- The Cat

Tony737 on April 20, 2008 at 3:08 PM

Texas Gal on April 20, 2008 at 4:29 PM

My mistake. I thought he held a seat himself.

My linking of the Telegraph article was for information only. I wonder if the British Army officers quoted find the headline ironic – “The British-trained Iraqi Army’s attempt to retake Basra from militiamen was an “unmitigated disaster at every level”, British commanders have disclosed.”

The real game is on, JAM is over-rated, the ISF is attacking, and only the press is stupid enough not to realize it.

Sadr has threatened to end his cease-fire, but he has already lost Basra and Umm Qasr. His Mahdis have strength in Sadr City in Baghdad, but they are being reduced block by block with a combined effort from the Iraqi Army and US forces. He may not have much ground from which to conduct his war

This sounds very good. Success and victory must be just around the next corner.

Obama’s plan to have all U.S. combat forces out of Iraq by the middle of 2010 clearly must be too pessimistic as with all this marvelous success and victory George W. Bush will surely have them out by the end of his Presidency on January, 2009.

That other pessimist, General Petraeus can probably start looking for a cork screw to open up that bottle of champaign that he put in the back of his refrigerator.

I don’t have a link handy, but here is wikipedia which does not list muqtada al sadr as an iraqi parliamentarian.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Members_of_the_1st_Iraqi_Council_of_Representatives#Sadrist_Movement

It’s a bit out of date though.

He is? Are you sure about that?

No he’s not. His political party had some ministry seats, 6 or 8 I think, and he has some parliamentary seats, I thinking something like 23. But he withdrew his group in protest last fall to force Maliki out because Maliki wouldn’t telll the US to leave. And as I recall Maliki succeeded in reforming the government with the Sunnis and Kurds and the remaining Shia parties thus eliminating Sadr. He might have sent his parliamentary reps back, I can’t recall, but I do believe he’s lost his ministry seats because they were either filled by the other parties that joined with Maliki’s Shia group and I think a few of them were merged with other ministries.

He’s just sh!t out of luck now.

He is? Are you sure about that? I thought Mookie backed certain M.P.’s, but wasn’t actually one himself. I’m
not being sarcastic or rhetorical, but can somebody confirm that Mookie holds a seat in Parliament? Thanks.

Condi Rice is partly responsible for this shameful result in Iraq as is the current President and yet people here are still obsessed over Carter meeting with Hamas leadership telling them to decaler a unilateral cease fire and pointing out that they need to abandon some of their core political aims. There is no denying that we have helped Iran achieve some very important strategic objectives in the region and most importantly in the Gulf. Nice job W & Co.

aengus on April 20, 2008 at 12:46 PM

Oh yes you can. Malaki realizes that there is no going back now. Either Sadr or he has to go. Look for Sadr to live in exile over with his buddies in Iran. The time has passed where these two can make nice.

no viable state can abide large private armies controlling its sovereign territory, especially not when receiving significant assistance from another nation.

After the Mahdi & their Iran connection, perhaps she will use the same language about the FARC & Hugo?

Rovin on April 20, 2008 at 12:51 PM

A lot of pressure is being applied right now on Iranian backed units and units who the Iraqi goverment see as a threat.

Admiral Patrick Driscoll explained in a press conference with al-Sheikhli in Baghdad that U.S. forces were able to control Sadr city’s southern part by separating it from its northern part, using a temporary concrete wall, and conducing security and military operations against armed groups that randomly open fire on residential neighborhoods and the Green Zone.

http://66.111.34.180/look/english/article.tpl?IdLanguage=1&IdPublication=4&NrArticle=76964&NrIssue=2&NrSection=1

This is good news indeed. Sitting down and talking about a political solution other than an all out confrontation is in everyones best interest. I guess my point was that some one is applying the “pressure” and it’s certainly not Sadr or his fracturing militias.

Um, why has this guy not been arrested or killed?

Sadr is a member of Iraq’s parliament. Iraq is a democracy remember? You can’t go around assassinating elected officials in a democratic country.

‘There is a need for opening a dialogue as the al-Sadr Bloc is an effective part in parliament and government,’ government spokesman Ali al-Dabagh told reporters.

‘The Iraqi government is not in confrontation with any political group. But it is incumbent on the government under the constitution to protect its citizens against those who raised arms against it,’ al-Dabagh said.

http://news.monstersandcritics.com/middleeast/news/article_1400882.php/Baghdad_seeks_dialogue_with_cleric_al-Sadr_calm_in_south__Roundup

The British Army has a view on the Basra action – The British-trained Iraqi Army’s attempt to retake Basra from militiamen was an “unmitigated disaster at every level”, British commanders have disclosed. . Mind You, they don’t seem to place any corelation on “British Trained” and the disaster.

davod on April 20, 2008 at 11:37 AM

The Telegraph and davod may have to try to keep up with current events as the media continues their “spin-cycle” of defeatism.

From Sadr’s own words:

“So I direct my last warning and speech to the Iraqi government to refrain and to take the path of peace and abandon violence against its people,” al-Sadr said in the statement. “If the government does not refrain and leash the militias that have penetrated it, we will announce an open war until liberation.”

It appears Maliki is calling Sadr’s bluff in what may become the last bastion of real division within the nation. The Mahdi army has but two choices left—-surrender or become more marginalized as they are left out in the cold. Does anyone really think General Petraeus doesn’t have a plan to put an end to a leaderless army that may be just as tired of dieing for a lost cause?

What do you propese, that Iraq invade Iran and go and get him.

The British Army has a view on the Basra action – The British-trained Iraqi Army’s attempt to retake Basra from militiamen was an “unmitigated disaster at every level”, British commanders have disclosed. . Mind You, they don’t seem to place any corelation on “British Trained” and the disaster.