Free Republic

Iraq's most powerful Shiite militia is increasingly splintering as radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr -- now believed to be in Iran -- faces fresh challenges to his leadership, according to senior Pentagon and administration officials. In the near term, the deepening divides in Sadr's movement have contributed to a lull in fighting that is benefiting U.S. and Iraqi operations to secure Baghdad, where Shiite militia and death squads fomenting sectarian violence are considered the greatest threat to Iraq's stability, the officials said. Yet the group's fracturing in the long run could make it harder to defeat militarily and could also complicate...

Muqtada al-Sadr issued a statement to his followers in Sadr City Friday, urging them not to cooperate with the US occupation of the area. The statement was followed by a large demonstration against the US presence. After a period of relative calm and cooperation between the US and followers of the Sadrist current, the honeymoon may be over. The statement, read by a loyal cleric at Friday prayers exhorted his followers not to cooperate with the US occupation in Sadr City, Full text of the statement in Arabic is available on the Internet. Below are key excerpts, in translation: The...

Muqtada al-Sadr has appeared in public in Karbala, before "hundreds" of supporters, Nahrain Net reports in Arabic. According to the report, al-Sadr was surrounded by dozens of aides. An eyewitness quoted in the report says that none of them appeared armed. Supporters called out to Sadr for victory over his foes, and women fell into tears upon observing him, the report says. According to one eyewitness, al-Sadr's entourage was observed around 8pm on Qibla Street in Karbala on Thursday evening. The report suggested that this would quell rumors that al-Sadr was in Iran, but no indication was given as to...

Teheran lunatic the presence of Moqtada Sadr in Iran TEHERAN - the spokesman of the Iranian ministry of the Foreign Affairs, Mohammad Ali Hosseini, contradicted the presence of the chief Iraqi radical Shiite Moqtada Sadr in Iran, reported Sunday the Isna agency. “Moqtada Sadr is not in Iran”, declared Mr. Hosseini. It is the first time that Iran lunatic officially the presence of Mr. Sadr on her ground. “That belonged to propaganda and the psychological warfare carried out by the United States in Iraq to more make pressure on Iran and it is without base”, declared Mr. Hosseini. Thursday,...

It looks like Mookie al-Sadr has split the Iraq scene for Iran due to too much heat from the upcoming troop surge that the Democrats have assured us can't work. Already the DUmmies are pining for his return as you can see in this THREAD titled, "CNN: Muqtada al Sadr Left Iraq For Iran." So what we have here are supposedly feminist leftwing loonies longing for the return of an Islamo-Fascist who wants to cover all women with ugly black burkhas and treat them like third class dirt. The reason for this is that Mookie's saving grace in the...

BAGHDAD, Oct 21 (KUNA) -- A US helicopter on Saturday bombed an office of Al-Sadr militia in Suwaira, 45 kilometers south of Baghdad, witnesses said. Witnesses told Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) that a US helicopter fired four missiles on the militia's office, noting that a number of militiamen were killed and wounded in the bombing, but the presence of Iraqi and US forces made it impossible to figure a death toll.

New Center Emerging, Hakim to Meet Sunni Leader as Reconciliation Council Continues Its Work Iraqi politics continues its realignment as the Sunni Muslim Scholars Association (MSA) turns from viewing the radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and his Sadriya movement as their natural allies among Iraqi Shia to renewed dialogue with the more moderate SCIRI, which is head of the ruling United Iraqi Alliance. One of the more interesting developments of 2005 was a kind of de facto alliance between the intensely anti-American MSA and the Sadriya. Yet over the past year, the MSA has gradually distanced itself further and further from...