Mahdi face another ultimatum

Times:

Iraqi and US forces were poised to strike a key Shia militia stronghold in southern Iraq yesterday as Nouri al-Maliki, the Prime Minister, pushed ahead with his campaign to rid the country of al-Mahdi Army gunmen.

Iraqi army tanks, armoured troop carriers and infantrymen surrounded al-Amarah, a lawless tribal city near the Iranian border that is renowned for its smuggling rings. It once held a British base but the army was mortared so heavily by al-Mahdi Army irregulars that it withdrew to patrol the Iranian frontier.

Mr al-Maliki has told the militiamen that they have until Thursday to surrender their weapons before the Iraq forces — backed by US troops and air power — move in. “The military is deployed to ensure total control of the city without leaving any gaps for the militants to flee,” General Nassir al-Abadi, a senior Defence Ministry official, said.

Mr al-Maliki, who gained a boost in popularity when his forces took Basra from murderous militias, is hoping to push forward with his campaign to isolate al-Mahdi Army, led by Hojatoleslam Moqtada al-Sadr, the Shia cleric who once ordered a full-scale revolt against the US occupation.

Colonel Mahdi al-Asadi, a spokesman for al-Amarah police force, said that the operation would target any illegal militia groups, not specifically al-Madhi Army. “It will target outlaws even if they are government officials. It will not target any militia specifically but those who are criminals,” Colonel al-Asadi said.

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Maliki is systematically taking back Iraq from those who tried to be war lords during the al Qaeda attempt to stir chaos. So far he has had the backing of the Iraqi people who have largely hailed his efforts, which have been much more aggressive than expected on all sides. I suspect that he also wants to take advantage of the supporting arms of the US while he can.