After getting spanked in Basrah by Iraqi forces and Sadr City by American forces, Iranian proxy Muqtada al-Sadr sued for peace.
Just as the new Iraqi forces began to arrive in Basrah and US and British forces were gearing up to augment the Iraqi military, Muqtada al Sadr, under orders from Iran’s Qods Force, called for his fighters to withdraw from the streets. Sadr issued a nine-point list of demands, which included that operations cease.
But al Sadr's demands were snubbed
Maliki refused and Iraqi and US forces continued to move into Basrah and conduct pinpoint raids against Shia terror groups. More than 200 Mahdi Army fighters were killed, 700 were wounded, and 300 captured during the six days of fighting in Basrah alone.
What's even worse for al Sadr, and by extension Iran, is that Maliki then introduced legislation to bar all political parties that refused to disband their militias.
“A decision was taken that they no longer have a right to participate in the political process or take part in the upcoming elections unless they end the Mehdi Army,” CNN quoted Al Maliki as saying on Monday.
The first step will be adding language to a draft election bill banning parties that operate militias from fielding candidates in provincial balloting this fall, the officials and lawmakers said. The government intends to send the draft to parliament within days and hopes to win approval within weeks.
All of the major political players moved to support Makiki
Iraq's major Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish parties have closed ranks to force anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr to disband his Mahdi Army militia or leave politics, lawmakers and officials involved in the effort said Sunday....
"We, the Sadrists, are in a predicament," lawmaker Hassan al-Rubaie said Sunday. "Even the blocs that had in the past supported us are now against us and we cannot stop them from taking action against us in parliament."
Al-Sadr controls 30 of the 275 parliament seats, a substantial figure but not enough to block legislation.
Al Sadr tried a political counter-offensive, a Million Man Anti-American March, then backed down
Moqtada Al Sadr has called off a mass rally in Baghdad planned for Wednesday, his aides said on Tuesday, as clashes continued in the conflict-ridden region.
Al Sadr’s followers had been blocked by Iraqi security forces from traveling to Baghdad from the Shiite areas where he garners great support as well.
Al Sadr had called for a "million-strong" protest to mark the fifth anniversary of the capture of Baghdad by US troops, in what was seen as a show of force in his conflict with the government, but two aides in the Shiite leaders office said the rally had been cancelled.
But even as he is being countered on both the political and military fronts, he still plays to the US Press by talking tough
Anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr is demanding the Iraqi government protect the public from "the booby traps and American militias" or he may formally end the freeze he imposed seven months ago on his Mahdi Army fighters.
The statement was being circulated to the press and public Tuesday as U.S. and Iraqi troops stepped up their pressure on Shiite militiamen in their Baghdad stronghold of Sadr City.
His only remaining hope is with the Press who continue to spin this as a victory for al Sadr and a defeat for Maliki. But the fact is that it is Sadr that keeps retreating, not Maliki
Maliki has said the military will continue to operate against the Mahdi Army, and US and Iraqi forces have kept Sadr City and Shula in Baghdad under curfew. US and Iraqi forces fought pitched battles in Sadr City over the weekend. At least nine Mahdi Army fighters were killed by US helicopters after attacking Iraqi patrols in the city. Twenty Iraqis were reported killed and more than 50 wounded during the fighting.
Maliki has said the military would continue to operate in Sadr City and other Mahdi Army strongholds in Baghdad. "We have opened the door for confrontation, a real confrontation with these gangs, and we will not stop until we are in full control of these areas," Maliki said on April 7.
Maliki's assault on Basrah, Operation Knights' Assault, did point out deficiencies in the Iraqi Army: There were defections, they moved without adequate preparation, and they lacked battlefield intelligence; but it also revealed that the Iraqi security forces are getting better and stronger.
They are moving in the right direction.
And at the moment, that direction is to cancel al Sadr's ticket.
