Shiite Militias

Iraqi Official: Iran-Backed Militia Will Lay Down Arms

AP | ADAM SCHRECK and QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA | Posted 03.07.2012

Read More: News From Iraq, Sadr, Asaib Ahl Al Haq Lay Down Arms, Shiite Militias, Iran, Asaib Ahl Al-Haq, Moqtada Al Sadr, Iraqi Militia, Iraq Asaib Ahl Al Haq, Iraq, Shiite Militia Iraq, Video, World News

BAGHDAD — A decision by a Shiite militia to transform itself from an armed, anti-American movement into a viable political force could complicat...

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Defeat in Iraq: Muqtada's Return

Firas Al-Atraqchi | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: US Military, Sadrists Iraq, Mahdi Army, US Military Iraq, Mehdi Army Militia, Iran, Shia, Shiite Militias, Muqtada Al-Sadr, Iraq, World News

The return of Muqtada Al-Sadr, a junior Shia cleric and head of the Mehdi Army militia, from his refuge in Iran to a prominent role in Iraqi politics ...

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Sadrist politician blames Maliki for recent Baghdad blasts

Firas Al-Atraqchi | Posted 05.25.2011

A prominent Shia politician from the Sadrist political bloc has blamed the Iraqi government for failing to protect religious sites in Baghdad followin...

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The Sunni-Shia Conflict in Iraq

Nathan Gonzalez | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Iraqi Civil War, US Troops, Sectarian Divisions, US Troops in Iraq, Iran, Militias, Saudi Arabia, Sunni Shia, Iraq Sectarian Violence, Sectarian-Fighting, Moqtada Al Sadr, Muqtada Al-Sadr, Sectarian Cleansing, Iraqi Withdrawal, Sunni Militants, Iraq-Shiites, Sunni-Militias, Iraqi Sunni Shia, Iraqi Security Forces, Sunni Jihadists, Sunni-Shia, Ehtno-Sectarian-Violence, Iraq War, Jihadist, Sunni Awakening, Moqtada Al-Sadr, Shiite, Iraq Troop Withdrawal, Shiite Militias, Sectarian Violence, Iraq, Nouri Al Maliki, World News

Tuesday's deadly coordinated bomb attacks against soft targets in Iraq bear the mark of a simmering Sunni insurgency. But the Sunni-Shia conflict has very little to do with personal religious grudges.

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Iraq: 3,000 High-Risk Detainees

John Bruhns | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Iraq War, Mahdi Army, Iraqi Detainees, Shiite Militias, General Odierno, Iraqi Government, Sunni Awakening, Nouri Al Maliki, The Obama Administration, Politics News

If these the 18,500 Iraqi detainees, when freed, return to terrorist activity, it will be the biggest road block to a stable democracy in Iraq -- if that's even possible.

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Buying Time

John Bruhns | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Iran, Moqtada Al-Sadr, Troop Withdrawal, Success of the Surge, Maliki, Shiite Militias, Sunni Insurgency, Iraq War, Bush Iraq, Iraq, Politics News

The fragile success of the surge can be easily reversed. Now the issue is sustaining the current conditions long enough for us to start bringing our troops home.

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Shiite Leader al-Sadr Seeks To Be Iraq Icon Like His Father

Washington Post | Amit R. Paley | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Warwire, Iraq War, Shiite Militias, Muqtada Al-Sadr, Mahdi Army, Shiites, Politics News

When the revered head of Iraq's largest Shiite opposition group was assassinated in 1999, the mantle of leadership passed to an unexpected heir: Moqta...

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Iraqi team seeks halt to suspected Iranian aid to militias

AP | QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Warwire, Iraq War, Iran, Shiite Militias, Iraq Iran Meeting, Politics News

BAGHDAD — Iraqi envoys stepped up pressure on Iran during a mission Thursday that seeks to bolster claims that Tehran is arming and training Shi...

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Al-Sadr Considers Restarting Full-Scale Fight Against US-Led Forces

AP | HAMZA HENDAWI and QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Iraq, Warwire, Iraq War, Muqtada Al-Sadr, Shiite Cleric Al-Sadr, Shia, Shiite Militias, Shia Militias, US Forces, Politics News

BAGHDAD — Muqtada al-Sadr is considering setting aside his political ambitions and restarting a full-scale fight against U.S.-led forces _ a wor...

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Al-Sadr's followers refuse to disband militia in Iraq

AP | ROBERT H. REID | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Iraqi Armed Forces, Warwire, Iraq War, Al-Sadr, Shiites, Shiite Militias, Bagdad, Baghdad Violence, Iraq Army, Politics News

BAGHDAD — Followers of hardline cleric Muqtada al-Sadr raised the stakes Sunday in the showdown with Iraq's government, refusing to disband thei...

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Iraq Removes Top Military, Police Commanders After Botched Basra Crackdown

Reuters Via Washington Post | Aref Mohammed | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Basra Crackdown, Basra, Warwire, Iraq Army, Iraq Police, Iraq War, Shiite Militias, Iraq Government, Shiites, Politics News

Iraq's government removed the top military and police commanders in Basra on Wednesday, weeks after a botched crackdown on militia fighters there trig...

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Iraq Army Unit Flees Post Despite US Soldiers' Pleas

New York Times | MICHAEL R. GORDON | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Iraq Army, Shiite Militias, Iraqi Soldier, Warwire, Iraqi Army, Politics News

A company of Iraqi soldiers abandoned their positions on Tuesday night in Sadr City, defying American soldiers who implored them to hold the line agai...

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Basra Offensive Exposes Deepening Animosity Between Iraqi Shiites

Washington Post | Sudarsan Raghavan | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Shiite Animosities, Shiite Militias, Warwire, Shiite Tensions, Iraqi Shiites, Iraq, Iraq War, Shiites, Politics News

As verses from the Koran floated from a loudspeaker, the Shiite militia commander's face glowered. Inside the cavernous funeral tent, a large portrait...

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Fighting Erupts In Baghdad After Week Of Relative Calm

Reuters | Wisam Mohammed | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Iraq Violence, Iraq Fighting, Warwire, Iraq War, Baghdad, Shiite Militias, Muqtada Al-Sadr, Sadr City, Shiites, Home News

Twenty-two people were killed and 55 wounded in clashes in Baghdad, police said on Sunday, the worst eruption of violence in the capital since Shi'ite...

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Shiite Cleric al-Sadr Calls For Million-Strong March Against US In Iraq

Reuters | Peter Graff and Ahmed Rasheed | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Shiite Militias, Warwire, Muqtada Al-Sadr, March In, Mahdi Army, Iraq War, Shiites, War in Iraq, Politics News

Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr called on Thursday for 1 million Iraqis to march against U.S. "occupation" next week after his Mehdi Army militia battl...

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More Than 1,000 Iraqi Soldiers Quit During Basra Fight

New York Times | STEPHEN FARRELL and JAMES GLANZ | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Iraq Soldiers, Iraq Army, Warwire, Iraq Army Basra, Shiite Militias, Politics News

More than 1,000 Iraqi soldiers and policemen either refused to fight or simply abandoned their posts during the inconclusive assault against Shiite mi...

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Shiite Fighting In Iraq Exposes Weakness Of Iraqi Security Forces

Washington Independent | Spencer Ackerman | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Al-Sadr Surge, Iraq Surge, The Surge, Warwire, Nouri Al-Maliki, Iraq War, US Iraq Surge, Shiite Militias, Muqtada Al-Sadr, Iraqi Government, Shiites, Home News

This week, the final U.S. Army brigade deployed to Baghdad as part of the troop surge returns to the United States. And that's only appropriate, as th...

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Al-Sadr Stronghold Brims With Confidence

AP | QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Warwire, Iraq War, Shiites, Sunnis, Iraq Government, Muqtada Al-Sadr, Shiite Militias, Home News

BAGHDAD — Black banners announcing the deaths of Mahdi Army fighters plaster the streets. Scores of Shiite militiamen gather at the funeral of a...

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AP: Iraqi Prime Minister Left Politically Battered And Humbled

AP | ROBERT H. REID | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Warwire, Iraq War, War on Terror, Nouri Al-Maliki, Iraq Prime Minister, Shiites, Iraq Shiites, Muqtada Al-Sadr, Shiite Militias, Mahdi Army, Southern Iraq, Home News

BAGHDAD — Rockets fell on the Green Zone and random machine gun fire rang out Monday in the southern city of Basra as Shiite cleric Muqtada al-S...

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Iraq Fighting Underscores Power Struggle

The Guardian | Sam Kiley | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Warwire, Iraq War, Muqtada Al-Sadr, Shiites, Sunnis, Iraq Shiites, Shiite Militias, Home News

For once, George Bush's open-faced incomprehension - at Nouri al-Maliki's decision to set off a civil war inside Iraq's Shia community - seems entirel...

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Iraq Violence Continues As Death Toll Nears 300

CNN | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Basra, Warwire, Iraq War, Shiite Militants, Baghdad, Shiite Militias, Iraq, Iraq Government Troops, Shiite Muslims, Home News

A strict curfew was extended indefinitely in the Iraqi capital Sunday as the death toll mounted from clashes between government troops and Shiite Musl...

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Al-Sadr Pulls Fighters Off Streets

AP | KIM GAMEL | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Iraq Shiites, Iraq War, Muqtada Al-Sadr, Shiite Militias, Shiites, Sunnis, Warwire, Politics News

BAGHDAD — In a possible turning point in the recent upsurge in violence, Muqtada al-Sadr ordered his Shiite militiamen off the streets Sunday bu...

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Militiamen Holding Out in Basra Fighting

AP | KIM GAMEL | Posted 05.25.2011

BAGHDAD — Iraq's prime minister warned gunmen in the oil port of Basra to surrender their weapons by Friday or face harsher measures, as clashes...

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US, Iraqi Troops Battle Shiite Militia

AP | ROBERT H. REID | Posted 05.25.2011

BAGHDAD — Iraq's leaders faced their gravest challenge in months Tuesday as Shiite militiamen loyal to anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr batt...

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Is "Success" Of Iraq Surge About To Unravel?

Huffington Post | Posted 05.25.2011

A cease-fire with Muqtada al Sadr and his loyalists in the Mahd army is showing signs of deterioration. The agreement, which has been critical to the...

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