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Africa North

A New Slogan: Want to Try It?

2010-04-17

[Asharq al-Aswat] A news item, published in this paper, stated that the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt is considering changing its famous slogan 'Islam is the solution' as a precaution against obstacles that it might face from the government, especially as articles within the constitution emphasise the danger of practicing politics based on religion. The news item adds that the Muslim Brotherhood is currently looking into the idea of adopting other slogans instead of or as well as 'Islam is the solution.' According to the news item, the Muslim Brotherhood said that "this slogan caused there to be many legal and political reservations." Muslim Brotherhood students at Egyptian universities had anticipated the MB's official idea or to be more specific, the MB's new position by using an alternative slogan, 'we hope for the best for Egypt' during the university student elections. They argued, as the news item indicates, that they coined that new slogan to alleviate security pressures. What was the position of the reformist figure in the Brotherhood leadership hierarchy, Essam al Eryan, towards this new youthful slogan? Al Eryan "decreed" that the new student slogan does not contradict the most cherished and sacred slogan of the Muslim Brotherhood, 'Islam is the solution.' He believes that the new slogan is part of a larger and more comprehensive slogan, namely, 'Islam is the solution.' It doesn't stop there. The Brotherhood mediator amazed us even further by stating that "every stage requires a different slogan." Al Eryan maintained that the slogan 'Islam is the solution' represents the identity of the Muslim Brotherhood. Of course the Muslim Brotherhood has its own way of interpreting this flagrant religious slogan and normalizing it within the civil state and I am talking about the constitution here not the regime because the MB is feeling this constitutional dilemma that lies at the core of these slogans and it came up with the following solution or ploy: whoever says that the 'Islam is the solution' slogan contradicts the constitution of the Egyptian state is wrong. These are the words of former Muslim Brotherhood Deputy Chairman Mohammed Habib. He believes that rejecting this slogan means rejecting the Egyptian constitution, the second article of which states that Islam is the official state religion. Habib says that those who oppose the slogan 'Islam is the solution' are actually "opposing and protesting the public order of the state." But, Mohammed Hassan Shaban, the journalist who wrote this news item, cleverly pointed out that Habib did not refer to the fifth clause of the constitution that he cited from that outlaws practicing politics based on religion. This controversy will never end; the theorists and politicians of the Muslim Brotherhood will always find a way out; they will always try verbal, emotional and constitutional tricks as well. This is not unusual with the Muslim Brotherhood and other bodies. We all remember how the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq dropped the word 'revolution' and opted for the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq. The then party leader Abdul Aziz al Hakim defended that change after securing enough votes for his party in the Iraqi parliament. We also recall how the Muslim Brotherhood in Kuwait, after the war of liberation in 1991, called itself the Islamic Constitutional Movement in order to ride the wave of increasing Kuwaiti patriotism and demanding a return to the constitution and parliamentary life in Kuwait after the invasion. Also in Iraq today, the State of Law Coalition headed by Nouri al Maliki is nothing but a façade for the fundamentalist Dawaa Party. Let us return to Egypt; perhaps all this can be understood in light of the vehemence of political rivalry for power and rule in Egypt, especially as parliamentary elections are drawing closer. The war of words intensifies and arguments are being debated by rivals in a climate of electoral and political conflict. My goal is not to recommend one Arab political party over another in Egypt or elsewhere as that is another topic altogether. Rather, the aim here is to reflect specifically on this clear "flexibility" in changing and altering slogans that are meant to be sacred and irrevocable, as their guardians have always claimed. What the Muslim Brotherhood is doing in Egypt and elsewhere is political manoeuvring and the person carrying out these manoeuvres is open to change and transformation. Even Essam al Eryan, in the middle of defending the Muslim Brotherhood's slogan change and its durability, acknowledged that there was flexibility and willingness towards change if the position of its rival, i.e. the Egyptian authorities, forces them to adopt that approach. If the authorities show tolerance, the Muslim Brotherhood would introduce their sacred slogan unabashed. But if the authorities show vigilance and strictness then the MB would search for another slogan that is suitable to that stage and its requirements, and does not negate the basis of the main slogan.

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Iraq

Al-Hakim kid succeeds pop in family business

2009-09-02

[Al Arabiya Latest] One of Iraq's main Shiite Muslim parties on Tuesday appointed the son of its leader Abdul Aziz al-Hakim as his successor after his death last week, averting a potentially damaging public power struggle. Ammar al-Hakim had been groomed for some time to take over the influential Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council (ISCI) from his father, who died in Tehran where he had been receiving treatment for lung cancer. The cleric was buried over the weekend in the holy Iraqi Shiite city of Najaf. His death cast fresh uncertainty over Iraqi politics at a time when alliances among Iraq's majority Shiites are shifting ahead of a parliamentary election in January, and when recent progress toward stability has been rocked by bomb attacks. "Voting for Ammar al-Hakim is normal because of the symbolism of his family name and the sacrifices that the family made," said ISCI lawmaker Nabil Ismail, who said Ammar al-Hakim had been picked by the party's advisory council.

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Iraq

Powerful Iraqi Shiite leader has died in Iran

2009-08-26

Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, the scion of a revered clerical family who rode the rise of Shiite power in Iraq to become one of the country's most powerful political figures but was deeply distrusted by Sunni Muslims as an ally of Iran, died Wednesday at the age of 59. Two senior clerics from his party, Sheiks Humam Hamoudi and Jalaleddin al-Saghir, told The Associated Press that he died after being hospitalized in critical condition in Tehran where he was being treated for lung cancer. In a brief announcement, Iranian state television also reported that al-Hakim died from lung cancer. Al-Hakim wielded enormous influence since the 2003 U.S. invasion as head of the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council, maintaining close ties to both the Americans and his Iranian backers. A longtime leader of a Shiite rebel group that fought Saddam's rule, he was seen by many Shiites as the embodiment of the victory that ended decades of brutal repression under Saddam and restored what they see as their rightful place as the country's leaders. His son and political heir, Ammar al-Hakim, said in a statement read on the party's al-Furat television that his father "who spent decades in jihad and struggle has joined the ranks of the martyrs." Al-Furat placed al-Hakim's picture on a blackened background and began reciting Koranic verses. It then began showing scenes from his life and played somber music. The Kurds said al-Hakim's death was a loss to those who worked to reconcile Iraq's often warring religious and ethnic factions. "He had a significant role in Iraq's national unity and was working hard to narrow the different opinions among all Iraqis," Fuad Hussein, spokesman for Kurdish Regional President Massoud Barzani told The AP. "We hope that all the Iraqi people and their leaders will follow his example and directions and never abandon his ideology and path." Calm and soft-spoken, al-Hakim held no government post since Saddam Hussein's ouster, but held enormous influence in his role of kingmaker in the turbulent years after Saddam's fall. However, his close ties to Iran, where he lived in exile for more than 20 years, made him a controversial figure, distrusted by most Sunnis and even some Shiites as Tehran's man in Iraqi politics and a symbol of sectarian politics. Al-Hakim's outspoken support for Shiite self-rule in the south of Iraq also was seen by Sunnis and Shiites alike as an Iran-inspired plan to weaken the country and hand Tehran control of the country's Shiite heartland, home to most of Iraq's oil wealth and the riches of the shrine cities of Najaf and Karbala.

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Iraq

Iraqi election hints of troubles for Shiite giant

2009-02-02

The biggest Shiite party in Iraq once appeared to hold all the political sway: control of the heartland, the backing of influential clerics and a foot in the government with ambitions to take full control. But the days of wide-open horizons could be soon ending for the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council, and replaced by important shifts that could be welcomed in Washington and scorned in Tehran. The signs began to take shape Sunday with hints of the voter mood from provincial elections. The broad message _ built on Iraqi media projections and postelection interviews _ was that the eventual results would punish religious-leaning factions such as the Supreme Council that are blamed for stoking sectarian violence, and reward secular parties seen capable of holding Iraq's relative calm. The outcome of the provincial races will not directly effect Iraq's national policies or its balance between Washington's global power and Iran's regional muscle. But Shiite political trends are critically important in Iraq, where majority Shiites now hold sway after the fall of Saddam Hussein's Sunni-dominated regime. "There is a backlash from Iraqis against sectarian and religious politics," said Mustafa al-Ani, an Iraqi political analyst based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Although official results from Saturday's provincial elections are likely still days away, the early outlines are humbling for The Supreme Council. The group had been considered a linchpin in Iraqi politics as a junior partner in the government that had near seamless political control in the Shiite south. Some forecasts point to widespread losses for the party across the main Shiite provinces. The blows could include embarrassing stumbles in the key city of Basra and the spiritual center of Najaf _ hailed as the future capital in the Supreme Council's dreams for an autonomous Shiite enclave. In their place, the big election winners appear to be allies of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, according to projections and interviews with political figures who spoke on condition of anonymity because official results are not posted. It's a vivid lesson in Iraq's fluid politics. A year ago, al-Maliki looked to be sinking. Shiite militiamen ruled cities such as Basra and parts of Baghdad and rockets were pouring into the protected Green Zone, which includes the U.S. Embassy and Iraq's parliament. Al-Maliki _ with apparent little advance coordination with the U.S. military _ struck back. An offensive broke the militia control in Basra and elsewhere in the south. His reputation turned around. And many voters appeared happy to reward his political backers in the elections for seats on provincial councils, which carry significant clout with authority over local business contracts, jobs and local security forces. "Al-Maliki ended the militiamen's reign of terror," said Faisal Hamadi, 58, after voting in Basra. "For this he deserves our vote." The Supreme Council, meanwhile, appeared to stagger under the weight of negative baggage. It was accused of failing to deliver improvements to public services in the south. Also, its deep ties to Iran began to rub against Iraqis' nationalist sentiments. The Supreme Council's leader, Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, spent decades in Iran during Saddam's rule and was allowed an office-villa in downtown Tehran. After Saddam's fall, the Supreme Council was Iran's main political conduit into Iraq even though the group also developed ties with Washington. Iran now could face limits on its influence in the south with the Supreme Council forced into a coalition or second-tier status _ and also confront resistance from a stronger al-Maliki government seeking to curb Tehran's inroads. A Supreme Council lawmaker, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue, acknowledged the election mood was against them. "We controlled most provinces in the south, so we were blamed for whatever went wrong there," he said. "The elections gave us an indication of what will happen in the general election late this year," said the analyst al-Ani. "Those who lost in this election have nearly a year to learn their lesson and change their strategy. They know now where the Iraqis stand."

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Iraq

Shiite split could complicate US security pact

2008-10-17

BAGHDAD (AP) - A looming split between the two Shiite parties that dominate Iraq's government threatens efforts to win parliamentary approval for a security pact with the U.S. and could set the stage for a major struggle for power in the oil-rich Shiite southern heartland. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's Dawa Party and the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council led by Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim have been allies since the 2003 fall of Saddam Hussein's Sunni-led regime. Now they are rapidly turning into bitter rivals, raising the specter of a weakened Shiite front ahead of two key elections next year. The security agreement, reached after months of tortuous negotiations, would allow U.S. troops to remain here after their U.N. mandate expires Dec. 31. It is critical to ensuring Iraq's security until government forces are capable of taking charge of the fight against insurgents. A draft has been completed and the government is preparing to submit it to parliament for final approval - which U.S. officials believe is by no means certain.

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Iraq

Half baked Tater to stay for years in Iran oven until he becomes all baked

2008-08-22

NAJAF, Iraq - Militant Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr plans to make a series of short visits to Iraq starting within weeks but has decided to make Iran his home base for years to come, a key aide says. The aide is close to the 35-year-old cleric and has accurately reported on the Sadrist movement for several years. The aide would not say how long al-Sadr would stay in Iran, where he has lived since May 2007, but said it was "reasonable" to expect he would remain there for five or more years. That's the time al-Sadr needs to prepare to win acceptance as a "marjaa," joining Iraq's top Shiite leader Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani and three other grand ayatollahs as members of the highest Shiite religious authority. Al-Sadr announced in March that he had moved to the Iranian holy city of Qom to focus on staying alive religious studies -- an essential credential for power in Iraq's majority Shiite community. The decision to extend his stay could indicate the cleric, whose Mahdi Army militia battled U.S. and Iraqi forces for years, has decided his future lies in politics, not violence. Last month, al-Sadr announced he was transforming his militia into a social welfare body with a few guerrilla cells to attack U.S. troops if Washington doesn't agree to leave Iraq. The announcement followed setbacks in battles with the U.S.-supported Iraqi army in Baghdad, Basra and Amarah. The decision to stay in Qom could also be part of a move by Iran to control Shiite resistance in Iraq. The U.S. military believes Iran arms and trains breakaway Mahdi Army cells, a claim the Iranians deny. "He is the guest of the Iranian government who will control him ... until such time they have comfortably wrested control of the Mahdi Army away from him," said Vali Nasr, a U.S.-based expert on Shiite affairs. asr said talk of remaining in Iran for studies or other reasons may be "grandstanding and face-saving talk," suggesting that al-Sadr may not be free to leave. But al-Sadr's aide said remaining in Iran would allow al-Sadr time to pursue his religious education beyond what he needs to become an ayatollah. Al-Sadr expects to reach that goal in 2010, the aide said. Al-Sadr realizes it will take longer for him to win a place at the top of the Shiite clerical hierarchy in the holy city of Najaf -- the world's foremost seat of Shiite learning. Najaf's religious establishment is often hostile to newcomers, and money and political connections count nearly as much as scholarship and piety. Al-Sadr's quest for clerical eminence is likely to rattle the Najaf religious establishment -- immersed in centuries-old traditions and unfamiliar with his mix of street politics, social outreach and violence. His ambitions may be unrealistic. Even the cleric's aide and a Sadrist lawmaker acknowledged that for al-Sadr to succeed, he must overcome a number of hurdles, including al-Sistani and rivals in the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council -- the country's most powerful Shiite party. However, al-Sadr's quest may be backed by some in Iran's Shiite clerical hierarchy who are grooming him for leadership. Two clerics supervising his studies are key Iraqi-born figures in the Iranian clerical establishment -- Grand Ayatollah Kazim al-Haeri and Ayatollah Mahmoud al-Hashemi, the head of the Iranian judiciary. Al-Sadr comes from one of Najaf's oldest religious families. His father, Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Sadiq al-Sadr, was gunned down by suspected agents of Saddam Hussein in 1999 along with two sons. Muqtada al-Sadr's wife is a daughter of Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir al-Sadr, a distant relative of his father and one of Shiite Islam's most prominent theologians. He was tortured to death in 1980 by Saddam's agents. But al-Sistani, who is 80 and is still an Iranian citizen more than a half century after settling in Iraq, dominates the religious establishment. He was at odds with al-Sadr's father and is said to consider the son an upstart whose actions are unbecoming for a cleric. Al-Sistani suffers from a heart condition for which he received treatment in London in 2004. The leader of the Supreme Council, Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, is an al-Sistani ally and an al-Sadr critic; he has been diagnosed with lung cancer. Their departure would remove the toughest opponents to al-Sadr's recognition as a marjaa. "If al-Sadr declares himself a marjaa too soon or under unsuitable circumstances, even a hint from al-Sistani that questions his credentials will stick to him for years," said the al-Sadr aide. "The conditions must be perfect and that's why al-Sadr decided to focus on his studies for many years."

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Iraq

Syria supports national reconciliation in Iraq-SANA

2008-08-01

(VOI) - Syrian Foreign Minister on Thursday stressed the importance of achieving national reconciliation among the Iraqi components to ensure fostering the country's unity, sovereignty and security according to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA). Syria, where over 500 thousands Iraqi refugees are living, is accused by the U.S of harbouring and helping foreign fighters to enter Iraq and to launch attacks against U.S Iraqi forces. Syria denied the charges. "The deputy Chief of Supreme Islamic Council in Iraq Ammar Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, and Syrian FM Waleed al-Moallem emphasized the necessity of withdrawal of foreign forces from Iraq," said a SANA website statement. "Al-Moallem and al-Hakim reviewed bilateral relations and ways to consolidate and develop them in addition to the latest developments in the Iraqi arena," it added. "Al-Hakim applauded Syrian's stance and its keenness on Iraq's national unity, sovereignty, security and stability and thanked it for hosting Iraqi refugees and bearing their enormous burden" it noted. On Wednesday, the Syrian President Bashar al-Assad received the Deputy Chairman of Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council Ammar Abdul Aziz AL-Hakim and held talks about cementing ties with Iraq. Al-Hakim noted "the current atmosphere cannot help sign a long security agreement", adding "what is being sought now is outlining the frame of relation between Iraq and the U.S. such as finding a protocol."

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Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Iran President Claims US Assassination Plot

2008-06-21

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Thursday accused the United States of plotting to kidnap and assassinate him during a visit to Iraq, state media reported. The president told a meeting of clerics in the central city of Qom that Iran's "enemies" planned to kill him when he went to Baghdad in March, according to the president's Web site. Iranian leaders usually use the term "enemies" to refer to Western nations and the United States in particular. The report on the presidential Web site did not specify the United States as the source of the plot. But state television reported that Ahmadinejad had "unveiled a shocking story" — that "Americans had intended to kidnap him during his trip to Iraq." Ahmadinejad said the plot was never carried out because of "intentional" last-minute changes in his schedule during the visit, the Web site said. He said the conspirators learned about the changes after he left Iraq. Ahmadinejad's trip to Baghdad was the first by an Iranian leader since the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran, a sign of the close ties between Tehran and the Shiite-led government in Baghdad. During his visit, Ahmadinejad did not stay in the heavily fortified Green Zone, where the Iraqi government and U.S. Embassy are centered and where most visiting dignitaries reside. Instead, he stayed in a compound that includes the home of President Jalal Talabani, a Kurd, and Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, head of Iraq's largest Shiite party, both of whom have strong ties to Tehran, the security official said. His security was provided by members of the Shiite Badr Movement, close to al-Hakim, and Kurdish peshmerga fighters, instead of army or police, the official said. Iran and the U.S. have no diplomatic relations since shortly after the 1979 storming of the U.S. Embassy by militant students who held American hostages for 444 days. Tensions have been high between Washington and Tehran over U.S. accusations that Iran aims to build a nuclear weapon and that it is financing and arming anti-U.S. Shiite militias in Iraq. Iran denies both charges.

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Iraq

Basra incidents "turning point" in Iraq's political chessboard, analysts reckon

2008-05-05

Iraqi politicians and researchers concurred that the political scene in the country has significantly changed after the Iraqi government targeted the armed militias of Shiite political groups, while others believed the Basra incidents have been a "turning point" that are yet to shape the course of events in war-scourged nation. "The political situation in Iraq has developed dramatically after the Basra incidents that no one can definitely claim that the (Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri) al-Maliki (Shiite-led) government is a sectarian one anymore," Ali al-Allaq, a member of parliament from the Shiite Unified Iraqi Coalition (UIC). Maliki had announced in March the commencement of a security operation codenamed Saulat al-Forsan (Knights' Assault) in the port city of Basra, Iraq's second largest province and an oil-hub, 590 km south of Baghdad, which he said targeted "outlaws". "Matters are heading towards national rapprochement and strategically important decision-taking by Iraqi political blocs, including those who quit the government," Allaq told Aswat al-Iraq – Voices of Iraq – (VOI). "These blocs have taken the decision to return after securing strong guarantees from the Maliki government," added Allaq, whose bloc is the largest in parliament with 83 out of a total 275 seats. Adnan al-Dulaimi, the leader of the Sunni Iraqi Accordance Front (IAF), had told VOI on Wednesday that the front finally decided during recent meetings to re-join the government. The IAF, the main bloc representing Sunni Muslims in the political process, had withdrawn from the government in August 2007, claiming then that Maliki was "making decisions solely and not giving enough space for the other parties." A lawmaker from the IAF, the third largest bloc with 44 parliamentary seats, believed that Iraq's political state of affairs would be remarkably refreshed during coming days after the Basra incidents. "Iraq has never experienced a harmony since the establishment of the modern state after 2003. We might as well see the emergence of new political blocs and organizations," Hashim al-Taie told VOI. He said the Iraqi government has been through tough tests in several issues like the general pardon law, power sharing and the tolerance about different opinions. "The prime minister managed to pass these tests successfully and practically discredit the sectarianism accusations used to be hurled against his government in the past," Taie said. The IAF is composed of three key groups: the Iraqi Islamic Party (IIP) of Vice President Tareq al-Hashimi, the Iraq People's Congress of Dulaimi and the National Dialogue Council (NDC) of Khalaf al-Alyan, while the Shiite UIC comprises the Dawa Party, of Premier Maliki, the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council (SIIC) of Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim and other independent deputies. A legislator from the Kurdistan Coalition (KC) expressed optimism about a possibility to re-group anew in political terms. "I would not be exaggerating if I said that matters are going ahead and faster than the past. There is going to be an unexpected political breakthrough that would bring Iraq out of the bottleneck," Sirwan al-Zahawi, whose KC is the second largest bloc in the Iraqi parliament with 55 seats, told VOI. Zahawi believed that the Maliki government did not strike the Sadrists, or Iraqis loyal to Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr, in Basra. "The government did not even target the Sadrists but rather certain groups feigning affiliation to the Sadrists," he explained. Now for the obligatory featuring of nay-sayers by the MSM: Meanwhile, analyst and researcher Ibrahim al-Samaydaie said Iraq's political shift after the Basra incidents is "fragile". "The political agreements between the Iraqi government and the opposition groups were merely coincidental and had not been strategically planned," Samaydaie said. Political writer and analyst Muhammad al-Furati said no one can possibly describe any plan as successful. The Iraqi government itself, he said, admitted that several "criminals" have left the area and might return any time, a matter that would not help predict a practical imposition of the law in Basra.

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Iraq

Pay heed Iran: US shifts enemy in Iraq

2008-04-11

Looks like AlQ is on its way out. Now for the next item on the To Do list . . . . The top U.S. commander has shifted the focus from al-Qaida to Iranian-backed "special groups" as the main threat to a democratic Iraq — a significant change that reflects both the complexity of the war and its changing nature. The shift was articulated this week in Washington by Gen. David Petraeus, who told Congress that "unchecked, the special groups pose the greatest long-term threat to the viability of a democratic Iraq." Before, American commanders have called al-Qaida the greatest threat. There is little doubt that Shiite extremists fighting U.S. and Iraqi forces have received Iranian weapons, although Iran's government denies supplying them. But Petraeus' comments obscure the fact that the United States has waded into a monumental power struggle within the majority Shiite community — and crucially, that both sides in that struggle, not just the "special groups," maintain close ties to Iran. The power struggle is only the latest stage in a decades-long competition between the families of the current top Shiite players: anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, whose political party in Iraq works closely with the U.S. despite its links to Iran. That intra-Shiite competition is likely to continue — sometimes violently — regardless of whether the Iraqi government and its U.S. backers force al-Sadr to disband his Mahdi Army militia or not. In military parlance, the term "special groups" refers to presumed breakaway Mahdi factions whose main sponsor is Iran. American lawmakers expressed frustration this week because Petraeus offered no assurances that an end to the war is near. It's not. Anything else is called denial. Get over it. In part, that's because the conflict has been ever-evolving — from at first a Sunni insurgency, next to a Sunni-Shiite sectarian bloodletting, and now a violent competition for power within the Shiite community. Through much of the war, the Bush administration has presented the conflict primarily as a fight against al-Qaida, describing it as the principal enemy in the array of Sunni and Shiite "threat groups." Throughout much of the war, Iran didn't meddle so intensively. That changed when they saw their interests losing. That began to change after a tectonic shift in the Sunni Arab community: Thousands of Sunni tribesmen abandoned al-Qaida in Iraq and joined U.S.-backed security forces starting last year. Attacks against U.S. forces fell sharply in former Sunni battlegrounds such as Anbar province. U.S. troops are still fighting al-Qaida, of course, especially in the north. Nationwide, however, most of the recent battles have involved Shiite militants. The trouble started last month when Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, himself a Shiite, launched an ill-prepared offensive against Shiite militias and criminal gangs in Basra in the south. I'll bet the next one isn't so ill-prepared. And despite its "ill-preparedness" status, it isn't Sadr's forces who are patrolling the streets there anymore. The offensive stalled and triggered a violent backlash by al-Sadr's followers, who believed the crackdown was aimed at weakening them before provincial elections this fall. To retaliate for the crackdown in Basra, Shiite militiamen fired rockets and mortars at Baghdad's U.S.-protected Green Zone, which houses the U.S. and British embassies and al-Maliki's office. Must have hit a nerve or something. They were firing rockets at the Green Zone before Basra. Cheez. In the current fighting, American and Iraqi troops are trying to push the militants out of rocket range of the Green Zone and bottle them up in the sprawling Shiite district of Sadr City — the Mahdi Army stronghold. It's a fight the Americans didn't want now. Instead, U.S. commanders believed military resources should have been continued to be directed at al-Qaida in the north. Al-Q is pretty much mopped up. The Coalition just wishes it had more warning is all. But now, a cease-fire that al-Sadr called last August is in tatters and the prospect of more violence looms. You mean the hudna veneer wasn't working the way it usually does? The role of the "special groups" remains unclear. U.S. officials say they are breakaway factions of the Mahdi Army that no longer take orders from al-Sadr. Go take a trip over one of those EFPs and tell me how unclear the role of the Iranian Special Forces is. Such talk about the threat posed by the special groups casts the internal Shiite conflict as a proxy war between the United States and extremists controlled by Iran. "The regime in Tehran also has a choice to make," President Bush said Thursday. "They can live in peace with its neighbor, enjoy strong economic and cultural and religious ties, or it can continue to arm and train and fund illegal militant groups which are terrorizing the Iraqi people and turning them against Iran." Simple, but impossible with the current regime. But the picture is more clouded. Not really, but go ahead anyway. With all Shiite factions close to the Iranians, it appears that Iran will profit — at least to some degree — no matter which Shiite groups end up in power and no matter how America pursues the war. So are you advocating for the status quo? I say if the current regime in Iran wants it, I'm against it.

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Iraq

Anger follows the fight with Sadr's militia

2008-04-01

"The Charge of the Sadrs" is spray painted in black all over the numerous Iraqi Army and police checkpoints now abandoned in eastern Baghdad's Shiite neighborhoods. The graffiti mocks Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's security operation – "The Charge of the Knights" – launched in Basra, the southern Iraqi oil city, last week that put Iraqi and US forces in direct confrontation with Moqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army in the capital and across the south. On Monday, one day after the Shiite cleric's call for a truce following the battle that killed hundreds of people and wounded scores of others, several conclusions are clear. Mr. Sadr has demonstrated his power, despite the blows dealt to his movement over the past few years. The government spokesman, Ali al-Dabbagh, thanked him profusely on Monday for his decision, but vowed that the fight would continue in Basra, where militiamen have now largely melted away from the streets, but remain very much in control of their strongholds. "It's the same old ending," says Juliana Dawood, a Basra resident, referring to previous battles with Sadr's Mahdi Army in 2004 that have finished with similar truces. In August 2004, US and Iraqi forces battled Sadr's militias in Najaf, Iraq. It was billed as a crucial test of then-Prime Minister Iyad Allawi's ability to extend authority over a key city in Iraq that was controlled by armed militias. The Najaf showdown ended in much the same way this one did: a Sadr negotiated truce. But this time, analysts say, the widespread instances of surrender among the Iraqi forces and the seizure of their equipment and vehicles by the Mahdi Army shows that despite all the funding and training from the US, Iraq's soldiers remain greatly swayed by their sectarian and party loyalties and are incapable of standing up in a fight without US backing. The fighting has also firmly wedged the US in an intra-Shiite struggle that has been bubbling for some time and will probably only intensify. The battle has also spawned more popular anger and frustration, especially in places like eastern Baghdad, toward both US forces and Mr. Maliki's government, which already had been teetering on the verge of collapse. This popular anger is like an adrenaline rush for the Sadrist movement, which, in contrast to other Shiite parties, particularly the one led by rival Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, is seen as being on the side of the young, poor, and downtrodden. Already Sadr is gearing up to capitalize on this comeback with a huge anti-American rally planned in Baghdad on April 9, the day Saddam Hussein's statue was brought down in the capital five years ago. In Baghdad, the government lifted a three-day curfew but US and Iraqi forces maintained a siege of sorts on Mahdi strongholds in eastern Baghdad, such as Sadr City and Shaab and Shuala on the northwest side. All vehicles were banned from going in and out except for authorized food and medicine deliveries. Everyone going in was searched by Iraqi forces. US troops kept a close eye from a distance. A US Abrams tank, a Bradley fighting vehicle, and an armored truck stood guard at Mudhafar Square on the edge of Sadr City. US soldiers have also moved into the main municipal building off the square. "They killed him here, look," recounts Salem Dhiab, pointing to the bullet-riddled gate where he says his neighbor, Ahmed Bayrouzi, was shot by a US sniper after venturing out Sunday in violation of the curfew to check on his sister who lives close by. Nearby, two lone policemen sat outside and simply smiled when asked how they fared in the fight. The street was charred from the remains of burning tires that militiamen set ablaze.

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Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Ahmadinejad accuses US of spreading terror in Iraq

2008-03-04

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, on an unprecedented visit to Iraq, was aiming to build ties with officials from a once-hated neighbor and to accuse the United States of spreading terrorism. The two-day visit was thick with symbolism as both the US and Iran seek to influence Iraq's future. Ahmadinejad said talks Sunday with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, a Sunni Kurd who told the Iranian leader to call him "Uncle Jalal," were "brotherly." Then Ahmadinejad cut through the US-controlled Green Zone to visit Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a fellow Shi'ite, at his Cabinet offices. The sprawling Green Zone contains the core of the US diplomatic mission to Iraq - including a massive new embassy - and is heavily protected against occasional rocket attacks, which American officials have blamed on Iranian-backed Shi'ite extremists. Ahmadinejad denied the charges at least twice during news conferences throughout Sunday. "Six years ago, there were no terrorists in our region. As soon as the others landed in this country and the region, we witnessed their arrival and presence," he said Sunday night after meeting Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, the leader of Iraq's largest Shi'ite political bloc.

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