqi intelligence official told the Gulf News on condition of anonymity.
Iraqi intelligence reports suggest the group’s numbers have dwindled from around 50,000 to as few as 150 in the past few years.
Intelligence officials credit decisions by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to launch military offensives against Shiite militants in the southern parts of the country as deterring the group. An Iraqi intelligence official reports as many as 2,000 Mehdi Army fighters were killed in recent operations in Basra, Sadr City and the provincial capital of Maysan, Amarah.
Emphasis mine. As I predicted many times, the Arab Shiites of Iraq have no interest in becoming disposable pawns for the Persians of Iran. If the Mahdi Militia under control of Sadr do decide to become traitors to Iraq, then that exposes them and Sadr to becoming enemies of the state. If this happens then the gloves will really come off. But with most of the Mahdi basically deserting and integrating back into the Arab/Iraq community, leaving a small manageable number of militants, it will be a small job in dealing with them.
Either way, the Mahdi Militia is no more, as is al-Qaeda. Very little is left to declaring victory in Iraq. To me the last steps needed is the handover of the last provinces to Iraq control and we can move into the next phase with our new ally in the war on terror.
Addendum: I want to note that the Democrats cannot play the “we helped achieve this victory” after their despicable behavior and defeatist predictions from last year. After months of trying to cut the war funding and retreat they would only be laughed at by attempting such an idiotic move. We are on the verge of the full ‘mission accomplished’ for Iraq.
Obama, being the naive and clueless empty-suit that he is, will no doubt attempt to try and claim credit for this success. But in the face of all his votes and statements calling for defeat and faux victory parades for our troops he will only make a fool of himself to everyone outside the liberal mindset, and be seen as a traitor to the liberal cause when he does. I expect he will be inserting his foot in his mouth any day now.
Mehdi Army dissolving, reports say
*********************************EXCERPT****************************
Middle East Times
Friday, June 27, 2008
BAGHDAD, June 26 (UPI) -- The Mehdi Army of Moqtada Sadr is evolving into a clandestine movement following Iraqi military operations targeting the group, intelligence suggests.
The military wing of the Sadrist Movement, the political party loyal to Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr, is "turning itself into a secret armed organization," an Iraqi intelligence official told the Gulf News on condition of anonymity.
Iraqi intelligence reports suggest the group's numbers have dwindled from around 50,000 to as few as 150 in the past few years.
Intelligence officials credit decisions by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to launch military offensives against Shiite militants in the southern parts of the country as deterring the group. An Iraqi intelligence official reports as many as 2,000 Mehdi Army fighters were killed in recent operations in Basra, Sadr City and the provincial capital of Maysan, Amarah.
Ping.
Surprise, surprise!
Many of us recognized this YEARS ago..
Sadr should be targeted for destruction - even if an entire Iranian city must be destroyed to accomplish the task.
Then - kill each and every “Sadr Militia” who raises in confrontation, demonstration or “typical Muslim outrage” over his death..
No prisoners, No mercy, No sanctuary for the freaking Islamists...
If we don’t fight this war SERIOUSLY, as we did WWII, they will bleed us to death with a million pin pricks over decades.
fyi
Just another street thug....
Gracias, AMigo.
[Mehdi Army to Mookie] "Go, attempt to procreate alone. We're outta here."
[Mookie, looking around the empty room] "By Allah, praise be upon him, I declare a temporary truce with the Americans!"
Snuff Mookie!
Yeah... but what about al AP, al CNN, al NBC and al MSNBC?
Maybe it is time for some mea culpa’s, even here on FR, about this guy. Maybe all of us were wrong and the people who decided not to take him out immediately when he acted up after the liberation were right?
Maybe at that time there would have been a general up rising? Now it seems he is going out with a whimper and the actions in Bassra and Sadr City were not nearly as costly as many feared.
It is becoming more and more apparent that he is simply an agent of the Iranian government - a traitor and not an Iraqi patriot.
“Iraqi intelligence reports suggest the group’s numbers have dwindled from around 50,000 to as few as 150 in the past few years.”
It is a great human tragedy. Harry Reid should declare a week of mourning for “liberal” cause....
LOL!
A lot of people who expected victory to be a single, defining event may be surprised at this slow emergence. But I do think this is what it looks like. BTT.
McCain can’t really claim it, but he has been right almost from day one on Iraq. Right to go in, right that we didn’t go in hard enough or have a post occupation plan, right about the need for a surge, right that it would work, and right that we should be able to stay there for 100 years like Korea.
.
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