Iraq prepares new drive against armed groups

[maddezmom]

Source: Reuters

AMARA, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraq has sent army and police units to the southern city of Amara for a new crackdown against Shi'ite militias, local officials said on Saturday.

The operation is the latest stage in Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's drive to stamp his government's authority on areas of the country previously controlled by Shi'ite militias or Sunni Arab insurgents.

"The decision to undertake the operation has been taken, but the zero hour has not been set yet," Adel al-Muhoudir, governor of Maysan province, told Reuters.

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The city is a stronghold of anti-American Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, who agreed to a ceasefire after U.S.-backed Iraqi forces launched a major crackdown on his Mehdi Army militia in Basra in March.



Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080614/wl_nm/iraq_dc;_