Mahdi Army Fights For Control Across Iraq

[babylonsister]

And McCain is claiming success in Iraq? :wtf:
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/2008/03/mccain_says_us_succeeding_in_i.php

Iraq faces Shiite crisis

Fighting in Basra As Shiite Gunmen Take to Streets of Baghdad, Other Cities

ROBERT H. REID
AP News

Mar 25, 2008 15:05 EST


Iraq's leaders faced their gravest challenge in months Tuesday as Shiite militiamen loyal to anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr battled for control of the southern oil capital and unleashed rockets on the U.S.-protected Green Zone in Baghdad.

Armed Mahdi Army militiamen appeared on some Baghdad streets for the first time in more than six months, as al-Sadr's followers announced a nationwide campaign of strikes and demonstrations to protest a government crackdown on their movement. Merchants shuttered their shops in commercial districts in several Baghdad neighborhoods.

Although all sides appeared reluctant to trigger a conflagration, Brig. Gen. Ed Cardon, assistant commander of the U.S. task force operating south of Baghdad, said the situation in the south was "very complicated" and "the potential for miscalculation is high."

The burgeoning crisis — part of an intense power struggle among Shiite political factions — has major implications for the United States. An escalation could unravel the cease-fire which al-Sadr proclaimed last August. A resumption of fighting by his militia could kill more U.S. soldiers and threaten — at least in the short run — the security gains Washington has hailed as a sign that Iraq is on the road to recovery.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/2008/03/iraq_faces_shiite_crisis.php

[lisa58]

1. This is the end of the al Sadr cease fire...

...let's see how well the surge works now.

[spanone]

2. kick and recomend