Sadrist leader cannot confirm or deny Al Sadr held in Qom

Asharq Alawsat ^ | 17/05/2008 | Maad Fayad

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

H/T to the Strata Sphere Blog ...

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

From the Strata Sphere Blog:

Moqtada al-Sadr Under Arrest In Iran?

[endthematrix]

"There are threats against Sayyed [Muqtada al Sadr] from different political parties that do not agree with the principles of the Sadrist trend.” She denied that al Sadr may be targeted by the Iraqi government or the American forces."

Mookie is wished dead by many, other than the Great Satan. Imagine that!

BTW, isn't this guy just dead, and all this is just propaganda? Has there been an official appearance by him?

[Bender2]

Bump to read later

[Ron Jeremy]

one of our great failings in this world is not having killed al sadr from the get go.

[skr]

The Iranians aren’t happy with his running of Sadr City?

[CurlyBill]

Open a large buffet in Basra... if Mookie doesn’t show within the hour, you can rest assured that he is either dead or under house arrest in Iran.

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks Ernest. That non-answer means “yes”. ;’)

[rfp1234]

Oh, Sadrist...headline looks like SADIST.

[Liberty Valance]

[Proud_USA_Republican]

Der Feuer does not tolerate failure.

[elhombrelibre]

Where in the world is al Sadr ping. If he’s under house arrest in Iran, it certainly calls into question how much he can call his own shots.

[SolidWood]

LOL!!!

[DB]

Don’t arrest him, kill him.

He should have been dead many years ago.

It has cost us dearly for failing to do so.

[Sci Fi Guy]

one of our great failings in this world is not having killed al sadr from the get go.

don't mean to be rude, but are you nuts? the last thing we want to do is make a martyr out of him. If that ever happened, the Iranians would exploit his death and replace him with someone dangerous. This guy peaked about couple of years ago and has been losing power ever since.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

That's the way I see it too,...the West doesn't understand this martyr business...but it is very BIG in the Middle East.

[Dog Gone]

Isn’t he supposed to be giving a sermon somewhere every Friday?

I don’t think he’s given one in six years.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

I just figured that since Sadr is often referred to as a Cleric...he would have given those Friday Talks....many mysteries regarding the Fat Cat....

Just turned up this note from the Long War Journal side bar:

Iraq Al Sadr Bloc denies relations with Iran

**************************************

Saturday, May 17, 2008 09:40 GMT

Al Sadr Bloc lawmaker Liqaa Al Yassin denied any agreement between Al Sadr Bloc and Iran. In a statement to Al Hayat Newspaper, Al Yassin refused calls to keep US Forces in Iraq stressing on Al Sadr Bloc’s call to pullout US troops as soon as possible.
As for the agreement between Al Sadr Front and the government in Sadr City, Al Yassin noted that Cleric Sayyed Moqtada Al Sadr played the role of a peace advocator in latest events. She reminded of several initiatives including the initiative of Dr Ibrahim Al Jaafari to solve the crisis. However, the initiative never came to light due to rows between Al Jaafari and Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki. As for the relation between Al Sadr Bloc and Al Maliki, Al Yassin quoted Sayyed Al Sadr as saying that politics have no shape and is subject to changes saying that the relation with Nuri Al Maliki will be decided upon circumstances.

**********************************

Now is Sadr in Iran or Not...who Knows...

This seems like a Flat Out Lie by Al Yassin.

[Marine_Uncle]

I don't think he is under house arrest in Iran. Quite the opposite. He was given a villa outside Qom and is on a fast paced program to become a higher level cleric. The course supposedly will take some five years to complete.
I am going from earlier articles we had posted on this. Of what value would it be for the Iranians to have arrested him. And what charges would they have proposed. After all he was working hand in hand with them for a long period of time.
And we don't really know who is running the Sadr movement at this point. How do we know if Sadr sent orders for his army to lay low in Sadr City for instance.
I have a hunch, Sadr called it quits since his political block has been ignored, and he has elected to live a life of pleasure in Iran, belting down lamb chops as he pours over his assigned course materials. And how convenient it is to continue to make him look like the top dog calling the shots, where, his ex-underlings may be wondering how they can extract themselves from a hopeless situation.

[FARS]

You DARE question my intel??!!! (smile - just kidding)

The fact an immediate, angry denial was not forthcoming, is an acknowledgement of the truth of his “house arrest” - EXCEPT it might be in a suburban house “near” Qom and thus allow a truthful denial of the exact location.

It also avoids having to produce the man publicly, which cannot be done without the Mullahs giving their consent. Isn’t “secrecy” a great cover?