The Battle Against Sadr Intensifies

"Signs indicate the Iraqi government and the Coalition are putting additional pressure against Muqtada al-Sadr and his radical Mahdi Army

The fighting between the Iraqi Army and the forces of Iranian backed radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army earlier in the week has increased the tensions between the government and the militia. The battles in Diwaniyah resulted in fifty Mahdi militiamen killed, twenty troops from the Iraqi army, and up to 80 civilians dead. One day after a truce was called in the town of Diwaniyah, Iraqi Defense Minister Abdel Qader Jassim Mohammed has called it off. According to AFP, "13 of the military's dead had been 'executed' by the militia fighters," and Mohammed "demanded that this be investigated while an 'extraordinary security plan' [is] implemented in the city.""
The Fourth Rail