Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2009
| Subscribe to Newser's RSS feeds RSS | Follow Newser on Twitter Twitter

NEWS ABOUT: Mahdi Army

Mahdi Army stories: 48 news summaries

1 - 20 of 48 Stories | 1 2 3 Next >>

Switch to grid view »

US Officers: We Executed Handcuffed Iraqi Captives

Prisoners were killed to avenge platoon's losses, investigators told

Aug 27, 08 5:29 AM CDT
(Newser) - Three US officers shot four blindfolded and handcuffed Iraqi detainees early last year and dumped their bodies in a canal, according to statements made to military investigators and obtained by the New York Times. The men are likely to face murder charges. Four others from the same platoon have been... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Mahdi Army • execution • US Army • Shiite insurgents • detainees

ANALYSIS

Maturing Iraqi Army Enabled US Troop Deal

2011 withdrawal probable thanks to tougher local forces

Aug 22, 08 10:40 AM CDT
(Newser) - The US's preliminary agreement with Iraq to withdraw most combat troops by 2011 would have been unthinkable even a few months ago. Declining levels of violence, a ceasefire with the Mahdi Army, and the about-face of Sunni leaders have all helped, the Wall Street Journal reports, but for the administration,... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Mahdi Army • troop withdrawal • Iraq Army • Diyala Province • Iraq war • Iraq exit strategy

Sadr Offers to Trade Militia for Set Timetable

Already disbanding Mahdi Army, cleric wants firm US deal

Aug 8, 08 1:13 PM CDT
(Newser) - Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr ordered most of his Mahdi Army to disband today, and offered to completely dismantle it once the US agrees to a withdrawal timetable, Time reports. “The main reason for the armed resistance is the American military presence,” said a Sadr spokesman. “If the... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Mahdi Army • timetable • ceasefire • Muqtada al-Sadr • Iraq exit strategy • Momahidoun

Sadr to Forge Peaceful
Corps from Shiite Army

Mahdi militants said to shift focus to civil service, stabilizing Iraq

Aug 4, 08 7:51 PM CDT
(Newser) - Anti-American Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr is shifting his political clout away from militancy, and will disarm his Shiite Mahdi Army in favor of non-violent civic and social endeavors, the Wall Street Journal reports. Hoping to increase stability in Iraq, the organization will take on projects involving education, religion, and social... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Mahdi Army • Iraq pullout • timetable • Muqtada al-Sadr

Militia Power Wanes as
Iraqi Government Gains

Shiite Mahdi Army's extortion and violence alienate residents

Jul 27, 08 5:38 AM CDT
(Newser) - The sway of a key Iraqi militia has declined significantly and it's losing control of its Baghdad strongholds to the government, the New York Times reports. Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army once controlled politics and police in areas throughout the city, but supporters became disenchanted by its violence... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Sadr City • Baghdad • Mahdi Army • Iraq government • Muqtada al-Sadr

Sadr Cultivates Respect, Image to Reflect Power

Militia chief moves toward mainstream, hones clerical chops

May 27, 08 1:49 PM CDT
(Newser) - Muqtada al-Sadr aims to shed his reputation as a dim-witted thug and become a respected Iraqi cleric like his father, the Washington Post reports, and has even spent the past year studying in Iran. Sadr, then nicknamed "Muqtada Atari" for his love of video games, was 25 when the... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Sadr City • Mahdi Army • cleric • Sadrists • Shiite cleric • Muqtada al-Sadr

 Iraqi Army Rolls Into Sadr City 

No bloodshed so far in peaceful takeover

May 20, 08 9:08 AM CDT
(Newser) - Roughly 10,000 Iraqi troops peacefully marched deep into Sadr City today, the Baghdad ghetto that’s long been a stronghold for Muqtada al Sadr’s Mahdi Army. The incursion was part of a deal negotiated with Sadr last week, which allowed for inspections so long as the US wasn't... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Sadr City • Baghdad • Mahdi Army • Iraq Army • Muqtada al-Sadr

US Rocket Attack
Damages Iraqi Hospital

28 wounded; fleet of ambulances destroyed in blast

May 3, 08 1:16 PM CDT
(Newser) - At least 28 people were wounded when US rockets struck near a Sadr City hospital today, destroying a fleet of ambulances, Reuters reports. The US says the attack was targeting a nearby militia “command and control” center. Hospital windows were shattered, but no patients were injured. The attack came... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Sadr City • Baghdad • Mahdi Army • hospital • collateral damage

 Green Zone
 Strike Kills 2
 in Sandstorm 

Violence comes after al-Sadr's plea to end fighting

Apr 27, 08 6:35 PM CDT
(Newser) - Hidden in a sandstorm, militants struck the US-protected Green Zone in Baghdad today and killed at least two Iraqis, the Los Angeles Times reports. The mortar or rocket attack, which also wounded 25, came just 2 days after influential cleric Muqtada al-Sadr ordered members of his Mahdi Army to end... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Iran • Sadr City • Baghdad • Mahdi Army • Green Zone • Shiite insurgents • Muqtada al-Sadr

Al-Sadr Threatens
'Open War'

Radical cleric urges Baghdad to take
'road of peace'

Apr 19, 08 4:48 PM CDT
(Newser) - Moqtada al-Sadr today threatened today to “declare a war” against Iraq unless it curbs attacks on his Mahdi Army, CNN reports. “I’m giving the last warning to the Iraqi government,” he said. “If the government does not stop the militias infiltrated with them, then we... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Mahdi Army • Nouri al-Maliki • Basra • Shiite militia • Muqtada al-Sadr

Iraqis Buck US, Flee Front Line in Sadr City Fight

'We don’t see any progress being made at all,' American soldier says

Apr 16, 08 11:51 AM CDT
(Newser) - An Iraqi Army unit fled its position in Sadr City last night, despite American protestations, the New York Times reports, breeding further doubt among US commanders. A captain begged the Iraqi in charge to reconsider. “If you turn around … those soldiers will follow you,” he said. “... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Sadr City • Mahdi Army • Iraq Army • Iraq war

Iraq Fires 1,300 Cops, Troops After Basra

Baghdad says they ducked fight with
Shiite militias

Apr 13, 08 5:16 PM CDT
(Newser) - Iraq sacked 1,300 troopers and policemen today for fighting poorly or not at all in last month’s Basra battles. “Some of them were sympathetic with these lawbreakers,” said one official. “Some refused to battle for political, national, sectarian or religious reasons.” The firings are... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Sadr City • Mahdi Army • Nouri al-Maliki • Basra • Iraqi soldiers • Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council • Iraqi government • Muqtada al-Sadr • Shiite militants

 Death of Sadr Aide
 Sparks Battles
 in Baghdad 

Iraqi prez condemns attacks but meets al-Sadr MPs

Apr 11, 08 8:02 PM CDT
(Newser) - The murder of a Moqtada al-Sadr aide triggered heavy fighting in Baghdad today after al-Sadr’s men attacked US and Iraqi forces, Reuters reports. The cleric blamed “the hand of the occupier” for the death of Riyadh al-Nuri, a close relative, and vowed not to forget “this precious... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Sadr City • Baghdad • Mahdi Army • Basra • Najaf • assassination • US Army • Jalal Talabani • Iraq Army • Muqtada al-Sadr • Iraq war

 Sadr Threatens to End Truce 

Mahdi Army leader, 'worried' for Iraqis' safety, cancels anti-US protest

Apr 8, 08 3:02 PM CDT
(Newser) - Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr today threatened to end the cease-fire he imposed last year on his Mahdi militia, CNN reports, and called off a massive protest set for tomorrow, the fifth anniversary of the end of Saddam Hussein’s rule. Hundreds had converged on Baghdad—despite orders to keep young... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Saddam Hussein • Sunni • Sadr City • Mahdi Army • Nouri al-Maliki • US military • Shia • Iraq Civil War • Sadrists • Muqtada al-Sadr

 Split Deepens 
 Between Iraqi Shiites 

Intra-sect feuds reign between Sadr loyalists and government bodies

Apr 7, 08 2:40 PM CDT
(Newser) - As violence between Sunni and Shiites has subsided in Iraq, animosity between Shiite sects is mounting, with a death toll to match, the Washington Post reports. The government's offensive last week against Moqtada al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army militia in Basra exposed the grim reality of a widening political gulf. “... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Sunni • Shiite • Mahdi Army • Nouri al-Maliki • Abdul Aziz Al Hakim • Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council • Muqtada al-Sadr

Iraqi PM:
No Elections
for Militias

Mahdi Army must disband, Maliki says,
or lose political power

Apr 7, 08 8:32 AM CDT
(Newser) - Muqtada al-Sadr and his loyalists will be banned from upcoming elections if the Mahdi Army doesn't disband, Nouri al-Maliki said today, in his toughest rhetoric yet against the popular cleric. Sadrists say the Iraqi PM has no constitutional power to make that threat, but even if lawmakers succeed in banning... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Sadr City • Mahdi Army • Green Zone • Nouri al-Maliki • Iraq government • Sadrists • Iraqi militias • Muqtada al-Sadr

Iraqi PM Flips, Calls Off Raids on Militias

Maliki extends olive branch to Sadr after Basra battle

Apr 4, 08 9:48 AM CDT
(Newser) - Nouri al Maliki reversed course today, ordering a stop to raids against suspected Mahdi Army militants. The move is an apparent olive branch to Shiite rival Muqtada al Sadr, who had complained that raids against his militia fighters were continuing, even after he’d ordered them off the streets. Just... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Mahdi Army • Nouri al-Maliki • Basra • Muqtada al-Sadr

 US Joins Basra Battle;
Maliki Extends Deadline

Maliki extends deadline as fighting continues

Mar 28, 08 8:18 AM CDT
(Newser) - Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki today gave Shia militants in Basra 10 more days to turn over their weapons, as fighting continued in Iraq’s third largest city. The US, meanwhile, made its first moves in the fight, bombing Mahdi Army positions, the BBC reports. Muqtada al Sadr, the radical... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Baghdad • Mahdi Army • Nouri al-Maliki • Basra • Muqtada al-Sadr

 Bush Praises Iraqi Offensive 

President scolds Congress' calls for withdrawal

Mar 27, 08 4:47 PM CDT
(Newser) - President Bush praised the government of Iraq today for the offensive launched three days ago against militias in Basra, painting it as a sign of progress toward the goals of the US war, the AP reports. Bush also criticized Congress for calling for troop withdrawals so the military’s attention... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Bush administration • Mahdi Army • Nouri al-Maliki • Iraq pullout • Basra • Iraq government • Iraq Civil War • Iraq reconstruction • Iraq mess • Muqtada al-Sadr • Iraq war • Iraq exit strategy • George W. Bush

 Iraq PM Threatens Sadrists as Basra Explodes 

'Moment of truth' as government battles Shiite militias

Mar 26, 08 6:47 AM CDT
(Newser) - As Iraqi government forces battle Shia militants for a second day in Basra, the Iraqi prime minister has issued a 72-hour deadline for insurgents to lay down their arms. In a television broadcast, Nouri al-Maliki warned militants, many of them loyal to the radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, to stand down... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Baghdad • Mahdi Army • Nouri al-Maliki • Basra • Shiite militia • Muqtada al-Sadr

1 - 20 of 48 Stories | 1 2 3 Next >>


from our news partners

Associated PressAssociated Press