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NEWS ABOUT: Muqtada al-Sadr

Muqtada al-Sadr stories: 86 news summaries

61 - 80 of 86 Stories | << Prev 1 2 3 4 5 Next >>

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Iraqis Irate
Over Senate Partition Vote

Resolution pushing autonomous regions prompts backlash

Oct 1, 07 10:10 AM CDT
(Newser) - The Iraqi government is reacting angrily to a Senate resolution passed Thursday that the US push to divide the country into three autonomous regions—Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish—to reduce ethnic bloodshed. "No Iraqi is for dividing their country or for splitting it into three weak states, unable to... More »

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Iraq • Sam Brownback • Joe Biden • Sunni • Kurds • Shia • sovereignty • partition • federal • US Embassy • Hoshiyar Zebari • Iraq Constituition • Muqtada al-Sadr

US Bars Travel for Officials
After Iraqi Shootings

Iraqi officials blast killings by private security operation

Sep 19, 07 6:27 AM CDT
(Newser) - Tensions are so high in the aftermath of the shooting deaths of 11 Iraqis by a private American security operation that the US has barred civilian officials from road travel outside Baghdad's fortified Green Zone for their own safety. The Iraqis were killed when contractors with security outfit Blackwater opened... More »

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Iraq • Baghdad • Green Zone • Nouri al-Maliki • Condoleezza Rice • Blackwater • Ali al Dabbagh • Muqtada al-Sadr

Iraq Considers Expelling Security Firms

Blackwater incident sparks outrage at Western contractors

Sep 18, 07 11:15 AM CDT
(Newser) - Private security firms have never been popular in Iraq, but after Blackwater USA’s fatal shooting of civilians Sunday, national rage may be strong enough to drive them from the country. The Iraqi government announced today that it would review the status of all private security companies, and explore rescinding... More »

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Iraq • security • Nouri al-Maliki • Blackwater • Muqtada al-Sadr

Sadr Group Leaves Iraq's Ruling Alliance

Popular anti-American cleric says government ignores his demands

Sep 15, 07 3:05 PM CDT
(Newser) - A key faction pulled out of Iraq’s ruling Shia alliance today, leaving Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki with only half of parliament’s seats. Anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr says he withdrew because his bloc’s demands were being ignored. He wants a timetable for US troop withdrawal and opposes former... More »

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Iraq • Sunni • Shiite • Nouri al-Maliki • Iraq government • Muqtada al-Sadr

Sunnis Vow to Strike Back After Death of Tribal Leader

'Revenge on al-Qaeda,' mourners shout

Sep 14, 07 1:57 PM CDT
(Newser) - The killing of a prominent Iraqi tribal leader and US ally will be avenged, angry Sunnis promised today, a day after the sheik died in a bomb attack. Thousands of Iraqis joined the funeral procession for Abdul Sattar Abu Risha, shouting, “Revenge, revenge on al-Qaeda.” The assassination of... More »

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Sunni • Shiite • Muslims • Anbar • Abdul Sattar Abu Risha • Abdul Sittar Bezea al Rishawi • Islamist • al-Qaeda • Muqtada al-Sadr

US Forces
Talking With
Sadr's Army

Dialogue with radical group represents a reverse face

Sep 12, 07 9:14 AM CDT
(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... More »

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Iraq • Baghdad • Mahdi Army • David Petraeus • Shiite militia • Muqtada al-Sadr

Gun Battle, Airstrikes in Baghdad Kill 14

US cites ambush by Shiite militia; Sadr says victims were civilians

Sep 6, 07 9:20 PM CDT
(Newser) - US and Iraqi forces backed by airstrikes clashed with suspected members of Shiite militias today in a gun battle that killed 14 Iraqis and wounded nine, reports the LA Times. US officials said soldiers were ambushed by more than a dozen rooftop gunmen, but a spokesman for anti-US cleric... More »

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Mahdi Army • US military • Operation Lightning Hammer II • Iraq violence • Shiite insurgents • airstrike • al-Qaeda • Muqtada al-Sadr

Shiites Force Sunnis From Baghdad

Internally displaced ranks surge as majority seeks ‘Manifest Destiny’

Sep 4, 07 3:09 PM CDT
(Newser) - Shiites have been clearing Baghdad of Sunnis at an accelerating rate, and those who remain live under siege. Curbing sectarian cleansing was a key goal of the US troop surge, but the forced migration has only intensified throughout the country, Newsweek reports: The ranks of internally displaced persons have doubled... More »

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sectarian violence • Sunni • Shiite • Baghdad • troop surge • Iraq Civil War • Muqtada al-Sadr

Al-Sadr Tells Mahdi Army to Stand Down

Cleric orders six-month suspension of activity
to reorganize

Aug 29, 07 10:14 AM CDT
(Newser) - Radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr has called for a six-month suspension of activity by his Mahdi Army to reorganize the force. The hostile group has splintered into multiple factions recently, some of which may be trained and supplied by Iran. More »

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Iraq • Shiite • Mahdi Army • Karbala • suspension of activity • Muqtada al-Sadr

Shiite Factions Fight Amid Pilgrims in Karbala

1 million evacuated from holy city

Aug 29, 07 7:14 AM CDT
(Newser) - A million pilgrims were ordered to evacuate the holy city of Karbala yesterday as Shiite militias fought each other for control of southern Iraq, killing 51 people. Another 200 were injured in chaos after gunmen loyal to anti-US cleric Moqtada al-Sadr fired on members of the Badr Organization, the armed... More »

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Iraq • Shiite • Karbala • civil war • militia • Badr Organization • Supreme Islamic Council • Muqtada al-Sadr

Bomb Kills
2nd Iraqi Governor

Top provincial official slain in his SUV, police blame Mahdi Army

Aug 20, 07 9:12 AM CDT
(Newser) - The governor of Muthanna province was killed by a roadside bomb today—a little more than a week after another Iraqi governor was assassinated. Mohammed Ali al-Hassani's SUV was struck en route to his office in the morning. Police are blaming Moqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army, which has clashed with the... More »

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Iraq • Shiite • Sadr City • Mahdi Army • civil war • roadside bomb • bomb • assassination • Mohammed Ali al Hassani • Muthanna • Muqtada al-Sadr

US Kills 30 in Baghdad

Women and children may counted among the dead

Aug 8, 07 5:21 PM CDT
(Newser) - The US killed 30 militants and detained another dozen in an overnight air strike on a military stronghold in a Shiite district of Baghdad. Witnesses counted women and children among the slain, though the US claims all 30 were insurgents linked to radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. More »

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Iran • insurgents • Sadr City • Baghdad • Mahdi Army • Nouri al-Maliki • US military • Shia • Muqtada al-Sadr • Iraq war

Key Sunni Bloc Deserts Maliki

Defection deepens political crisis as suicide bombs kill 70

Aug 1, 07 3:01 PM CDT
(Newser) - The Sunni Accordance Front defected from Iraq's government today, accusing PM Nuri al-Maliki of being uncooperative, Reuters reports, on a day when suicide bombs killed more than 70 in Baghdad. "This is probably the most serious political crisis we have faced since the passage of the constitution,'' a... More »

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Iraq • Shiite • Nouri al-Maliki • United States • suicide bombing • Sunnis • troop withdrawal • Sunni Accordance Front • Iraq government • Muqtada al-Sadr

Key Iraqi Oil
Bill Stalls

Sunni, Shia and Kurds still at odds; White House benchmark not being met

Jul 5, 07 5:47 AM CDT
(Newser) - Bitter infighting among Iraq's ethnic and religious groups is holding up crucial legislation on Iraqi oil regulation and distribution, the AP reports. Despite heavy pressure from Washington to pass the bill, debate scheduled to start yesterday was delayed. Sunnis object to the bill because they fear most oil wealth will... More »

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Iraq • oil • Shiite • Nouri al-Maliki • Kurds • Sunnis • Muqtada al-Sadr

Iran ID’ed Working With Iraq Militants

US arrests Hezbollah go-between in
Iraq; cites training camps in Iran

Jul 2, 07 8:00 AM CDT
(Newser) - The US military has accused Iran’s Revolutionary Guard of aiding Iraqi militants in a devastating January attack and of using Hezbollah as a go-between to arm violent Shiites in that country. In March coalition forces arrested a Hezbollah operative suspected of liaising between Iran and a group led by... More »

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Iran • Shiite • Tehran • Karbala • Hezbollah • Ali Mussa Dakdouk • Revolutionary Guards • militant • Muqtada al-Sadr • Iraq war

Minarets Hit at Sacred Shrine

Suspected al-Qaeda strike at Askariya shrine whose bombing last year touched off sectarian violence

Jun 13, 07 7:49 AM CDT
(Newser) -  The Askariya mosque, a Shiite shrine whose bombing ignited sectarian violence last year, was attacked again this morning, destroying the minarets left standing after its Golden Dome was shattered earlier. Iraq now braces for a bloody response; US troops rushed to Samarra, and a curfew was called on group... More »

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Iraq • sectarian violence • Samarra • bombing • Askariya mosque • al-Qaeda • Muqtada al-Sadr

Military Preps for Iraq Pullout

Envisions 40K force
to stay for years;
big withdrawal by
early 2009

Jun 10, 07 12:17 PM CDT
(Newser) - Top military officials are quietly setting their post-pullout strategy, reports Thomas Ricks in today's Post, and they're readying to keep in place a long-term, mid-size force. The new plan requires upwards of 40,000 American troops to stay in the country, with half dedicated to security, a quarter to training,... More »

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Iraq • military • insurgents • security • military strategy • Iraq pullout • US military • US troops • radicals • Muqtada al-Sadr • Iraq war

UK May Seek Iran's Help on Iraqi Captives

Brits suspect kidnappers connected to Iran; search in Sadr City continues

Jun 1, 07 8:37 AM CDT
(Newser) - Britain may ask Iran for help in finding the five British hostages kidnapped in Iraq. Senior Iraqi officials think a rogue faction of the Mahdi Army—possibly under the influence of Iranian intelligence —is responsible for the kidnappings. British sources tell the Guardian they believe the kidnapping was not... More »

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Iraq • Iran • Sadr City • Mahdi Army • kidnapping • Revolutionary Guards • Britain • Muqtada al-Sadr

Al-Sadr Appears at Iraqi Mosque

Shiite firebrand returns from Iran, invites Sunnis to join in opposing US

May 25, 07 8:22 AM CDT
(Newser) - Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr emerged from hiding today, making a surprise appearance near the Iraqi city of Najaf. Al-Sadr, who fled to Iran four months ago, gave a sermon at Kufa today, condemning the US occupation and demanding a "timetable" for withdrawal. In a shift away from sectarianism, he... More »

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Iraq • Sunni • Shiite • Mahdi Army • sectarianism • Muqtada al-Sadr

Shiite al-Sadr
Reaches Out
to Sunni Rivals

Switch in tactics aims
at hastening US withdrawal

May 20, 07 3:14 PM CDT
(Newser) - In a dramatic shift in tacttics, Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr is reaching out to rival Sunni leaders in Iraq, and purging radical elements of his own militia, the Washington Post reports. With Sunni insurgents making moves to distance themselves from al-Qaeda, Sadr sees an opportunity for a cross-sectarian political alliance,... More »

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Iraq • sectarian violence • Sunni • Shiite • insurgents • Mahdi Army • Sunni leaders • al-Qaeda • Muqtada al-Sadr

61 - 80 of 86 Stories | << Prev 1 2 3 4 5 Next >>


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