Iraqi Tribes Turning Against Iranian And Al Sadr Militias In Mirror Of Anbar Awakening Against Al Qaeda
Bottom-up rebellion against terrorists, move toward reform, reconcilitation and peace, as Iraqis continue to realize America was truly a liberator, and Iran and Al Qaeda were the true colonialist invaders…if the Republican Party can play their cards right, then the greatest irony in modern American politics should come to pass: The Iraq War should be the strong horse that the Party rides back to power on…
Wash Times:
Tribal leaders in southern Iraq are starting to push back against Iranian-supported militias in Basra, cracking their hold over the economically crucial province, Gen. David H. Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker said yesterday at two separate roundtable interviews with reporters.
The militia led by anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr “is something that has to be dealt with,” said Gen. Petraeus at a meeting with reporters at the Pentagon.
“The population has turned against the militia in most areas in Basra. Interestingly, it has turned against them in a number of areas in Baghdad as well,” the top U.S. commander in Iraq said, though he cautioned that turning against the militias does not necessarily mean that the population “will act on it.”
Mr. Crocker said he had returned from a recent visit “sobered by the extent … the militias had free rein in Basra.”
The U.S. envoy added that he got “an earful” of complaints from southern sheiks about the behavior of the militias, who are believed to be influenced and supplied by Iran.
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki “tapped into this” frustration and the Iraqis now are “standing up tribal lines as contract security forces” to help battle the Shi’ite militias, Mr. Crocker said, although he did not say whether these tribal forces had participated in the battles in Basra in the last two weeks.
Meanwhile, in the Shi’ite holy city of Najaf, gunmen yesterday killed a senior aide to Sheik al-Sadr, a pro-Iran cleric who nominally controls militias from Basra to Baghdad that are clashing with U.S. and coalition forces.
The aide, Riyadh al-Nouri, was killed as he drove home after attending prayers. Authorities in Najaf immediately announced a citywide curfew and deployed security forces on the streets, the Associated Press reported.
The cleric’s office issued a statement in which Sheik al-Sadr promised he would not “forget this precious blood” but urged his followers to “be patient,” called for “an investigation [to] punish the criminals. We call upon all political and religious groups to work toward ending the killing of clerics.”
But still, Sheik al-Sadr blamed the killing on “the hands of the occupiers and their stooges reaching out traitorously and aggressively against our dear martyr.”
Gen. Petraeus, who called the al-Nouri killing a “cause for significant concern,” said he did not know the “basis” for Sheik al-Sadr’s statement, as the U.S. has no forces in Najaf and it “is under provincial Iraqi control.”
“I’m sure that there will be pledges to bring to justice whoever it was that carried out this murderous action,” he said, adding that he also expected “rapid efforts among the leaders of the different parties to communicate with each other and to work together to preserve the calm that has prevailed in Najaf.”
He added that this is “an act that we condemn, as do all other Iraqi leaders and coalition forces.”
Mr. al-Maliki, a Shi’ite, condemned “this savage crime” and ordered an investigation “to pursue and arrest the killers,” but many of the thousands of mourners at Mr. al-Nouri’s funeral later yesterday chanted “al-Maliki is the enemy of God.”
The killing came as U.S. troops battle their way into Sheik al-Sadr’s Baghdad stronghold of Sadr City and less than two weeks after a showdown between his Shi’ite militias and Iraqi forces in Basra.
Mr. al-Maliki’s decision at the end of March to confront the militias in Basra and regain control of Iraq’s second-largest city has been praised by U.S. officials. He also won a measure of political support from Sunni and Kurdish groups, and gained credibility from some Shi’ites fed up with the militias’ violent street tactics.
Although Sheik al-Sadr is able to rally large numbers of armed supporters, the level of his control over all the militia who claim loyalty to him has been questioned. A U.S. defense official familiar with Sheik al-Sadr said that the sheik has been viewed as “erratic” by both the Iranians and some of his own people.
But he remains an important political figure; his followers walked out of the current Cabinet and still hold a strong bloc in the Iraqi parliament.
“He is a significant political figure, and clearly, if he is willing to work within — we want him to work within the political process in Iraq,” said Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates.
Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters yesterday he felt Sheik al-Sadr was “somewhat of an enigma” and it was not clear what would happen next.
“I think Sadr clearly is a very important and key player in all this. Exactly where he’s headed and what impact he’ll have long-term I think is out there still to be determined,” Adm. Mullen said.
In 2004, Sheik al-Sadr’s followers led an uprising against the U.S. and Iraqi authorities that quickly spread through central and southern Iraq before it was crushed in Najaf. His followers also helped to push the country to civil war with attacks against Sunnis after a Shi’ite holy mosque in Samarra was bombed in February 2006.
Despite the influence and weapons Iran has provided the Shi’ite militias, Mr. Crocker said, Iranians were not going to take over Iraq.
“My sense is the harder they push, the more resistance they encounter,” he said at a breakfast meeting with reporters.
President Bush yesterday said he has no intention of attacking Iran but said he would act to protect Americans or Iraqis from Iranian actions in neighboring Iraq.
“The message to the Iranians is: We will bring you to justice if you continue to try to infiltrate, send your agents or send surrogates to bring harm to our troops and/or the Iraqi citizens,” he said in an interview with ABC News.
Asked for details on that “justice” meant, Mr. Bush replied: “It means capture or kill, is what that means.”
In the same interview, Mr. Bush said the U.S. has no intention of attacking Iran in the dispute over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program. When ABC asked whether it was his intention not to attack Iran, he responded: “exactly.” He elaborated that while “I have always said all options need to be on the table my first effort is to solve this issue diplomatically.”
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Will the Iraqi’s through victory over Iran and the Al-Qeada influance literally elect John McCain?
Will the Iraqi’s through victory change the perception of the Bush/Cheney administration for all time?
Will the Iraqi’s through victory become the most powerful country in the middle east?
Will the Iraqi’s through victory save America from liberals like Pelosi, Durbin, Reid, and Obama?
We live in amazing times!
April 12th, 2008 at 5:39 amThis is a significant step toward the demise of Iran interference and power of his puppet Sadr. The real support for Iraq and the Maliki government will improve by the American public when they start immediate pay back to us for what the war has cost by using their abundance of oil to reduce the cost of ol products in the USA. When are ou elected officials going to wake up to the idea that Big oil is raping the American public. Gas and diesel prices are destroying the US economy. The current and future governments of the USA need to realize that Americans are not going to settle for the “Lube job” by bug oil much longer.
April 12th, 2008 at 7:02 amhaha
many of the thousands of mourners at Mr. al-Nouri’s funeral later yesterday chanted “al-Maliki is the enemy of God.”
that was accually just 20 to 30 guys who brought there wives
April 12th, 2008 at 7:08 amThe Iraqi people are proving that they want no part in all of this horseshit known as radical Islam. they have been living under someones thumb for decades now, they just want to be free. glad they are standing up
Pat
you’re exactly right. the same thing that lead to Republicans losing power in the last cycle might very well lead them back into power this time. anyone who bet our troops would fail were wrong this time and will be wrong every time they think that.
April 12th, 2008 at 7:21 amI hate to be the wet rag here, but let’s not forget we’re dealing with ARABS. These people change their fuckin’ minds whenever the wind changes direction. If they’re doing something, right now, that we like, it’s only because, today, they believe it to be in their interest.
Tomorrow?
That remains to be seen.
I advise caution and extreme skepticism whenever dealing with Arabs.
April 12th, 2008 at 7:55 amYes, they may be Arabs but they are human after all. They have families and children and I do not think they want to continue to live in this cycle of violence being perpetuated on them by their fellow Muslims who should have been in their corner. Maybe they are finally realizing that the real hope sides with aligning themselves with our military for the hope of their future. Let’s pray this is truly the beginning of the end in Iraq.
April 12th, 2008 at 10:08 amIt’s happening.. the people of Iraq are fed up and now know we are going to continue to support them so they have found the courage and strength to take their country back from the clerics. We can’t let them down now.
April 12th, 2008 at 1:03 pmNice pic. It sure would be great to see Iraq gain complete control over its future minus the terrorist thugs.
“The U.S. envoy added that he got “an earful” of complaints from southern sheiks about the behavior of the militias, who are believed to be influenced and supplied by Iran.”
The Iraqi people know that Iran is keeping the unrest and killing going. They know that al-Sadr is Iran’s puppet. They also know that Iran does not care about the welfare of Iraq or its people. As long as our forces are there to provide support they will be able to whack and weed where they need to.
April 12th, 2008 at 1:13 pmThank God for Pres. Bush’s courageous battle against radical Islam. All previous Presidents pulled out when the going got tough! Iran is the real target and is surrounded on all sides by the most lethal and best trained fighting force the world has ever seen. At our time of choice we will neuter Iran and by doing so straighten out the middle east.
April 12th, 2008 at 5:21 pmal-Sadr is a Sheik now? Has the Washington Times seriously referred to this bastard with a term of respect?
“Sheikh, also rendered as Sheik, Cheikh, Shaikh, and other variants (Arabic: شيخ, shaykh; pl. شيوخ shuyūkh), is a word or honorific term in the Arabic language that literally means “elder”. It is commonly used to designate an elder of a tribe, a lord, a revered wise man, or an Islamic scholar.”
Last I heard Mookie is none of those things…
April 13th, 2008 at 7:31 am