Iraqi Troops Surround Sadr Office in Basra

[zrinkill]

Iraqi troops have cordoned off the Basra office of Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr's followers, preventing them from holding Friday prayers.

Iraqi Interior Ministry spokesman Major General Abdul-Karim Khalaf said the operation is only aimed at recovering offices he said were unfairly occupied by political groups.

Sadr supporters say they have been given 48 hours to leave the premises.

There were no immediate reports of fighting between Iraqi troops and Sadr followers.

The standoff comes nearly a month after Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki launched a crackdown against Sadr's Mahdi Army militia in Basra, sparking violent clashes across cities in the south and in the capital, Baghdad.

Sadr called his militia off the streets of Basra last month, ushering in a period of relative calm. The focus of more recent fighting has been the east Baghdad slum of Sadr city.

In northern Iraq, a suicide bomber Thursday targeted a funeral near Kirkuk, killing at least 50 people and wounding more than 20 in one of the deadliest attacks in recent months.

Also on Thursday, a militant Web site posted an audio message said to be from al-Qaida's second in command Ayman al-Zawahiri. In the message titled "five years of the invasion of Iraq and decades of injustice by tyrants" he criticizes the U.S. mission in Iraq.

The authenticity of the tape could not be immediately verified.

http://www.voanews.com/english/2008-04-18-voa20.cfm

[BrAinPaiNt]

Don't give them time to leave...arrest them and if they resist...take em out.

Enough with this pain the butt.

[Doomsday101]

Don't give them time to leave...arrest them and if they resist...take em out.

Enough with this pain the butt.

Fully agree with you. For Iraq to have any chance at all longterm al-Maliki has to put an end to these armed militia.

[iceberg]

Don't give them time to leave...arrest them and if they resist...take em out.

Enough with this pain the butt.

that's what i'm talking about!

[BrAinPaiNt]

that's what i'm talking about!

Nukem till the glow and shootem in the dark.:D

Just kidding...but they have let this guy go WAY to long, they should have dealt with this nipplehead long ago.

[Rackat]

Nukem till the glow and shootem in the dark.:D

Just kidding...but they have let this guy go WAY to long, they should have dealt with this nipplehead long ago.
Ain't that the truth.

[Jordan55]

Nukem till the glow and shootem in the dark.:D

Just kidding...but they have let this guy go WAY to long, they should have dealt with this nipplehead long ago.


The sad part is Moqtada al-Sadar is hiding in Iran, so we still can't get our hands on him.

[BrAinPaiNt]

The sad part is Moqtada al-Sadar is hiding in Iran, so we still can't get our hands on him.

He will pop his head back out sooner or later and we play whack a mole with a missile and annihilate him.

[Doomsday101]

He will pop his head back out sooner or later and we play whack a mole with a missile and annihilate him.

Better yet Iraqi forces end up taking him out.

[BrAinPaiNt]

Better yet Iraqi forces end up taking him out.

I don't care who takes him out personally, but it would be a big coupe and bolster the morale of the iraqi forces if they did.

[Doomsday101]

I don't care who takes him out personally, but it would be a big coupe and bolster the morale of the iraqi forces if they did.

I agree. I think these are the situations that they will have to step up and handle and the Government will have to deal with as a show of true progress of being able to stand on their own. Al-Sadar death will come with some ramification that the Iraqi Government will have to contend with.

[BrAinPaiNt]

I agree. I think these are the situations that they will have to step up and handle and the Government will have to deal with as a show of true progress of being able to stand on their own. Al-Sadar death will come with some ramification that the Iraqi Government will have to contend with.

And it is good that they would have to contend with it. They need to show that they are strong enough to stand on their own. Even if I don't see that happening anytime soon because even if they do, the US will still be there to follow through with their Iran plans and to have permanent bases to keep an Eye on Iran.

Still...they need to stand up, take charge and show they can do it.

[Doomsday101]

And it is good that they would have to contend with it. They need to show that they are strong enough to stand on their own. Even if I don't see that happening anytime soon because even if they do, the US will still be there to follow through with their Iran plans and to have permanent bases to keep an Eye on Iran.

Still...they need to stand up, take charge and show they can do it.

Like McCain I don't care if we stay in Iraq as long as it is no longer in a combat role. We have a base in Kuwait as well as Germany, Japan and other parts of the world. Not many complain about that.

[Jon88]

Just blow it up.

[Jon88]

The sad part is Moqtada al-Sadar is hiding in Iran, so we still can't get our hands on him.

If we bomb Iran soon I'm sure he'll be one of the casualties. We have people inside Iran pointing out targets and tracking people.

[Jordan55]

Here's an update, and signs that the Iraqis, are starting to hold their own, in fighting for their country.
Now let's cut and run:)

The Iraqi Army Can Hold, Too

Earlier this week, much hay was made when an Iraqi Army company deserted its position in Sadr City. The next day, the New York Times interviewed an Iraqi Army company commander, also from Sadr City, who left his unit to take leave and speculated he may not come back. In two days, the narrative for the Iraqi Army and U.S. military incursion is set: The Iraqi Army is falling apart.

Both of these stories get a feature-length report, while successes of the Iraqi Army are relegated to single paragraph throwaways. Buried in the April 16 story is the fact that an Iraqi company was rushed into Sadr City to take the place of the deserting company. In today’s New York Times, Michael Gordon writes about the wall being built to partition Sadr City. Buried in the article, we learn that the Mahdi Army assaulted a police station and the Iraqi forces were running low on ammunition. As the U.S. military prepared to reinforce the position, the Iraqi Army beat them to the punch:


The militias’ main effort on Thursday was focused on dislodging Iraqi forces from a police station. American advisers took up positions with the Iraqi unit.

As the fighting intensified and there were reports that militia fighters had closed to within 100 yards, Colonel Barnett moved tanks into position so they could rush to the Iraqis’ aid. Stryker vehicles also moved forward.

But two Iraqi T-72s and four other Iraqi armored vehicles arrived on the scene before the American tanks were needed. The Iraqi Army has rushed ammunition to Sadr City, including machine-gun rounds and rocket-propelled grenades to give its units more firepower and address complaints of shortages.


Moving armor into Sadr City while under fire is no small feat, particularly for the young Iraqi Army. The Iraqi Army outperformed their American betters on that day. Isn’t that worth a headline as well? There is certainly nothing wrong with reporting the defection of the Iraqi company on April 16, although the context of the story was seriously flawed. But when the Iraqi Army exceeds its expectations, that is news as well, and it should be treated in the same manner.

[iceberg]

Here's an update, and signs that the Iraqis, are starting to hold their own, in fighting for their country.
Now let's cut and run:)

The Iraqi Army Can Hold, Too

Earlier this week, much hay was made when an Iraqi Army company deserted its position in Sadr City. The next day, the New York Times interviewed an Iraqi Army company commander, also from Sadr City, who left his unit to take leave and speculated he may not come back. In two days, the narrative for the Iraqi Army and U.S. military incursion is set: The Iraqi Army is falling apart.

Both of these stories get a feature-length report, while successes of the Iraqi Army are relegated to single paragraph throwaways. Buried in the April 16 story is the fact that an Iraqi company was rushed into Sadr City to take the place of the deserting company. In today’s New York Times, Michael Gordon writes about the wall being built to partition Sadr City. Buried in the article, we learn that the Mahdi Army assaulted a police station and the Iraqi forces were running low on ammunition. As the U.S. military prepared to reinforce the position, the Iraqi Army beat them to the punch:

The militias’ main effort on Thursday was focused on dislodging Iraqi forces from a police station. American advisers took up positions with the Iraqi unit.

As the fighting intensified and there were reports that militia fighters had closed to within 100 yards, Colonel Barnett moved tanks into position so they could rush to the Iraqis’ aid. Stryker vehicles also moved forward.

But two Iraqi T-72s and four other Iraqi armored vehicles arrived on the scene before the American tanks were needed. The Iraqi Army has rushed ammunition to Sadr City, including machine-gun rounds and rocket-propelled grenades to give its units more firepower and address complaints of shortages.

Moving armor into Sadr City while under fire is no small feat, particularly for the young Iraqi Army. The Iraqi Army outperformed their American betters on that day. Isn’t that worth a headline as well? There is certainly nothing wrong with reporting the defection of the Iraqi company on April 16, although the context of the story was seriously flawed. But when the Iraqi Army exceeds its expectations, that is news as well, and it should be treated in the same manner.

you should know by now we only dance around the failures cause it's proof we're losing. that's important to some.

[Doomsday101]

The aggregating thing is you get the feeling that some in the media refuse to print anything that could be considered positive or they bury it in the back pages. I want the bad news reported but I also want to see the positives that are taking place.