Shiite Cleric's Militia Seizes Control of Baghdad Slum

BAGHDAD, May 9 -- Gunmen and commanders loyal to radical Shiite Muslim cleric Moqtada Sadr took over the giant Sadr City slum in Baghdad on Sunday, seizing control of police forces, municipal administration and schools and blocking freedom of movement in an area just five miles east of U.S. administration headquarters.

Teenagers wielding rocket-propelled grenade launchers commanded entrances to the slum, home to about a third of Baghdad's 5 million residents. The youths waved commands to visitors with one hand and slung rifles around with the other.

With the quick takeover, which was completed at dawn, Sadr City joined two southern towns, Najaf and Kufa, as bastions of Sadr's militia support.

The immediate trigger for the uprising in Sadr City was a U.S. raid Saturday night on a former office of Sadr's organization and the detention of two of Sadr's lieutenants, Amr Husseini and Amjad Saedi . U.S. officials said the men were responsible for Sadr's finances and operations in eastern Baghdad.

more...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A13066-2004May9.html

I thought they were talking about urban inner cities within the U.S. Oh, Bush doesn't concern himself with those areas. Their oil wells or potential has been depleted. He has his priorities, after all and American urban cities isn't one of them.

Sure.....gonna happen, not!

Ex-Sadamy's rep guard can have a few cities, sadr gets a few, hand em all around.

To leave the PC for 12 hours means you come back to a new Bush plan for the take over of Iraq.I am in fear of sleeping for 24 hours and wake up to find out we have left Iraq and are working in Iran now.

So many things are happening, and there hasn't been one crisis which has turned out well since November, 2000. The pressure is unbelievable.

As if he was somehow out of fashion or something, like a celebrity after his movie flops. It is clear that they have no basis for analyzing any of this in the west.

and what is worst, here is a free clue, you know what the Army of
the Maahdhi stands for?

Not good by the way.... from our POV....

Army of the Prophet...

Now think Bush, or OBL... or the Mullahs in Iran... you will get a picture and yes the Army of the Maahdi has risen in the past in Iraq.. never mind the real one has come... but... I hope you get my meaning.

Trust me, the folks at NPR have no clue, and it seems neither does the CIA... or MI

"Sadr's rebellion against the American-led occupation, which started more than a month ago, has dimmed prospects for a smooth transfer.

A rebellion also continues in central Iraq, spearheaded by Sunni Muslims."

-from the cited article-

I'd better go to sleep but it is over...

I have called this a 1920 style rebellion from the moment it started in early April. Glad to see that the WaPo has finally seen the light.

The situation is, of course, far worse than we are being told. Our troops have got to feel betrayed by the President and military leadership for having no plan. Nobody told them the peace would be worse than the war.