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Al-Sadr and any unreasonable, pot-bellied cleric that succeeds him needs to be eliminated. Cut off the head of the snake and be done with it.

The Pentagon knows. It's their civilian leaders that are afraid to do it.

I thought that this was supposed to showcase the efficacy of the new Iraqi armed forces...

Sadr had his butt handed to him. Maliki took on the militias and got them to back down and surrender Basra. how is this bad for the Iraqi govt? How is this a victory for Mookie? He was pwned big time and the Iraqis, with some help from the US got to flex their  muscles a bit. Why are some in the media painting this as a victory for Sadr? Maybe a pyrhic victory. Nah, that would imply he won something. This was simply a loss.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

.tsooJ

So what's all this about Iran stepping in to help settle things?

user wrote:

So what's all this about Iran stepping in to help settle things?

Happily, Iran has far more influence inside Iraq than ever before, so they're in a position to help out.

everlong205 wrote:

Sadr had his butt handed to him. Maliki took on the militias and got them to back down and surrender Basra. how is this bad for the Iraqi govt? How is this a victory for Mookie? He was pwned big time and the Iraqis, with some help from the US got to flex their  muscles a bit. Why are some in the media painting this as a victory for Sadr? Maybe a pyrhic victory. Nah, that would imply he won something. This was simply a loss.

http://www.welovetheiraqiinformationminister.com/

Iran's far more tied to Maliki and associated parties (and their militia's) than to Sadr. I think the Iranians have barely tolerated Sadr and his followers.

Sadr has his contacts in and with Iran, but not nearly to the extent that maliki has. To suggest Sadr is Iran's man is laughable.

bratboy wrote:

everlong205 wrote:

the only possiblity of a "victory" for Sadr is that Sadr wasn't killed outright.

It seems like many who are in the area might disagree...

We are so afraid of tomorrow. The Iraqi Army is in the street but (the fighting) showed that the militia is still stronger than the Iraqi Army."

Many said the militia had bested the Iraqi forces at nearly every confrontation.

"The Iraqi Army is equipped with heavy machines and the Mahdi Army has simple weapons, but they have the doctrine to become martyrs," said Hussein Mohammed, who lives in the Mahdi stronghold of al Hayaniyah, which government forces tried, but failed, to penetrate. "The national army did not win the battle."

A senior government official who asked for anonymity due to the sensitivity of the subject agreed that it was unlikely that the Mahdi Army would be defeated militarily.

But he said the government must continue to try to assert control.

"There is no denying that Jaysh al Mahdi (the Mahdi Army) is relatively strong because they were allowed to fester," he said. "I don't think it's possible to achieve the elimination of the Jaysh al Mahdi by military might alone. We have to be very careful that the Sadrists are embraced by the political process. The jury is still out."

Link.

the media is twisting the clear loss into a win as if it were TET all over again. I love the quote from the link above:

He remained undefeated and he looks like the moderate," he (Hilterman) said. "He was the one that called for his forces, who were attacked, to stand down."

Talk about spin. He got his ass handed to him, and asked for his forces to stand down. That usually happens when you LOSE. when your soldiers are battered and decimated. Somehow the spin is that his loss is a sign of moderation? Who is this Hilterman in the article, one of Sadrs generals? He remained undefeated. No, he stood down, which means he was defeated. It didn't mean he was a moderate, it means he couldn't fight anymore and gave up Basra. This doesn't mean that they wont lick their wounds, pretend to cooperate then come out swinging again later. But this was a rout, plain and simple.
A rebuttal to the meme that sadr won, with a nice ironic title :Sadr Triumphantly Surrenders
http://www.deanesmay.com/2008/03/31/sad … surrender/

Last edited by everlong205 (2008-04-01 5:43 pm)

Muqtada is not exactly leading a victorious procession northward into Baghdad at the moment, is he?

everlong205 wrote:

the media is twisting the clear loss into a win as if it were TET all over again.

OK, so the media is apparently against you and the truth.  Did Maliki achieve his demanded disarmament?  Surrender?   

How do you believe the situation is being viewed by Iraqis?