Iranian general played key role in brokering Iraq cease-fire

McClatchy Newspapers ^ | Sunday, March 30, 2008 | Leila Fadel | McClatchy Newspapers

[Perdogg]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1993967/posts?page=67#67

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

From the Bloosphere( Flopping Aces):

Iranian Influence on Cease Fire?

******************EXCERPT*********************

The tabloid newspaper McClatchy has a report out today that two lawmakers from the Iraqi government, one from Maliki’s party and another from the Badr party, went to Iran to negotiate a end to hostilities in Basra.

********************snip*******************

Which, if true, is fascinating. On the one hand this means Iran can turn off the internal fighting when and where it wants to. So, as Jules Crittenden puts it, Iraq is Iran’s bitch in the absence of American forces. But the same article does say that some of Sadr’s thugs have said they have no intention of standing down. How much influence then does Iran really have? I’m guessing the coming days will tell us.

On the other hand can anyone still claim Iran is not the one stirring the pot in the first place AND not supplying those who attack our troops?

Either way, Sadr was getting his butt kicked by the Iraqi army and Jules takes on the NYT’s notion that Maliki agreed to a negotiated end to hostilities:

Interesting side note. This NYT article, which does not have any Qom-plea backstory, like other reporting on the Sadr stand-down declares al-Maliki the loser for agreeing to a negotiated end to hostilities. This is odd because he does not in fact appear to have agreed to end hostilities or to have surrendered his disarmament demand. But more so because the common anti-war media and political wisdom is that the United States wins by negotiating an end to hostilities, leaving adversaries in place, without achieving its goals militarily. Can we all get on the same peacenik playbook page, please?

Heh…

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

The reference NY Times article by Flopping Aces:

Firsthand Look at Basra Shows Value of White Flag

***********What a strange title******************

[IrishMike]

US army kills 40 in a day
Baghdad - US troops killed more than 40 Iraqis in one day, including 25 “criminals” who had attacked US soldiers, the military reported on Monday in Baghdad.

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?sf=2813&click_id=2813&art_id=nw20080331085658346C797276&set_id=6

........................................................

Sadr fighters vanish from Iraq’s streets
9 hours ago

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AFP) — Gun-toting fighters of hardline Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr melted away from Iraqi streets on Monday after week-long clashes with security forces that killed at least 461 people.

Following six days of intense fighting with security forces, Sadr on Sunday reined in his fighters, signalling an end to the firefights which Washington hailed as a “positive step” by the cleric.

AFP correspondents in Baghdad and Basra said the militants had disappeared on Monday and that fighting which had rocked the two cities and several other Shiite regions since last Tuesday had died down.

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5hqEfp4thTYVouIrEhHNKIXSAF-8Q

..................................................

[rockinqsranch]

How ‘bout a headline that tells a positive perspective about our allies instead of ours’ and their enemy? “Iranian general played key role in brokering Iraq cease-fire”.

How ‘bout something along the lines of: “Iraqi Leaders Negotiate Cease Fire.”

Leave it to Leftist McClatchy to avoid all possible any positive steps by the Iraqi’s.

[WOSG]

This is impossible. The lamestream media assured us that Iran was not getting involved with Iraq.

[Typical_Whitey]

What did he say.....”Don’t Kill me Bro”...lol

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Reading back in the history of all of this....

Al-Qaeda gloats at UK retreat from Basra

December 17 2007 at 08:33AM

Washington - Britain's decision to "flee" Iraq shows the insurgency is stronger than ever, Al-Qaeda's number two said in a video released on Sunday.

In a 98-minute Al-Qaeda videotape with English subtitles, Ayman Al-Zawahiri said recent reports from Iraq reveal "an increase in the strength of the Mujahideen and a deterioration in the Americans' conditions, despite their desperate attempts to deceive and mislead.

"And the decision of the British to flee is sufficient" proof, Zawahiri said. The video clip was given to AFP by the SITE Intelligence Group, a private US company.

Iraq formally took security control of the southern oil province of Basra from British forces on Sunday, paving the way for Britain to sharply reduce its troop presence of nearly 5 000.

Basra, the ninth of Iraq's 18 provinces to be returned to local control by the US-led coalition, is the fourth and final province under British control since the 2003 invasion to be transferred. - Sapa-AFP

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

From the JAWA report:

Special Operations Firefight in Iraq ( Special Forces )

Link to Firefight Video....

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

The Firefight Video was from Sadr City ...date and time was not disclosed....but it is very intense....

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

BBC later report ...FR thread:

BBC: Three-day curfew ends in Baghdad

[romanesq]

So if Qom is bombed, think it will quiet down in Iraq?

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

McCain needs to win in November for that to happen....

[reefdiver]

Not just Him but a whole lot of them need to.

[Marine_Uncle]

Let us hope we see many more of these operations within Sadr City. The Mahdi army must be convinced that they longer will be accepted as a viable solution to local security.
Iraqi law makers had better wise up and realize they must cross sectarian sides and together amend their constitution to prohibit all militias.
Of course in parallel, all Iraqi must be persuaded to join the Iraqi military or Police if they choose to best serve their new country. These people must be educated on ideas of civil service. For to long they have lived in a socialistic environment where they expect someone else to take care of them, much of course like we see in this country within within the welfare state.

[Marine_Uncle]

Agree. Bill will present the facts, with no embroidery.

[Marine_Uncle]

It is clear that Sadr is operating with forces outside his country that directly effect the security of his country. He has no permission to act in this way.
Why has the Maliki government not put out a order for his arrest. Sadr continues to be given the green light to do whatever he pleases to do, at the expense of Iraq.