| Submit your comments on this article |
| Iraq |
| Operation in Sadr City part of Baghdad plan, "eventually" |
| 2006-08-28 |
| Iraqi and US forces will conduct operations in Baghdad's Sadr City, a bastion of Shiite militia fighters, as part of the ongoing security crackdown, a US military spokesman said. Major General William Caldwell said operation Together Forward launched on June 14 would eventually move into Sadr City, a stronghold of the radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr and a hotbed of anti-US fervour. "The prime minister has stated that the operation be conducted through out the entire city of Baghdad. That is correct," Caldwell said when questioned about whether an operation will be conducted in Sadr City. He would not, however, comment on the timing of the operation in the district whose nearly two million residents largely support Sadr but also of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's Shiite-led coalition government. The district is one of the most volatile regions of Baghdad, and the alleged base of a number of death squads accused of killing Sunni Arabs in an ongoing sectarian conflict. "There is no set time table. The prime minister is directing how rapidly the operation will continue. The prime minister is completely in charge of the operation, "Caldwell said Maliki has in the past criticised US and Iraqi forces for carrying out nightime raids in the impoverished district. The US military has clashed with Sadr's militia on a number of occasions, most notablly in August 2004 when a battle in the holy city of Najaf killed hundreds of militiamen and dozens of US soldiers. Caldwell, meanwhile, said the Baghdad security plan was showing "progress" even as more than two dozen people have been killed in a spate of car bombings in the capital since Sunday. On Monday a suicide car bomber blew himself up near the compound housing the interior ministry, killing 14 people. "The Baghdad security operation has focussed on areas where there are the greatest number of kidnappings and murders. Focused effort continues in Baghdad and there are signs of progress," Caldwell said. He said the level of violence had decreased from the July levels and that the plan had shown progress in reducing "kidnappings, murders and sectarian violence". Caldwell said that in greater Baghdad, the number of daily attacks had averaged around 23 over the past week, lower than the comparable average in July. "The average daily murder rate in Baghdad province has dropped 46 percent from July to August, while vehicle borne improvised devices decreased by 50 percent last week to a total of eight which was the lowest monthly average in eight months," he said. When they do go into Sadr City, it is going to be a masterful execution of maneuver. |
| Posted by:Anonymoose |
| #3 Should have leveled Tater City a few years back when we had em on the ropes! |
| Posted by: RJB in JC MO 2006-08-28 22:33 |
| #2 bout friggin time. Tater will be safely hiding in Tehran |
| Posted by: Frank G 2006-08-28 22:08 |
| #1 is this gonna be televised? Please, only serious ass kicking will do |
| Posted by: Captain America 2006-08-28 19:54 |