Friday, August 8, 2008

Iraqi Cleric Muqtada al-Sadr Reorganizes Militia -- News Updates On Iraq For August 8, 2008

Radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr speaks to supporters at mosque in Kufa, 2007. Sadr has ordered his Mahdi Army militia to lay down its arms if a security pact between Baghdad and Washington provides for a withdrawal from Iraq. (AFP/File/Qassem Zein)

From Yahoo News/AP:

BAGHDAD - Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr ordered most of his militiamen to disarm but said Friday he will maintain elite fighting units to resist the Americans if a timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. troops is not established.

Fighters in the Sunni-led insurgency, meanwhile, set off a car bomb at a market in the northern city of Tal Afar, killing 21 people and wounding dozens, Iraqi police said. It was the latest in a series of deadly attacks seeking to chip away at recent security gains.

Al-Sadr's statement — read to worshippers during Friday prayers in Baghdad's former militia stronghold of Sadr City — was in line with details revealed earlier this week and appeared to be an extension of plans he announced in June aimed at asserting more control over the militia.

Read more ....

More News On Muqtada al-Sadr

Al-Sadr Orders Militia To Disarm -- CBS News
Sadr to disarm if U.S. withdraws on timetable -- Yahoo News/Reuters
Sadr to split Iraq militia into 2 groups -- International Herald Tribune
Iraqi Cleric Al-Sadr Vows Cease-Fire in Exchange for U.S. Withdrawal Timetable -- FOX News
Anti-U.S. Cleric to Lay Down Weapons -- ABC News
A US Withdrawal Deal with Sadr? -- Time Magazine


Troops from the 1st Iraqi Army Division celebrate while passing through Jalulah. Photo by Bill Murray

More News On Iraq

Marine to stand trial over detainee killing in Iraq -- AFP
Marine ordered to stand trial in Fallujah killings -- International Herald Tribune
U.S. agrees to set withdrawal date with Iraq -- Yahoo News/McClatchy
Iraq, US Near Troop Withdrawal Deal -- Time Magazine
Iraq's stabilization is an overriding aim of Turkey -- Daily Star (Lebanon)
In Iraq, Regional Politics Heats Up -- Washington Post
Fault lines run deep over Kirkuk's future in Iraq -- Reuters
Time for Iraq to Pay the Bill -- New York Times
As oil revenue piles up, Iraq must begin pulling its weight and fund reconstruction -- Houston Chronicle
Iraq resumes oil exploration after long halt -- International Herald Tribune
Iraq resumes oil exploration after 20-year break -- Yahoo News/AFP
Iraq allocates $10 billion reconstruction plan for Shiite slum -- Aswat Aliraq
Iraq bombing kills 21 -- CNN
Top Al-Qaeda suspect seized in Iraq -- Yahoo News/AFP
Suicide car bombing wounds 8 cops in Mosul -- Aswat Aliraq
U.S. army nab 25 suspects including al-Qaeda commander -- Aswat Aliraq
Iranian EFPs Disappear -- Strategy Page
On the offensive in northern Diyala -- Long War Journal
US military deaths in Iraq war at 4,134 -- AP

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