.Iraqi Cleric: Militia in `freeze'
BAGHDAD (AP) - Anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr took his Mahdi Army out of action for up to six months Wednesday to overhaul the feared Shiite militia - a stunning move that underscores the growing struggles against breakaway factions with suspected ties to Iran.
A spokesman for al-Sadr said the order also means the Mahdi Army would suspend attacks against U.S. and other coalition forces.
But it's unclear how much influence al-Sadr still wields over Shiite groups blamed for waves of attacks, including powerful roadside bombs that remain the chief killer of U.S. troops. American officials, meanwhile, reacted with skepticism and urged al-Sadr to show tangible steps to rein in his fighters.
The announcement by al-Sadr - who formed the militia after the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003 - appeared aimed at distancing himself from suspected Iranian-backed Mahdi factions he can no longer control. It also sought to deflect criticism for his followers' perceived role in this week's fighting in Karbala that aborted a Shiite religious festival and claimed more than 50 lives.
Thousands of pilgrims fled in terror as fighting erupted Tuesday between Mahdi Army members and security forces linked a rival Shiite militia, the Badr Brigade.
The battles are part of wider power struggles by armed Shiite groups for control of the Shiite heartland of southern Iraq, which includes major religious shrines and most of the country's vast oil riches. The splintering of the Mahdi Army has opened new fronts across the south.
In a statement, al-Sadr said he would "freeze" the Mahdi Army "for a period not exceeding six months." The goal, the statement said, is to reorganize the force "in such a manner that would maintain and preserve the prestige of this symbol of the faith."
A spokesman for al-Sadr, Ahmed al-Shaibani, told reporters that the Mahdi Army also was "suspending the taking up of arms against occupiers as well as others."
Iraq's national security adviser welcomed al-Sadr's announcement and said the Shiite-dominated government was "waiting for concrete results on the ground."
"The contents of the statement as we heard it are good," Mouwaffak al-Rubaie told Alhurra television. "We welcome it and believe that if implemented to the letter. It will have a huge effect on the level of violence in Iraq."
But the effects of al-Sadr's announcement were far from clear, and it received a cooler reception in Washington and among military commanders in Baghdad.
"What really matters here is actions, and so those are the measures of merit that we'll be watching for," U.S. military spokesman Brig. Gen. Kevin Bergner said in an AP Broadcast interview.
In Washington, Defense Department press secretary Geoff Morrell urged al-Sadr and other militia leaders to join "the legitimate Iraqi security forces and be accountable to the central government" but said it was too early to determine the significance.
An Iraqi army lieutenant colonel, however, described the announcement as a "tactical maneuver" by al-Sadr.
"Six months or even a year wouldn't matter because the Mahdi Army is allied with Iran and is waiting for a signal from the Iranians to start something," he said, speaking on condition of anonymity for his personal safety.
Al-Sadr's relationship with Iran is complex. He has ties to Iranian religious figures and is suspected of fleeing there to escape U.S. military crackdowns. But al-Sadr also strongly proclaims his Arab roots - suggesting he sides with the historical Arab suspicions of Persian Iran.
Al-Sadr's militia staged two bloody uprisings against U.S.-led forces in 2004 and has been blamed for attacks against coalition troops since then, despite numerous ceasefire agreements.
The Mahdi Army was also blamed for killing thousands of Sunnis and forcing others from their homes during a wave of sectarian reprisal attacks after the February bombing of a Shiite shrine in Samarra.
But it is unclear how much control the 33-year-old al-Sadr maintains over now-fragmented organization. Estimates of the number of Mahdi fighters vary widely, with some as high as 50,000 to 60,000 nationwide.
After the wave of sectarian cleansing last year, Mahdi fighters - many of them young street toughs from some of Baghdad's most impoverished neighborhoods - have taken over vast areas of the Iraqi capital and other cities and sometimes rely on extortion and intimidation to maintain their grip.
Forcing those fighters to give up such power will be challenging, especially since it could encourage displaced Sunnis to return - possibly along with Sunni extremists seeking revenge.
U.S. officials and some al-Sadr loyalists say the Mahdi Army has splintered into numerous factions, some of them little more than criminals and others under the control of Iranian agents.
This month, the U.S. operational commander in Iraq, Lt. Gen. Raymond Odierno, said breakaway Mahdi factions were responsible for about 73 percent of the attacks in the Baghdad area that resulted in American casualties.
Odierno said those factions - which the U.S. refers to as the "special groups" - are trained, financed and armed by Iran, a charge that the Iranians deny.
The timing of al-Sadr's announcement - on the heels of the Karbala bloodshed - suggests the young cleric was becoming concerned over a backlash within the Shiite community to this week's violence.
Abu Ali al-Rubaie, a Mahdi Army commander, told The Associated Press that al-Sadr loyalists would establish committees to "chose new leaders, each of whom will bring in followers that he knows as part of the restructuring."
Jon Alterman, the Middle East Program Director at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, believes al-Sadr "certainly has influence" over the Madhi movement even if his full control is slipping.
"But, at the same time, it's unclear what he's really trying to do," Alterman said. "Does he want to disband the Mahdi Army's military capacity? I don't think so. Does he want to preserve it and build it up? I think so."
In Karbala, meanwhile, sporadic gunbattles raged Wednesday morning but gradually tapered off.
Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a Shiite whose family roots are in the Karbala area, flew to the city and fired the military officer in charge of security. The prime minister also ordered an indefinite curfew and closed the city to all non-residents.
Elsewhere, an American soldier died Wednesday from wounds suffered the day before in fighting near the northern city of Kirkuk, the U.S. military announced.
MyWay
I'll believe it when I see it.
A spokesman for al-Sadr said the order also means the Mahdi Army would suspend attacks against U.S. and other coalition forces.
But it's unclear how much influence al-Sadr still wields over Shiite groups blamed for waves of attacks, including powerful roadside bombs that remain the chief killer of U.S. troops. American officials, meanwhile, reacted with skepticism and urged al-Sadr to show tangible steps to rein in his fighters.
The announcement by al-Sadr - who formed the militia after the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003 - appeared aimed at distancing himself from suspected Iranian-backed Mahdi factions he can no longer control. It also sought to deflect criticism for his followers' perceived role in this week's fighting in Karbala that aborted a Shiite religious festival and claimed more than 50 lives.
Thousands of pilgrims fled in terror as fighting erupted Tuesday between Mahdi Army members and security forces linked a rival Shiite militia, the Badr Brigade.
The battles are part of wider power struggles by armed Shiite groups for control of the Shiite heartland of southern Iraq, which includes major religious shrines and most of the country's vast oil riches. The splintering of the Mahdi Army has opened new fronts across the south.
In a statement, al-Sadr said he would "freeze" the Mahdi Army "for a period not exceeding six months." The goal, the statement said, is to reorganize the force "in such a manner that would maintain and preserve the prestige of this symbol of the faith."
A spokesman for al-Sadr, Ahmed al-Shaibani, told reporters that the Mahdi Army also was "suspending the taking up of arms against occupiers as well as others."
Iraq's national security adviser welcomed al-Sadr's announcement and said the Shiite-dominated government was "waiting for concrete results on the ground."
"The contents of the statement as we heard it are good," Mouwaffak al-Rubaie told Alhurra television. "We welcome it and believe that if implemented to the letter. It will have a huge effect on the level of violence in Iraq."
But the effects of al-Sadr's announcement were far from clear, and it received a cooler reception in Washington and among military commanders in Baghdad.
"What really matters here is actions, and so those are the measures of merit that we'll be watching for," U.S. military spokesman Brig. Gen. Kevin Bergner said in an AP Broadcast interview.
In Washington, Defense Department press secretary Geoff Morrell urged al-Sadr and other militia leaders to join "the legitimate Iraqi security forces and be accountable to the central government" but said it was too early to determine the significance.
An Iraqi army lieutenant colonel, however, described the announcement as a "tactical maneuver" by al-Sadr.
"Six months or even a year wouldn't matter because the Mahdi Army is allied with Iran and is waiting for a signal from the Iranians to start something," he said, speaking on condition of anonymity for his personal safety.
Al-Sadr's relationship with Iran is complex. He has ties to Iranian religious figures and is suspected of fleeing there to escape U.S. military crackdowns. But al-Sadr also strongly proclaims his Arab roots - suggesting he sides with the historical Arab suspicions of Persian Iran.
Al-Sadr's militia staged two bloody uprisings against U.S.-led forces in 2004 and has been blamed for attacks against coalition troops since then, despite numerous ceasefire agreements.
The Mahdi Army was also blamed for killing thousands of Sunnis and forcing others from their homes during a wave of sectarian reprisal attacks after the February bombing of a Shiite shrine in Samarra.
But it is unclear how much control the 33-year-old al-Sadr maintains over now-fragmented organization. Estimates of the number of Mahdi fighters vary widely, with some as high as 50,000 to 60,000 nationwide.
After the wave of sectarian cleansing last year, Mahdi fighters - many of them young street toughs from some of Baghdad's most impoverished neighborhoods - have taken over vast areas of the Iraqi capital and other cities and sometimes rely on extortion and intimidation to maintain their grip.
Forcing those fighters to give up such power will be challenging, especially since it could encourage displaced Sunnis to return - possibly along with Sunni extremists seeking revenge.
U.S. officials and some al-Sadr loyalists say the Mahdi Army has splintered into numerous factions, some of them little more than criminals and others under the control of Iranian agents.
This month, the U.S. operational commander in Iraq, Lt. Gen. Raymond Odierno, said breakaway Mahdi factions were responsible for about 73 percent of the attacks in the Baghdad area that resulted in American casualties.
Odierno said those factions - which the U.S. refers to as the "special groups" - are trained, financed and armed by Iran, a charge that the Iranians deny.
The timing of al-Sadr's announcement - on the heels of the Karbala bloodshed - suggests the young cleric was becoming concerned over a backlash within the Shiite community to this week's violence.
Abu Ali al-Rubaie, a Mahdi Army commander, told The Associated Press that al-Sadr loyalists would establish committees to "chose new leaders, each of whom will bring in followers that he knows as part of the restructuring."
Jon Alterman, the Middle East Program Director at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, believes al-Sadr "certainly has influence" over the Madhi movement even if his full control is slipping.
"But, at the same time, it's unclear what he's really trying to do," Alterman said. "Does he want to disband the Mahdi Army's military capacity? I don't think so. Does he want to preserve it and build it up? I think so."
In Karbala, meanwhile, sporadic gunbattles raged Wednesday morning but gradually tapered off.
Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a Shiite whose family roots are in the Karbala area, flew to the city and fired the military officer in charge of security. The prime minister also ordered an indefinite curfew and closed the city to all non-residents.
Elsewhere, an American soldier died Wednesday from wounds suffered the day before in fighting near the northern city of Kirkuk, the U.S. military announced.
MyWay
I'll believe it when I see it.
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