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TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2009
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US Builds Giant Wall in Sadr City

Partition aims to keep insurgents from neighborhood

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(Newser) – American forces have begun construction of an enormous concrete wall that will partition Sadr City, one of Baghdad's most dangerous neighborhood. The structure is intended to make the southern section of Sadr City, a Shiite stronghold that borders the Green Zone, into a protected enclave, reports the New York Times. Walls in other parts of Baghdad have succeeded in blunting insurgent attacks, despite residents' fears of isolation.

The wall is being constructed amid considerable security, with Apache helicopters hovering over the site and M-1 tanks standing by. Sadr City has become a haven for Iranian-backed insurgents as well as supporters of the cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. Said one American commander, "You can’t really repair anything that is broken until you establish security."

Iraqi girls walk next to a blast wall in Dora, a neighborhood in Baghdad. The military is currently constructing a huge wall that will partition Sadr City.
Iraqi girls walk next to a blast wall in Dora, a neighborhood in Baghdad. The military is currently constructing a huge wall that will partition Sadr City.   (AP Photo/ Loay Hameed)
Iraqi soldier guards the perimeter wall of the catholic church of John the Baptist in south Baghdad on Sunday Dec. 9, 2007. The military is currently constructing a huge wall that will partition Sadr City.
Iraqi soldier guards the perimeter wall of the catholic church of John the Baptist in south Baghdad on Sunday Dec. 9, 2007. The military is currently constructing a huge wall that will partition Sadr...   (AP Photo/Loay Hameed)
US Army soldiers next to a giant blast wall in Baghdad, Feb. 9, 2008. The military is currently constructing a huge wall that will partition Sadr City.
US Army soldiers next to a giant blast wall in Baghdad, Feb. 9, 2008. The military is currently constructing a huge wall that will partition Sadr City.   (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)
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