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US Forces Talking With Sadr's Army

Posted Sep 12, 07 9:14 AM CDT in World 

(Newser) – US officials are holding their noses and negotiating with the Mahdi Army, the Shiite militia loyal to Moqtada al-Sadr, the LA Times reports. The US has held a hard line against the radical cleric, but analysts say that the military has grudgingly accepted that the Mahdi Army is currently holding most of the cards in Baghdad's power struggle.

"Some of this is a little bit distasteful," General Petraeus said of the collaboration in his testimony to Congress on Monday. The militia finds talks with Americans equally distasteful, and still won't admit to them on the record. The negotiations—which started secretly in 2006—led to the two-week cease-fire by the Mahdi Army, and relative peace in large sections of Baghdad.

Source Los Angeles Times

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Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, left, steps from an office building in Najaf, Iraq Saturday June 5, 2004. Iraq's most powerful Shiite militia leader is turning to his commanders who distinguished themselves...   (Associated Press)
Mahdi Army militiamen celebrate the withdrawal of British troops from Basra, 550 kilometers (340 miles) southeast of Baghdad, Iraq on Friday, Sept. 7, 2007. Iraq's most powerful Shiite militia leader...   (Associated Press)
Mahdi Army militiamen celebrate the withdrawal of British troops from Basra, 550 kilometers (340 miles) southeast of Baghdad, Iraq on Friday, Sept. 7, 2007. Iraq's most powerful Shiite militia leader...   (Associated Press)
Supporters of radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr burn U.S., British and Israeli flags as they demand the withdrawal of the U.S. and its coalition during a march in Basra, Iraq, 550 kilometers (340...   (Associated Press)
Sheik Ali al-Siedi, an official of the radical anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr group, holds a press conference in Basra, Iraq, 550 kilometers (340 miles) southeast of Baghdad, Tuesday, Sept....   (Associated Press)
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Iraq  • Baghdad  • David Petraeus  • Muqtada al-Sadr  • Mahdi Army  • Shiite militia


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