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There is an interesting piece of graffiti on a bridge near Basra. A fleeing militiaman has scrawled “We'll be back”; underneath an Iraqi soldier has scribbled in reply “And we'll be waiting for you”. The Shia militias, the Jaish al- Mahdi, who controlled large parts of Basra until March this year, has now gone and instead the city is firmly under the grip of Iraq's new security forces, in whom the coalition has invested so much training. They re-established control in April, in an operation romantically named “The Charge of the Knights”, systematically clearing the city with British and American...

THE PM’S plan to pull Our Boys out of Iraq has been scrapped – and 120 EXTRA troops are to be sent to the war zone instead. The decision follows the biggest crisis between Britain and the US since before the 2003 invasion. Our top brass got a heavy dressing-down from US chiefs and were accused of not pulling their weight in Iraq. And US President George Bush made it clear to Gordon Brown in London last month that any early British withdrawal would mean failure to achieve long-term targets. In tense phone calls, US Iraq supremo Gen David Petraeus...

An Iraqi man smiles as he drives by giving a friend a ride with his cargo motorcycle in the neighborhood of Hayy Al Asdiqa, Basra, Iraq, last month. Photo by Sgt. Tim Ortez. WASHINGTON — Security progress in Basra is “overwhelming� and Iraq’s second-largest city could be “another Dubai in the coming decade,� the commander of Multi-National Division - Southeast said June 14, referring to the bustling international business hub.British Army Maj. Gen. Barney White-Spunner told Pentagon reporters via teleconference from Baghdad that Operation Charge of the Knights - ordered by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in March - has...

The John Batchelor Show Sunday July 6th , 2008 Listenlive from 7pm – 10pm ET (4pm – 7pm PT) on WABC AM 770 New York City 10pm – 1am ET (7pm – 10pm PT) on KFI AM 640 Los Angeles If you missed last week show, listen on John Batchelor On-Demand Podcast Sunday July 6 WABC in New York and WMAL in Washington DC and KSFO in San Francisco. 705P ET: Mary Anastasia O’Grady, WSJ Americas Editor, re the spectacular Colombia special ops, "Operation Check-Mate," to rescue French citizen Ingrid Betancourt... 720P: Herb London, Hudson Institute, author, “America’s Secular Challenge:...

Soldiers in Iraq, Showing The A Team still live on! British Army - Basra click to view

ASRA — Operation Charge of the Knights, a joint operation involving UK Soldiers and the Iraqi Army, which aims to restore order and improve security in Basra, is making further progress. The Iraqi Army continues to demonstrate its commitment to improving the security situation in the city, carrying out a number of vehicle check points in recent days. Inspections were carried out on a number of vehicles which were going in and out of the city. In addition, numerous house searches were carried out, leading to multiple arrests of suspected militants. 140 rounds of 150mm High Explosive shells were also...

Muqtada al-Sadr. The Mahdi Army has suffered a significant blow during fighting against Iraqi and Coalition forces this year, according to an Iraq intelligence report. The heavy casualties sustained by the Mahdi Army have forced Muqtada al Sadr, the leader of the Mahdi Army and the Sadrist political movement, to change his tactics and disband the Mahdi Army in favor of a small, secretive fighting force. "More than 2,000 cadres from the Mahdi Army leaders were killed recently," an Iraqi intelligence official told the Gulf News. "This led to the almost complete collapse of the army," the official said....

BASRA — Operation Charge of the Knights, a joint operation involving UK Soldiers and the Iraqi Army, which aims to restore order and improve security in Basra, is making further progress. The Iraqi Army continues to demonstrate its commitment to improving the security situation in the city, carrying out a number of vehicle check points in recent days. Inspections were carried out on a number of vehicles which were going in and out of the city. In addition, numerous house searches were carried out, leading to multiple arrests of suspected militants. 140 rounds of 150mm High Explosive shells were also...

Iraqi security forces continue to target the Sadrist movement and the Mahdi Army in the southern provinces of Maysan, Dhi Qhar, and Wasit over the weekend. More than 113 Mahdi Army fighters and Sadrists were detained since Friday, including a senior Sadrist leader in the city of Al Kut. The arrests come as a major operation was launched in the former Mahdi Army stronghold in Maysan province. On Saturday, Iraqi forces detained Sayyid Tahseen, a senior member of Muqtada al Sadr's political movement, in Al Kut in Wasit province. Iraqi police described Tahseen as "one of the most important individual...

BASRA – The Iraqi Army displayed its commitment to the security situation in Basra as elements of the 26th Brigade, 7th IA Division and the 50th, 51st and 52nd Brigades, 14 IA Div. conducted the fourteenth phase of Operation Charge of the Knights. The Operation saw a number of Vehicle Check Points established by the IA with inspections carried out on every vehicle that passed through. In addition, numerous houses were searched leading to multiple detaining of suspected militants. More than 130 rounds of 150 mm High Explosive shells were also found in the northern section of the city. The...

BAGHDAD — What’s going right? And can it last? Violence in all of Iraq is the lowest since March 2004. The two largest cities, Baghdad and Basra, are calmer than they have been for years. The third largest, Mosul, is in the midst of a major security operation. On Thursday, Iraqi forces swept unopposed through the southern city of Amara, which has been controlled by Shiite militias. There is a sense that Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki’s government has more political traction than any of its predecessors. Consider the latest caricatures of Mr. Maliki put up on posters by the...

BASRA, Iraq, June 20, 2008 – The provincial reconstruction team for Iraq’s Basra province, along with the Gulf Region South district of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and the United Nations Development Program concluded a two-day budget execution support workshop June 18 at the international airport here. The event provided a clear understanding of how the international community can support the provincial governor’s office and technical directorates for the design and implementation of projects for the rest of the year, said Army Maj. Daniel George, a PRT engineer assigned from Gulf Region South’s...

It was easy for Tehran to do both when a sectarian war united Shiites against a common Sunni enemy. But sectarian violence has largely ceased, and Sunni insurgents and al-Qaeda are no longer imminent threats. Throughout 2007, militias challenged the government as they terrorized neighborhoods in southern Iraq, disrupting commerce and assassinating clerics as well as government and provincial officials. The Quds Force and its backers in Tehran expected the truce to hold, allowing Iran to continue to build militias while also supporting the Baghdad government. Ali Larijani, then head of Iran's Supreme Council for National Security (now the speaker...

Muqtada al Sadr. Muqtada al Sadr has ordered the Sadrist political movement to boycott the upcoming provincial elections. Sadr's order comes one day after his order to disband the Mahdi Army as a fighting force and the creations of a small, armed wing to attack Coalition forces exclusively. Sadrist aides claim Sadr rejects the election process and fears being associated with the occupation. "Sayyid Muqtada does not believe in elections or in the coming provincial governments as long as the occupation forces are here," Salah al Obaidi, a senior aide to Sadr, told The Washington Post. "We don't want...

An Iraqi foreman goes over issues with the construction on the site of the Basra Children's Hospital in Basra, Iraq. The hospital will have more than 90 beds and serve primarily as a pediatric cancer treatment facility. Photo by Sgt. 1st Class Christopher Sheely. BASRA — The new Basra Children’s Hospital, a 94-bed pediatric cancer treatment facility, is currently under construction and is scheduled to open for patients in February 2009. The Gulf Region South Corps of Engineers Basra Area Office is responsible for over 40 reconstruction sites the city. Site surveys are an integral part of the process to...

An Iraqi tank is stationed on the main road leading into Amarah. AFP photo. Iraqi security forces, backed by the US military, have started an operation against the Mahdi Army in the southern border province of Maysan. Amarah, the provincial capital of Maysan, is thought to be one of the locations senior Mahdi Army leader retreated to after Iraqi forces moved into Sadr City last month. Amarah is also a forward command and control hub for Iranian operations in southern Iraq. Iraqi security forces established checkpoints along the entrances to the province, and have closed down the border crossing...

Gulf Region South district A student practices his welding skills in one of the newly renovated shops at the Al Khaseeb Vocational Technical Center in Basrah. Students there can choose between a variety of classes including carpentry, electric installation, auto mechanics, air conditioning and refrigeration, masonry, painting, computer basics and plumbing installation. USACE photo by Norris Jones. BASRA — Students in Basra are now attending a newly refurbished vocational technical school as they acquire important job skills.The school’s headmaster, Mohammed Hassan Al Hassani, said he is very pleased with the $1.24 million rehabilitation of the Al Khaseeb Votech Center that...

US soldiers in Baghdad captured an Iraqi arms dealer and "assassination squad" leader responsible for trafficking Shi'ite extremists in and out of neighboring Iran for training, the military said Sunday. The arrest reinforced long-standing US allegations that Iran arms, trains and funds Shi'ite Muslim militiamen inside Iraq - charges that Teheran denies. It also coincided with a two-day visit to Iran by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, his second such trip in a year. The Iraqi prime minister, himself a Shi'ite, is struggling to keep Washington happy while reassuring Iran, the largest Shi'ite nation, that a proposed US-Iraqi security agreement...

BAGHDAD – Coalition forces captured a suspected Basrah-based Special Groups criminal and his associate late Saturday night during operations in the Rusafa district of Baghdad. Acting on intelligence from captured Special Groups members, Coalition forces raided the hideout of the suspected Special Groups criminal, where he and his associate were captured without incident. The wanted man is alleged to be a commander of an assassination squad in Basrah, an arms dealer with connections to Iran, and a document counterfeiter. This last offense was reportedly done in his role as one of a handful of Special Groups criminals who arranges transportation...

BASRA, Iraq – Iraqi Security Forces found six caches containing more than 100 rockets, 200 mortars, 60 anti-aircraft rockets, three launchers, 30 Improvised Explosives Devices, 90 AK-47 Assault Rifles, 20 grenades, 10 RPGs and various other weapons during raids in Basra June 6. The 52nd Brigade, Iraqi Army, found a cache 20 kilometers northwest of Basra consisting of 106 122 mm rockets, seven charges, 80 82 mm mortars, 28 mortar charges, 37 IEDs, 66 anti-aircraft rockets and one rocket launcher. The 50th Bde., Iraqi Army, found a cache three kilometers northeast of Basra that contained 128 82 mm mortar rounds,...

BASRA, Iraq – Iraqi Army soldiers from the 14th Iraqi Army Division netted a large haul of weapons and ammunition in operations across Basra and in the nearby town of Az Zubayr June 6. In more than a 24-hour period, the Division’s 51st, 52nd and 53rd brigades seized 330 mortar rounds, 104 small arms, 20 hand grenades, 72 rockets, 3 rocket launchers and 17 RPGs. The brigades also seized 37 various improvised explosive devices. At the same time, Iraqi Police were able to secure a truck-load of mortar and artillery shells discovered in previous weeks. The operations were a sign...

This spring, the Iraqi army routed insurgents in three of their most important urban strongholds. These gains follow the success of the surge in crushing al Qaeda in the Sunni triangle, meaning that we are at last on the verge of winning in Iraq and securing a strategic victory in the Middle East. Question: Is this emerging victory – achieved at a cost of more than 4,000 American lives – something we are prepared to abandon after November? The good news in Iraq is increasingly undeniable, even to the media. In March, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki ordered Iraqi troops to...

Iraqi and Coalition forces press operations against the Mahdi Army in Baghdad and Basrah despite the cease-fire signed with the Mahdi Army in Sadr City. The Iraqi Army has expanded its operations in Basrah province to the east just along the Iranian border, while eleven Mahdi Army fighters have been captured during operations in Baghdad over the past 24 hours. Iraqi soldiers and police, backed by US and British advisers, have expanded Operation Knights’ Assault to the eastern town of Abu Al Khasib, a region east of Basrah on the Iranian border. A brigade from the 1st Iraqi Army Division,...

BASRA, Iraq – Operation Sawlat al-Fursan, or Charge of the Knights, lead by the 1st Iraqi Army Division, a battalion from the 14th IA Division, and two Iraqi National Police battalions, continued searching and clearing operations in Abu Al Khasib of Basra, Iraq May 31. The Iraqi Army led the sweep from early May 31 to early June 1. Two Iraqi National police battalions followed as a support component searching for criminal elements and weapons caches. The National IP detained one suspect and discovered a cache of 52 AK-47 assault rifles and one sub-machine gun. Coalition Forces from the U.S....

Iraqis gathered in the Hayyaniyah district of Basra, Iraq to answer a recruiting call by the Iraqi army May 29. More than 3,000 Iraqi men from the area turned out for the event though the Iraqi army only had 1,000 positions available. BASRA — Soldiers with the 1st Iraqi Army looked to increase their numbers and support in Basra, Iraq May 29. Operation Charge of the Knights has been successful in rooting out criminal elements and restoring the rule of law to the city as well as increasing local support for the government of Iraq. The increased support for the...

Victor Davis Hanson, a former classics professor, is a renowned conservative scholar of ancient history and military affairs who's recently become a nationally syndicated columnist and blogger. The author of 17 books with titles like "A War Like No Other: How the Athenians and Spartans Fought the Peloponnesian War," "An Autumn of War" and "Mexifornia: A State of Becoming," he is the senior fellow in residence in classics and military history at the Hoover Institution on the Stanford University campus. Hanson, whose scholarship and interest in individual freedom recently earned him a 2008 Bradley Prize worth $250,000 from the Bradley...

WASHINGTON, May 28, 2008 – Last week, Iraq experienced the lowest level of “security incidents” since March 2004, a reduction that military officials attribute in part to improvements in Iraqi security forces. “The collective efforts … to increase the capacity of the Iraqi security forces is a key part of the reason why we saw last week the lowest level of security incidents in Iraq the past four years,” Army Maj. Gen. Kevin Bergner, a Multinational Force Iraq spokesman, said this morning during a news conference in Baghdad. “It is also why we are seeing Iraqi citizens increasingly supporting their...

Basra had erupted into a Shiite-on-Shiite power struggle, and as long as Maliki ignored the evident instability in the South, whispered doubts flourished about his dedication to national unity. Maliki was still struggling with many Sunnis and Kurds over his willingness to tackle Shiite troubles and in-fighting. On March 23, Maliki launched Operation Knight's Assault, in Basra. Thousands of soldiers stormed the southern Shiite bastion, specifically targeting Muqtada al Sadr and his army. The early stages of the operation were shaky at best — 1,000 soldiers deserted ranks as they refused to fight against their brethren in the Mahdi army....

Alcohol has been banned in the southern Iraqi province of Basra. The provincial Basra Council has approved a new law enforcing the ban in the territory, the Voices of Iraq news agency cited Council president Nasif al-Ibadi as saying. The alcohol in the province was approved late on Wednesday, al-Ibadi said. "You will not be able to cross the borders between Iraq and other neighbouring countries carrying loads of alcohol to other parts of the country," he stated. The local administration applied the change under Article 2 of the Iraqi constitution that includes the application of Sharia law. The alcohol...

A common narrative about the war in Iraq is that fighting against the enemy in urban environments creates more insurgents, thus it is fruitless to even try. But today's Los Angeles Times finally asked Iraqis in Sadr City what they think about the recent fighting and how it impacts their views of the Mahdi Army. The answer: The Mahdi Army has lost significant support from not only residents caught in the crossfire, but from Mahdi Army fighters themselves. In fact, some Mahdi Army fighters were so discouraged by the recent fighting that they vowed to never join the ranks again....

Al Qaeda web sites are making a lot of noise about "why we lost in Iraq." Western intelligence agencies are fascinated by the statistics being posted in several of these Arab language sites. Not the kind of stuff you read about in the Western media. According to al Qaeda, their collapse in Iraq was steep and catastrophic. According to their stats, in late 2006, al Qaeda was responsible for 60 percent of the terrorist attacks, and nearly all the ones that involved killing a lot of civilians. The rest of the violence was carried out by Iraqi Sunni Arab groups,...

BASRA, Iraq – Operation Sawlat al-Fursan, or Charge of the Knights, continued operations in Az Zubayr, 20 kilometers southwest of Basra, Iraq May 25. The operation, which began March 24 in Basra, is clearing towns surrounding the Basra area of suspected criminal elements, securing detainees and weapons caches. The 1st Iraqi Army Division led the planning and execution of the most recent mission. United Kingdom and United States Military Transition Teams remain, with U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps, embedded with their Iraqi Security Forces counterparts to enable the application of Coalition assets, if necessary. Humanitarian support missions continue as...

Iran has secretly paid Iraqi insurgents hundreds of thousands of American dollars to kill British soldiers, according to a leaked government document obtained by The Telegraph. The allegations are contained in a confidential "field report" written by a British officer who served in Basra during one of the most dangerous periods of the conflict. The report, which has never been made public, shows the full level of Iran's involvement in the insurgency for the first time. The document states that the Jaish al-Mahdi (JAM) – also known as the Mahdi Army – one of the most violent insurgent groups operating...

BAGHDAD - The U.S. ambassador to Iraq said Saturday that al-Qaida's network in the country has never been closer to defeat, and he praised Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki for his moves to rein in Shiite and Sunni militant groups. Ryan Crocker's comments came as Iraqi forces have been conducting crackdowns on al-Qaida militants in the northern city of Mosul and on Shiite militiamen in the southern city of Basra. Thousands of Iraqi forces also moved into the Shiite militia stronghold of Sadr City in Baghdad last week imposing control for the first time in years. But truces with the powerful...

BAGHDAD - Lawmakers loyal to anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada al-Sadr accused the Iraqi government of trying to crush the movement and warned Saturday of "black clouds" on the horizon for truces that have eased fighting between al-Sadr's militia and security forces. The Sadrist Movement has heightened its rhetoric against the government in recent days, raising concerns over the cease-fires in the southern city of Basra and Baghdad's Sadr City district, the stronghold of al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia. Still, the lawmakers and other al-Sadr officials said they are adhering to the truces. The cease-fires are crucial to Iraqi security forces' sweeps in...

5/21/2008 - SATHER AIR BASE, Iraq (AFPN) -- Iraqi air force members are making their mark in history. The fledging air power has proven its effectiveness through the execution of combat missions in Basrah, Mosul and Sadr City, and the year-to-date tally marks for aircraft sorties broke 5,000 last week. The IQAF has roughly 100 pilots assigned to its eight rotary and fixed-wing flying units, making their achievements even more impressive, officials said. "We are now seeing concrete evidence that (the IQAF) have returned to the (sky) and are proving themselves a credible force for safety, security and sovereignty," said...

There are some very naive and delusional liberals who still think the Iraq government victory over the Mahdi Army criminals is actually a victory for Sadr and his Sadrists movement.  But they are simply grasping at straws so they do not have to face how pathetically wrong they have been on the Maliki action itself, the war in Iraq and the war on terror generally.  The fact is the Sadrists and al-Sadr gave political cover for heinous crimes commited by the Mahdi Islamo Fascists as they raped and killed their fellow Muslims.  Once Basra and Sadr City were liberated it...

BASRA, Iraq (CNN) -- The man, blindfolded and handcuffed, crouches in the corner of the detention center while an Iraqi soldier grills him about rampant crimes being carried out by gangs in the southern city of Basra. "How many girls did you kill and rape?" the soldier asks. "I raped one, sir," the man responds. "What was her name?" "Ahlam," he says. Ahlam was a university student in the predominantly Shiite city of Basra. The detainee said the gang he was in kidnapped her as she was leaving the university, heading home. "They forced me, and I killed her with...

BASRA, Iraq – A broadcast video production is now available covering people shopping at fruit stands, markets and ice cream shops because they feel the freedom tosafely move around the city of Basra, Iraq May 5.This is a packaged story that covers a joint patrol of Iraq Army and U.S. Army Soldiers from 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Infantry Division team in Basra. The packaged video production story runs 1 minute and 5 seconds. Video highlighting this event is available upon request from the Digital Video and Imagery Distribution System (DVIDS) by calling (678) 421-6604 or by accessing the DVIDS...

An email from an Australian father, “I am an Australian and my son is serving in the Australian army in Iraq. As far as we are concerned there is no place on God’s earth better than Australia and there are no people better than Australians, that was until the past week or so. “My son and I just ended a long phone conversation and here are some of his comments: ”Before I came over to Iraq I thought the Australian army were pretty hot stuff -- was I ever wrong! “The Yanks (I hope you don’t mind me using that...

WASHINGTON, May 15, 2008 – Iraqi and U.S. forces are making progress while performing counterinsurgency and reconstruction missions across Iraq, a senior U.S. military officer posted in Iraq said yesterday. Iraqi and coalition forces continue to make gains in establishing security and enforcing the rule of law in Baghdad, Mosul and Basra over the past week, Army Maj. Gen. Kevin Bergner, a Multinational Force Iraq spokesman, told reporters at a Baghdad news conference. In Basra, Iraqi forces involved in an operation dubbed “Sawlat al Fursan,” or “Charge of the Knights,” are busily removing illegal weapons, fighting and arresting insurgents and...

Iraqi Security Forces have succeeded in temporarily pacifying Basra. Even the most diehard Iraq hawks want to reduce the U.S. military footprint in Iraq and lean more heavily on Iraqi Security Forces to do the hard work of defeating insurgents and sectarian militias. Which is why recent developments in Basra have been so encouraging. At first, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's decision to confront Moqtada al-Sadr's Iranian-backed militas looked like a major strategic misstep. Now it appears to have transformed Iraqi politics, potentially paving the way for real reconciliation between Sunni and Shia. Maliki had long depended on Sadr's support,...

Britain has been in charge of four provinces in southern Iraq since Saddam Hussein's downfall. While the divisional command will continue to operate under British leadership at Basra airbase, the orders of the US units will be to "get out front" and resume patrols and combat missions. US hopes of making the whole of Iraq secure before its eventual withdrawal have been raised by what commanders see as a potential southern version of the Sahwa, or tribal awakening, which turned locals against al-Qa'eda. Troops have been shifted from Anbar province to the Tallil airbase, Nasiriya, to assume responsibility from 550...

Two weeks ago, The Observer revealed how 17-year-old student Rand Abdel-Qader was beaten to death by her father after becoming infatuated with a British soldier in Basra. In this remarkable interview, Abdel-Qader Ali explains why he is unrepentant - and how police backed his actions. Afif Sarhan in Basra and Caroline Davies report * Afif Sarhan in Basra and Caroline Davies * The Observer, * Sunday May 11 2008 For Abdel-Qader Ali there is only one regret: that he did not kill his daughter at birth. 'If I had realised then what she would become, I would have killed her...

Two weeks after The Observer revealed the shocking story of Rand Abdel-Qader, 17, murdered because of her infatuation with a British solider in Basra, southern Iraq, her father is defiant. Sitting in the front garden of his well-kept home in the city's Al-Fursi district, he remains a free man, despite having stamped on, suffocated and then stabbed his student daughter to death. Abdel-Qader, 46, a government employee, was initially arrested but released after two hours. Astonishingly, he said, police congratulated him on what he had done. 'They are men and know what honour is,' he said. Rand, who was studying...

* Iraq govt agrees truce with Sadr bloc to end clashes * Iraqi military to halt activities for 4 days - Sadr aide * U.S. military makes no comment on agreement (Adds government, Sadrist comments) By Waleed Ibrahim and Khalid al-Ansary BAGHDAD, May 10 (Reuters) - Iraq's government on Saturday agreed a truce with the movement of Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr to halt weeks of fighting in eastern Baghdad between Shi'ite militia and security forces, officials said. The truce could end violence that has killed several hundred people, trapped the 2 million residents of Sadr City in a battle zone...

Karbala, May 8, (VOI) - Security forces on Thursday arrested leader of Shiite Cleric Muqtada al-Sadr’s al-Mahdi army’s special brigades and two of his aides during a security raid in central Karbala, a security official in Karbala said. Security forces detained the leader of al-Mahdi army’s special brigades, based on intelligence tips pointing to his presence inside a house in central Karbala,” Maj. General Raed Shakir Jawdat, Karbala police and operations chief, told Aswat al-Iraq – Voices of Iraq – (VOI).“The forces cordoned off the region and arrested two of his aides, including a policeman who provides the armed group’s...

The Iraqi minister of defense pushed the debate with the Iranians over their provision of weapons to Shia militias one more step on Monday. Minister Abdul Qadir Obeidi indirectly confronted the Iranians, without naming them, with new findings that prove their involvement in the arming of Shia militias.On Monday, state-owned al-Sabah published a statement by the minister in which he spoke of the capture of a certain type of rocket that was never found in militia-held caches until now: Defense minister Abdul Qadir Mohammed Obeidi revealed that army troops found a 200-mm ground-to-ground rocket manufactured in 2007 during a search...

As American strikes on Shiite fighters in Baghdad have widened, Iran has suspended talks with the United States on Iraqi security, with the Iranian Foreign Ministry on Monday citing the continued offensive as the reason. The American forces have been responding to fire from Shiite militias in the Amel neighborhood in western Baghdad. In eastern Baghdad they hammered the nearby district of New Baghdad during the day and the Shiite section of Sadr City on Monday night. “The focus of discussions with the U.S. is Iraq’s security and stability,” said Mohammad Ali Hosseini, the spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry...

Mahdi Army takes a hit in Baghdad, Basrah By Bill RoggioMay 5, 2008 5:32 PM US Army soldiers from 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment of the 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division guard construction of a concrete wall running through the Shiite enclave of Sadr City, Baghdad, on Sunday, May 4, 2008. AP Photo. Clashes between the Mahdi Army and US and Iraqi forces continued in Baghdad over the weekend as efforts to complete the security barriers separating the southern portion of Sadr City from the Mahdi Army-controlled north. The US military has moved another battalion of Strykers...