Shiite Militia Re-Emerges in South Iraq

Shiite militiamen loyal to a fiery anti-American Shiite cleric re-emerged in the troubled southern city of Amarah on Monday.

In Amarah, gunmen dragged police Lt. Sarmad Majid al-Shatti from his home before dawn, then dumped his bullet-riddled body at a farm on the city's outskirts, said Ali Chaloub of Sadr General Hospital. Another policeman, Lt. Alaa al-Kabi was shot to death outside his home, Chaloub said.

At about the same time, provincial policemen Hamid Majeed and Hassan Abdullah were kidnapped from their homes, and their bodies were later found dumped outside the city, Chaloub said.

Despite an increased police and army presence on the streets, many Baghdad Sunnis said they would rather stay home than risk falling victim to car bombs or Shiite death squads.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6166230,00.html

With Shiites killing each other in southern Iraq, it presents yet another new challenge to US troops.

Four police officers aligned with one militia were killed by members of a rival militia in the latest vendetta-style killing. Both the attackers and the victims were Shiites.

Incidents like that are creating a new problem for U-S troops struggling to get things under control in Baghdad and other northern locations.

Meanwhile, a top Kurdish lawmaker says the U-S is now working on a plan to stop the fighting in the capital. He says it involves giving unconditional amnesty to Sunni Muslim insurgents, who've been attacking Shiites.

http://www.wstm.com/Global/story.asp?S=5578102&nav=2aKD

i mean, considering that "we" (and by that i mean dick cheney) really don't care how many iraqis die as long as the oil stays in the ground for our future use & not china's?

them bases ain't for fun n games. ITS THE OIL, STUPID.

Bush and Cheney don't care, but Americans do.

And if Americans demand we withdraw from Iraq, Bush and Cheney won't get their oil.

That's why it's a problem for Bush and Cheney.

we're already demanding it & they could give 2 shits.

we get it exclusively from an arab capitalist plutocracy disguised as a democracy is #1. the oil staying in the ground while all the arabs kill each other is the 2nd best outcome. 20 years from now is just about as good as today.

More like passively asking for it.

I vividly remember the protests during Vietnam, the military actions taken against the protesters, the massive sit-ins on the steps of state capitals and universities, etc.

I see none of that now.

any potential protest movement had its teeth pulled in the blatantly-obvious-but-still-disturbingly-effective-propaganda run up to the war.

2 trillion dollars wasted, 3000 dead americans, 30,000 with traumatic injuries, 500,000 iraqis dead, 1,000,000 iraqi refugees.

different day same shi'te ?

BAGHDAD, IRAQ - First, there was the surprisingly resilient Sunni insurgency. Then came months of extraordinarily bloody sectarian attacks. Now a third obstacle to restoring security has emerged: Shiite-on-Shiite violence.

A militia chief's brother, kidnapped last week in an act of vengeance that sparked a two-day battle over Amarah, was found dead Monday.

Authorities braced for more violence with the discovery of Hussein Bahadeli's bullet-riddled body, which bore signs of torture, in rural field near the city, said a forensics official in Amarah. His kidnapping Thursday set of a round of violence by militiamen loyal to his brother, al-Mahdi militia leader Sheik Fadhel Bahadeli.

The spread of revenge killings among Shiites in their southern heartland has opened an ominous front for coalition troops as American forces struggle to control insurgent and sectarian bloodshed to the north, especially in Baghdad.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/world/4282283.html

maintain the appearance of some form of unity.

The Makkoyoun and Khatfiilidoun, are at it, in accordance with long standing Appalachian--and Middle-Eastern tradition. (Right up there with marrying cousins, illiteracy, and fundamentalism.)

BAGHDAD, Iraq — At least two more policemen were murdered early Tuesday in the southern Iraqi city of Amarah, where militiamen loyal to an anti-American cleric have been hunting down officers aligned with a rival group in a new outbreak of Shiite-on-Shiite revenge attacks.

Police captain Hussein Salih Hassan was killed Tuesday in a pre-dawn gunbattle with attackers who forced their way into his home, Ali Challoub, an administrator at Amarah's al-Sadr Public hospital, said. A noncommissioned officer, Ala' Ghlayyim Zned was killed in his home by machine gun-toting attackers at around the same time, Challoub said.

The latest killings in Amarah follow the murders of four policemen on Monday, which were blamed on fighters of the Mahdi Army headed by hardline anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. Those forces appeared to have control of the southern city's streets after the police force dominated by the rival Badr Brigades fled.

http://www.canada.com/topics/news/world/story.html?id=3c9f62a7-1ce4-4f54-9ea4-a1c233278906&k=19757