Posted on 05/25/2007 8:28:44 AM PDT by Mr. Mojo
Radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr appeared in public for the first time in months on Friday, delivering a fiery anti-American sermon to thousands of followers and demanding U.S. troops leave Iraq.
It was not immediately clear why he chose to return now to his base in the Shiite holy city of Najaf from Iran. His speech had new nationalist overtones, calling on Sunnis to join with him in the fight against the U.S. presence. He also criticized the government's inability to provide reliable services to its people.
Al-Sadr's reappearance, four months after he went underground at the start of the U.S.-led Baghdad security crackdown, came just hours before his Mahdi Army militia lost its top commander in the southern city of Basra in a gunbattle with British soldiers, Iraqi police said.
The 33-year-old al-Sadr is believed to be honing plans to consolidate political gains and foster ties with Iran — and possibly trying to take advantage of the absence of a major rival, Supreme Islamic Council of Iraq leader Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, who was recently diagnosed with lung cancer and went to Iran for treatment.
The U.S. military also announced Friday that six U.S. soldiers were killed in a series of attacks across Iraq in recent days. The deaths put May on pace to be one of the deadliest months for U.S. forces here in years.
Al-Sadr traveled in a long motorcade from Najaf to the adjacent holy city of Kufa on Friday morning to deliver his sermon before 6,000 worshippers.
"No, no for Satan. No, no for America. No, no for the occupation. No, no for Israel," he chanted in a call and response with the audience at the start of his speech.
He repeated his long-standing call for U.S. forces to leave Iraq.
"We demand the withdrawal of the occupation forces, or the creation of a timetable for such a withdrawal," he said. "I call upon the Iraqi government not to extend the occupation even for a single day."
He also condemned fighting between his Mahdi Army militia and Iraqi security forces, saying it "served the interests of the occupiers." Instead, he said the militia should turn to peaceful protests, such as demonstrations and sit-ins, he said.
In Washington, National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe expressed hope that al-Sadr's reappearance signaled that he wanted "to play a positive role inside Iraq."
"He has an opportunity to be a part of the political reconciliation process. We'll see if he and his followers participate," he said.
Al-Sadr's Mahdi Army fought U.S. troops to a virtual standstill in 2004, but to avoid renewed confrontation he ordered his militants off the streets when the U.S. began its security crackdown in the Baghdad area 14 weeks.
His associates say his strategy is based partly on a belief that Washington will soon start reducing troop strength, leaving a void in Iraq's security and political power structure that he can fill.
Al-Sadr also believes that Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government may soon collapse under its failure to improve security, services and the economy, al-Sadr's aides say. A political reshuffle would give the Sadrist movement, with its 30 seats in the 275-member parliament, an opportunity to become a major player.
In a move that could hasten the collapse, al-Sadr pulled his supporters out of al-Maliki's government last month over the prime minister's refusal to call for a timetable for a U.S. withdrawal.
The Mahdi Army received a severe blow Friday when its 23-year-old Basra leader, Wissam al-Waili, was shot and killed along with his brother and two aides during a battle with British forces Friday afternoon, police said.
The battle began about 4 p.m. when British forces attempted to arrest al-Waili after he left a mosque in a residential area in central Basra, police said. Al-Waili and his three companions opened fire and were killed when the British troops shot back, police said. Spokesmen for the British forces could not immediately be reached for comment.
Meanwhile, three U.S. soldiers were killed in roadside bombings in the capital and the surrounding areas, the military said Friday. Two others were killed in explosions north of Baghdad, and a sixth soldier was hit by gunfire in the volatile Diyala province, the military said.
The killings raised the American death toll for the month to at least 88. Last month, 104 U.S. troops were killed in Iraq.
Military officials have warned that U.S. casualties were likely to rise as more troops deployed to Iraq and the military pushed ahead with its Baghdad security crackdown.
"We have more people on the ground, this leads to an opportunity for more contact, more conflict, more clashes," said Lt. Col. Christopher Garver, a U.S. military spokesman.
A little napalm and he could be even more fiery.
‘In Washington, National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe expressed hope that al-Sadr’s reappearance signaled that he wanted “to play a positive role inside Iraq.”’
Its this absurd fantasyland point of view that kept us from killing this walking turd four years ago.
Mistakes are to be expected in war. Repeating the same mistake in war, time after time, doesn’t bode well.
I am confused. He controls the Madi Army. That army shoots at British and American forces. He works with Iran and helps bring very sophisticated shaped charge projectiles that will penetrate armor and kills many of our soldiers.
Why is this evil murdering thug POS allowed to live?
It is time to kill this man! Today would be a good day.
Du’a of the 12th Imam. Surely Moqtada al-Sadr is the personification of this 12th Imam, part of the theology of Shi’a Muslims. After all, does he not stand at the head of the Mahdi Army? And has he not been preparing his entire life for just this moment?
The worldwide Caliphate is about to be established, with its center in Baghdad. All the signs are most propitious, and await only the defeat of all the enemies of Islam.
Of course, there are a couple of speed bumps on the way to that great future.
National “Peoples” Radio described his ranting as “impassioned.”
I was thinking 671 grains of diplomacy from about 1 click would do the trick.
Was it the "no, no for America....No, no for Israel" chant, or perhaps the "I call upon the Iraqi government not to extend the occupation even for a single day" part?
The MSM calls every single anti-American nutjob out there “fiery”.
I don’t think they know any other words to describe them.
“I wonder what part of Mookie’s speech gave Washington hope that he now wanted to “play a positive role in Iraq”?
Was it the “no, no for America....No, no for Israel” chant, or perhaps the “I call upon the Iraqi government not to extend the occupation even for a single day” part?”
I wonder why they are afraid to respond directly to this turd in the manner he so richly deserves.
Why don’t they just put Task Force 145 on his tail?
“In the end, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi could not escape Task Force 145’s unblinking eye.”
http://www.armytimes.com/legacy/new/0-ARMYPAPER-1860588.php
My thoughts, exactly (of course, I was thinking the same thing two years ago).
Kill him now!
Heeeeeeeeees baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack!
Radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr prays in the holy Shiite city of Kufa 160 kilometers (100 miles) south of Baghdad on Friday, May 25,2007. Al-Sadr appeared in public for the first time in months on Friday, delivering a fiery anti-American sermon to thousands of followers and demanding U.S. troops leave Iraq. (AP Photo/Alaa al-Marjani)
He doesn’t look as pudgy in that picture. Not eating well?
Iraqi men shout slogans in front of a burning sports utility vehicle after a roadside bomb exploded in central Basra, Iraq's second-largest city, 550 kilometers (340 miles) southeast of Baghdad, Friday, May 25, 2007. The roadside bomb exploded, targeting a SUV belong to a foreign security company, injuring 3 security men a source in Basra police said. (AP Photo/Nabil al-Jurani)
Iraq's Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr listens as supporters chant his name during his appearance in Kufa, near Najaf, May 25, 2007. Powerful anti-American Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr appeared in public for the first time in months on Friday and again demanded that U.S. troops get out of Iraq. (Ali Abu Shish/Reuters)
Hey Mookster!...Dosen’t that bullseye on your forehead itch once in awhile?
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