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| Iraq |
| Tater's Jaish al-Mahdi (Mahdi Army) Completely Disappear |
| 2008-03-31 |
| Someone said, Booo! Gun-toting fighters of hardline cleric Moqtada al-Sadr melted from the streets on Monday after days of fierce clashes with security forces as a curfew in Baghdad was lifted and eased in Basra. AFP correspondents in Baghdad and Basra said the militants had disappeared on Monday and the fighting which had rocked the two cities since last Tuesday had died down. “They are following Sadr’s orders,” said Asadi, 36. “But we are ready, should the Americans come inside our district, to fight. We have enough IEDs (improvised explosive devices) for them. If they come, we will defend ourselves.” Where does he think he is, Detroitistan? “Life is getting back to normal in Sadr City,” said Ahmed Suhail, a resident of the sprawling district of some two million Shiites. “Most shops are open and there are no militiamen in the streets,” Suhail said. MSM coverage in 5, 4, 3, oh never mind The US military said on Monday its troops had killed 41 “criminals” in Baghdad, including 25 who died when a suspected mortar team was bombed. Life's a bitch and then you die... The fighting began on March 25 when Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki ordered his troops to attack Mahdi Army strongholds in Basra, the southern oil hub, which he said were infested by “lawless gunmen.” The fighting quickly spread across other Shiite areas and flared in particular in Sadr City. OK so maybe one of the excellent Burgers could explain that. Sadr didn't attack first? |
| Posted by:Icerigger |
| #21 NEWSMAX > AUTHOR [Wahlid Phares]:JIHAD AGZ THE WEST IS WELL-ENTRENCHED. JIHAD IS NEITHER RANDOM NOR UN/DISORGANIZED - US-West may broadly recognize the external parameters of an organization = organized network/efforts, but fail to see the inner core = true Jihad within + highly disciplined CENTRAL-GLOBAL VISION. * OSAMA + RADICAL ISLAM NEED TO ATTACK/STRIKE WHERE THE US = US-COALITION IS NOT - NOW, NOT LATER - AND THAT MEANS AGZ RUSSIA-CENTRAL ASIA [Cold War/Russ Nuctechs + Nuke-WMD Caches]. |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2008-03-31 23:49 |
| #20 NYT spins this as a loss for Maliki and the US. I guess there is no surprise there. It doesn't seem that long ago that I used to respect that paper. It only took 46 years to sort that out. |
| Posted by: Unique Battle 2008-03-31 22:21 |
| #19 Some obeyed. Others didn't and died in large numbers. The rest learned from that and also stopped fighting. |
| Posted by: OldSpook 2008-03-31 21:08 |
| #18 and didn't sadr tell his froces toon wuit fighting and didn't follow his orders? |
| Posted by: sinse 2008-03-31 18:30 |
| #17 they have enough ieds too destroy the am,erican forces , yeaha i bet since you just got your as whoped and sadr city hell yasll keep on fighting so we can finally get rid of this scourge |
| Posted by: sinse 2008-03-31 18:29 |
| #16 LH, you miss the point. Simply put, whoever patrols the street collects the taxes. Sadr's goons no longer patrol the streets and hence their economic base has (in large part) gone. Which is not to say they won't continue as say Iranian funded terrorists, but that is a very different beast. What Maliki and/or Sadr has or hasn't agreed to is irrelevant. 'Off the streets' implies they have gone somewhere and can come back on to the streets at will. It's just not like that, and barring a new power vacuum, it just won't happen. |
| Posted by: Phil_B 2008-03-31 18:04 |
| #15 generally, if you have to fade into the shadows when the calvary shows up, it implies a sign of weakness. |
| Posted by: Woodrow Slusorong7967 2008-03-31 17:53 |
| #14 so was there a deal or wasnt there? Is Maliki now going to STOP going after the tater tots? Did Maliki LOSE? Or will the sadrists being "off the streets" mean they will be wiped in the provincial elections? Do they intend to wait things out for a few more months, and then come back? I dont think the situation is clear at all. |
| Posted by: liberalhawk 2008-03-31 17:17 |
| #13 I'd say it's over for now and we should get ready for the re-match when the hudna expires on say, October 15, 2008. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2008-03-31 17:10 |
| #12 There are only 2 possible outcomes to this kind of urban insurection. The 'insurgents' either 'win' by showing the government doesn't have the capacity or will to suppress them, or they get slaughtered. The latter was pretty much a forgone conclusion. I'd say it's over bar the mopping up. |
| Posted by: Phil_B 2008-03-31 16:56 |
| #11 Wasn't it just yesterday we were speculating how many casualties Madhi Army would take before calling it quits? We now know. Anyone read anything on whether Sadr has emerged from his coma or are his Iranian handlers reading his brain waves? |
| Posted by: ed 2008-03-31 16:51 |
| #10 I'd say that these guys like Sadr have no idea what kind of power the US can wield against these ragbags. Its as if Blackhawk Down is expected every time they go out into the streets? Yup. That or the first attempt at taking Fallujah, which was short-circuited by the Iraqi government. |
| Posted by: lotp 2008-03-31 16:20 |
| #9 Thanks Chuck. |
| Posted by: Icerigger 2008-03-31 16:19 |
| #8 Isn't it interesting how delusional these radicals with their little tin foil hat militias are? They get all revved up, they show em how to load an AK, they show them how to aim a RPG and then they take to the streets thinking they can defeat the US Army with its air support, artillery, tanks, Bradleys and other assorted weapons platforms.....and they get their butts kicked with huge casualties. I wonder if they are told that Allah will give them a great victory? Or die today and receive a half off coupon on virgins in paradise? Or get half off on a splendid funeral complete with guys in green turbans waving swords? All in all, I'd say that these guys like Sadr have no idea what kind of power the US can wield against these ragbags. Its as if Blackhawk Down is expected every time they go out into the streets? The sum total of all of this is that Muqtad Al Sadr has even more egg on his face today than the last time he told his militia to take to the streets. Do you suppose any but the deranged and demented will follow his orders next time? Do you suppose that Iran will ever get tired of watching us kill their Iraqi pawns? |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet of Texas 2008-03-31 16:17 |
| #7 Whatever happened to the Hessians? You never see them around... |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2008-03-31 16:10 |
| #6 This reminds me of the stories/theories you often hear about the sudden disppearance of the Mayan civilization in central/south america. "And just like that... *finger snap* 'POOF', they were gone." |
| Posted by: eltoroverde 2008-03-31 15:55 |
| #5 Seems to me the move against Tater and the other elements in Basra is a sign of Maliki's (and the Iraqi Army's) strength. The objective all along has been to rid the country of independent militias. The purpose of the militias was to "protect" local citizens, but as the overall security situation improved, that protection morphed into extortion. The militiamen are mostly just criminals/opportunists. It is my hope that Maliki will keep the pressure on and continue to whack them. |
| Posted by: Remoteman 2008-03-31 13:39 |
| #4 Let me clarify. There was an increase in IED attacks in Baghdad and attacks on the Green Zone that immediately preceeded the move in Basra. I'm not convinced that the Maliki assault was entirely planned. I have the impression from reading far too many reports that the kickoff may have been accidental. There were several raids underway and resistance mounted. Maliki then ordered the actual assault. Cleaning out Basra had been in the works for months. The Iraqi security forces in the south had been reinforced and more raids were being conducted. |
| Posted by: Chuck Simmins 2008-03-31 13:23 |
| #3 So let me this straight, this was started as a Maliki offensive against Tater's boys? I get they idea of "incidents" but this sounds like it might have been a tribe conflict to start this round Chuck. Like I said I don't know. Thanks. |
| Posted by: Icerigger 2008-03-31 10:42 |
| #2 It all depends on what the definition of "attack" is. Incidents had increased in the couple of days before the Basra offensive but the display of arms in the streets had not happened. If you read the military reports, you will see that targeted raids have been very successful. Outside the raids, losses to Sadr's people are astounding, hundreds killed to 8 American troops and several dozen Iraqis. I would suspect that aerial assets kept very close track of the "melting" and the buildings entered are now in a database in prep for future raids. |
| Posted by: Chuck Simmins 2008-03-31 10:28 |
| #1 If SOCOM has been doing its job, we have already ID'ed the leadership and location of arms caches, and if SOCOM doesn't know, then SCIRI and the Badr group know. In other words, the tater tots are boned. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2008-03-31 09:56 |