Mookie on permanent vacation

Muqtada al-Sadr, the “maverick” Iraqi Shi’ite cleric, has decided that he’ll stay in Iran to finish his studies according to a Washington Times article;

Militant Shi’ite leader Muqtada al-Sadr plans to make a series of short visits to Iraq starting within weeks but has decided to make Iran his home base for years to come, a key aide says.

The aide spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not supposed to discuss the subject. He is close to the 35-year-old cleric and has accurately reported on the Sadrist movement for several years.

The aide would not say how long Mr. al-Sadr would stay in Iran, where he has lived since May 2007, but said it was “reasonable” to expect he would remain there for five or more years.

In another AP article, it’s reported that he’s suspended operations of his Mahdi Army;

Meanwhile, anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr released a statement saying his largely disbanded Mahdi Army militia would extend its cease-fire “until further notice.”

The statement, which was read by an aide in the Iraqi holy city of Najaf, also warned that any “person who violates” the truce would no longer be considered part of the Mahdi Army.

A “person who violates” the truce probably gets palnted in the sand in pieces, more likely. It almost sounds as if Sadr thinks he has a choice whether he wants to continue operations or not. The Times story says;

The decision to extend his stay could indicate that the cleric, whose Mahdi Army militia battled U.S. and Iraqi forces for years, has decided his future lies in politics, not violence.

Last month, Mr. al-Sadr announced he was transforming his militia into a social-welfare body with a few guerrilla cells to attack U.S. troops if Washington doesn’t agree to leave Iraq. The announcement followed setbacks in battles with the U.S.-supported Iraqi army in Baghdad, Basra and Amarah.

In the meantime, the news you might have missed from Reuters this morning; the US plans to hand over the Anbar province to the Iraqis on September 1st;

U.S. troops will on Sept. 1 hand over control of Iraq’s Anbar province, once the heart of a bloody Sunni Arab insurgency, reflecting a dramatic drop in violence across the country, an Iraqi official said on Thursday.

Iraqi forces will officially assume control of the vast region west of Baghdad, said Major-General Tareq al-Dulaimi, the provincial police commander.

Makes you wonder what all of the bluster from the protesters in Denver is all about, doesn’t it? I guess they haven’t paid attention to the news since the 2006 midterm elections.

Category: Politics