Promise Of Peace As Baghdad Humbles Rebel Army

A Rally By Supporters Of Muqtada al-Sadr, And The Mahdi Army April 9, 2007

From The Scotland On Sunday:

THE Mahdi Army, once the biggest defender of poor Shi'ites in Iraq, has been profoundly weakened in a number of neighbourhoods across Baghdad, in an important, if tentative, milestone for stability in Iraq.

It is a remarkable change from recent years, when the militia, led by the anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, controlled a broad swath of Baghdad, including local governments and police forces. But its use of extortion and violence began alienating much of the Shi'ite population to the point that many quietly supported American military sweeps against the group.

Prime Minister Nouri Kamal al-Maliki struck another blow this spring when he led a military operation against it in Baghdad and in several southern cities.

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My Comment: In their over confidence and arrogance, they assumed that they would be there forever. NOT .....

'Martyrs' List' Tallies Mahdi Army's Troubles

A man pushes a cart past a poster of anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada al-Sadr in Baghdad's Shiite enclave of Sadr City, Iraq, on this Thursday, July 3, 2008 file photo. Loyalists within Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's militia network call it the 'martyrs list,' and it's long and growing: At least three dozen senior members killed in slayings or fighting since last summer and nearly 60 others detained.(AP Photo/Karim Kadim)

From Yahoo News/AP:

BAGHDAD - Loyalists within Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's militia network call it the "martyrs' list," and it's long and growing: At least three dozen senior members killed in slayings or fighting since last summer and nearly 60 others detained.

The internal document — obtained by The Associated Press — offers a rare look at how the top echelon of the Mahdi Army militia is assessing the sustained blows to its once-mighty shadow state and the challenges to its absentee leader al-Sadr, who is holed up in Iran.

It also underscores the twin pressures on al-Sadr's followers.

Shiite rivals are waging gangland-style hits with diminishing fear of reprisals. Iraqi-led forces, meanwhile, are pressing their advantage against al-Sadr's weakened network — militia cells, quasi-civic groups and street-level operatives who have all crafted reputations as the champions of the Shiite poor.

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My Comment: I have no sympathy for these thugs. The sooner they are gone .... the better the people of Iraq will be.

10,000 Iraqi Troops Bring Calm To Sadr City

From The Times Online:

Crouching in the shade under the back of a tank, four Iraqi soldiers stir sugar into small glasses of tea as they take a break from guard duty near a row of battered shops in the heart of Sadr City.

Passers-by throw wary glances at the troops as they come to terms with the new order in Baghdad's Shia slum, a stronghold of al-Mahdi Army militia until only three days ago when thousands of Iraqi forces took control.

The unprecedented attempt to stamp government authority on one of the last remaining no-go areas in Iraq followed seven weeks of fighting between US and Iraqi forces and militiamen that left more than 1,250 people dead and 2,500 wounded. Of the injured, about 600 people have lost at least one limb.

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Other News Sources On Sadr City:
Iraqi troops move deeper into Sadr City as US kills eight civilians -- Iraq Updates
Spinning Mookie -- Iraq Pundit
Pentagon Praises Iraqi Troops Performance -- Eagle World News
Obstacle Emplacement in the COIN Fight -- OP-For
Iraqi troops tighten grip on Baghdad Shiite bastion -- AFP

My Comment: With Sadr under Central Government control, there are few if any major areas in Iraq that can harbor Al Qaeda or Shiite extremists. The next stage of this war is to see if this territory can be controlled and maintained with the central government, that security and rebuilding can be maintained.

The fact that this was an Iraqi Army operation gives me cause for hope.