Anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada al-Sadr threatens new uprising

[maddezmom]

Source: AP

BAGHDAD - Anti-U.S. Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr is threatening a new uprising if an American-Iraqi crackdown against his followers continues.


The cleric says he is giving his final warning to the Iraqi government to stop working with the U.S. military against him or he will "declare an open war until liberation."

Saturday's statement has been posted on al-Sadr's Web site.

The threat to lift a more than seven-month-old cease-fire comes amid fighting between al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia and U.S.-Iraqi troops in Baghdad's Sadr City and the southern city of Basra.



Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080419/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq

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Cleric Sadr threatens "open war" on Iraq government
6 minutes ago

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr on Saturday threatened "open war" against the government unless it chose what he called the "path of peace."

In a statement, the populist Sadr ratcheted up the tension with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, a fellow Shi'ite. Maliki has launched a crackdown on Sadr's Mehdi Army militia and threatened to bar his mass movement from political life.

"I'm giving the last warning and the last word to the Iraqi government -- either it comes to its senses and takes the path of peace ... or it will be (seen as) the same as the previous government," Sadr said, referring to Saddam Hussein's fallen regime but without elaborating.

The cleric added:

"If they don't come to their senses and curb the infiltrated militias, then we will declare an open war until liberation."



http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080419/wl_nm/iraq_dc;_ylt=ArO466BnTI_uWxsF1dV4cixm.3QA

[Cooley Hurd]

1. The headline, if it were to be correct, would read:

Anti-Imperialist Cleric...

[Faygo Kid]

2. Exactly. Let's remember he tried cooperation. That didn't work.

Here's an idea: Let's get out of there and let the Iraqis work out their problems.

[elocs]

3. I was wondering, is "Anti-U.S." is part of al-Sadr's first name?

Or is it simply a sign of respect, like calling him "Mr." al-Sadr?

[tchunter]

11. in the second article they refer to him as a "populist" cleric

his title wouldn't be "mr al-sadr" but Hojatoleslam Sayyid Muqtada Al-Sadir. Hojatoleslam denotes a middle ranking as a religious scholar and translates to "authority on" or "scholar of" Islam. Sayyid because he his bloodline has a direct connection to the prophet Mohammad through the 6th and 7th Imams. Preeeetty long title.

[scarletwoman]

4. He should be called "Iraq Nationalist cleric". (nt)

[leftchick]

5. Or "Anti-Occupation Cleric"

either one works for me. :)

[scarletwoman]

6. Same here!

:D

[AzDar]

7. Ayup.

:thumbsup:

[burythehatchet]

8. full scale war is desireable to the powers that control such things

[jpak]

9. Iraqi cleric threatens 'open war'

Source: BBC

Radical Iraqi Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr has threatened to wage "open war" on the Baghdad government if it does not halt operations against his supporters.

Moqtada Sadr said he was giving the government a "last warning", and urged it to take "the path of peace".

His statement came as Iraqi troops, with US and UK support, clashed with his forces in Baghdad and the south.

In August the cleric's militia declared a ceasefire, pledging not to attack government or foreign soldiers.

Read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7356875.stm

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<more>

[msongs]

10. let's send george w to lead the fight against this guy...in February 2009 nt

[guyanakoolaid]

12. Remember how when the UK pulled back in Basra, violence went down? Irony is alive here

and killing us and them and our economy and then some more of them for good measure.

[ohio2007]

14. No. Basra gangs spent those weeks feeling out their "hood" borders

Then they started killing followers of sectarian ways.... ;) Remember ?


snip
Officials said Maliki's controversial offensive in Basra has now moved from outright battle to the process of disarming militants and gangs, as well as honing in on remaining pockets of militants in Basra. However, the underlying political disputes between the Sadrists and the government will require many more rounds of negotiations, Iraqi officials warned.


snip
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/iraq/story/34258.html

Proof the US crutches need to be removed.

[ohio2007]

13. He promises one month of attacks. Expect the civilian casualities to spike up

if he keeps his promise to attack the general population where they congregate the most.

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=1fe_1208670953



article excerpt;

BAGHDAD — Renegade cleric Muqtada al Sadr on Saturday issued a "final warning" to the Iraqi government, threatening an open-ended "war until liberation" if -- Iraqi troops don't stop their offensive against followers of his militant Shiite Muslim movement.

snip

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/iraq/story/34258.html

It's going to be his minority militia against the Iraqi people since he didn't disband his militia.

btw,
Unless somebody can find a link to a direct quote from al Sistani, he didn't tell al Sadr to keep his militia when mookie bypassed al Sistani and went public with his "keep em or lose em" question concerning the militia.

[tama]

17. "minority militia against the Iraqi people"

Sadr's supporters are the Iraqi people - the Shia majority - and they think that the puppet governement is a joke.

Muezzin's in Shia mosques are now calling for war of liberation to end the occupation.

[Igel]

21. Sistani's been variously represented.

Sadr's spokesfolk insisted that they had the support of "the clerics", which was widely taken to include Sistani; I assumed that he mostly meant his feeders in Qom. Others said that Sistani supported Sadr.

Then there were other articles, none of whose claims made it into the Western press. The idea was that the entire anti-Sadrist business was an unmitigated disaster, unless it was simply impossible to claim otherwise (then the non-disasters were, well, trivial).

For the opposing take on Sistani, here's a link:
http://www.aswataliraq.info/look/english/article.tpl?IdLanguage=1&IdPublication=4&NrArticle=75766&NrIssue=2&NrSection=1

“Sayyed Muqtada al-Sadr established this army and it is only him who has to dissolve it,” he explained. “Al-Sistani asked al-Mahdi army to give in weapons to the government,” the Shiite official said.

That, of course, is counter to what one must believe, therefore it must be false.

As to what Sistani actually said, I think the article's more likely to be right than wrong. It comports with what he's said in the past: he's quietist, so leaves direct statements pro- and con- any specific person or group aside. However, he's seldom supported armed insurrection against the Iraqi government (only Sistani quotes that issue from the mouths of Sadr and his spokesman make the claim that Sistani's in Sadr's pocket), and supports order and peace as a general rule. At the same time, what was attributed to Sistani in this article allows for the "creep" in Sistani's statements: That Sistani did not tell Sadr to disarm; "asking" is not "telling". Also that Sistani was not going to interfere: "The top Shiite cleric had not been consulted in establishing al-Mahdi army, so it (sic) could not interfere in dissolving it." Non-interference is easily construed as silent support; this *was* pointed out in some DU posts, but they were drowned out by those for whom neutrality is an impossibility.

On edit: It pays to note that Sistani's office has said nothing. The guy quoted in this article is anti-Sadr and in the group that had a rival militia before it was merged into the Iraqi Army (as for its actual current status, there are as many assertions as there are beliefs, but few actual facts to buttress any of the beliefs. Hence I have to call them "beliefs".)

[tama]

15. It's started

Mosque's are calling shia men to arms to fight the occupier and the puppet governement. Reports of fights erupting in many places.

[ohio2007]

16. BAGHDAD - Seven people were wounded when a Katyusha rocket landed in the Abu Dsheer neighbourhood

BAGHDAD - Seven people were wounded when a Katyusha rocket landed in the Abu Dsheer neighbourhood in southern Baghdad, police said.

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L20688911.htm

Isn't that a hizbullah rocket ?

[junior college]

18. And now Rice is over there advocating open war with Sadr's militias

This could get real ugly in a couple of days. She is also saying (as usual) how great it is that the Iraqi puppet government is finally able to make its own decisions. Total bullshit. They do what the US tells them to do and nothing more.

[tama]

19. She got what she wanted

Sadr's saturday's threat of open war is no longer a threat. Today Bagdad's mosques started to call Shia men to take up arms against puppet governement and occupying "coalition".

Sadr is no fool, and this is it: very probably hundreds of thousands of Shia will respond to a call for war of independence by their religious leaders. And they will win, sooner or later.

[tama]

20. Mosques blare call to arms after Sadr threat of open war in Iraq

BAGHDAD (AFP) - Loudspeakers at mosques in Baghdad's Shiite bastion Sadr City blared out a call to arms soon after radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr warned of a new uprising by his militia, residents said on Sunday.

Iraqi security and medical officials, meanwhile, reported another eight people killed overnight in clashes between militiamen and US and Iraqi forces in the embattled township, where fighting has raged since late March.

"Fight the occupiers -- get them out of your homes," the late-night loudspeaker messages said, according to residents. "They (US) are calling for division. We demand that the siege of Sadr City be lifted."

The messages also urged the Iraqi army "not to fight your brothers."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080420/ts_afp/iraqunrestsadr_080420092758