A hitherto unknown group claiming the heritage of the Sadrist Current has announced that it will not honor the "freeze" of the Mahdi Army militia ordered Wednesday by Muqtada al-Sadr.
In the wake of this week’s rioting in Karbala, Mahdi Army leader and radical Shi’ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadrordered his followers to suspend violent activity for the next six months. One of the focuses of the suspension is to eliminate "rogue elements" from the militia in an increasingly competitive southern Iraq. This tactic apparently has already borne fruit as a previously unknown group has come forward with an unverified statement that rejects the temporary truce and claims they are not covered by the order.
According to Iraq Slogger, they call themselves the "Free Sadr Brigades in All Iraq." In other circles, they are also known as the "Free Man’s Brigade." The group derives their name not from Muqtada al-Sadr but from his father, the late cleric Muhammad Sadiq al-Sadr. While they respect the younger al-Sadr, they say that the "young [Shi’ite] cleric does not enjoy the authority to order the Mahdi Army to “freeze” its activity."
As well as rejecting the suspension order, Iraq Slogger is reporting that the Free Sadr Brigades also accuse Iran of interfering in Iraq and suggest that the recent clashes in Karbala is part of a pro-Iranian conspiracy. They complain that the shrine protection forces are suspiciously distinct from any Iraqi security forces and feel that the forces are under Iranian direction. The Free Sadr Brigades also note that the situation is reminiscent of a revolt following the 1991 Gulf War, in which many Shi’ites were ruthlessly killed by the Saddam regime. They would like the United Nations, the Organization of the Islamic Conference, and human rights groups to step in and determine what actually is going on.
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Sadr office warns Iraq govt over Kerbala probe02 Sep 2007 11:30:07 GMT
More BAGHDAD, Sept 2 (Reuters) - Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr's office on Sunday demanded the Iraqi government conduct a fair investigation into clashes in the city of Kerbala last week, warning of unspecified "decisions" if it did not.
The comments raise questions about the powerful movement's commitment to an order from Sadr to suspend armed action by his feared Mehdi Army militia for up to six months in the wake of the violence.
Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki told a news conference he had set up an independent committee to probe the clashes.
"We are trying our best to save the blood of Muslims to stem the strife," said the statement from Sadr's office.
"We warn the Iraqi government ... that if they do not make a fair, neutral and fast investigation the Sadr office will have to take decisions beyond the government's expectations."
A aide to the fiery anti-American cleric declined to elaborate on what that might mean.
The statement, from Sadr's head office in the holy city of Najaf, also accused security forces of detaining more than 200 Sadr supporters following the clashes.
"This reminds us of Saddam's style," the statement said, referring to former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, who persecuted Iraq's majority Shi'ite community.
Iraq's government has said 72 people had been detained, adding that Sadr's followers were not being targeted.
The gunbattles that killed up to 52 people in Kerbala early last week appeared to pit followers of Sadr and his Mehdi Army against the rival Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council (SIIC), whose armed wing controls police in much of the south.
Maliki has blamed "outlawed armed criminal gangs from the remnants of the buried Saddam regime" for the violence.
His office late last week said the Sadr movement was "considered one of basic political blocs in Iraq and will remain an active and a real partner in the political process".
The Sadrist statement called that comment "just ink on a pen".
Arrests and raids by American forces were continuing, the Sadr office statement added.
The U.S. military on Saturday welcomed the suspension order and said it hoped security forces could now focus more on fighting Sunni Islamist al Qaeda.
Sadr's aides have said the order was designed to allow Sadr to weed out rogue elements from the militia.
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