Posted on 03/31/2008 9:35:19 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach
Iranian Influence on Cease Fire?
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The tabloid newspaper McClatchy has a report out today that two lawmakers from the Iraqi government, one from Malikis party and another from the Badr party, went to Iran to negotiate a end to hostilities in Basra.
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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 Irans bitch in the absence of American forces. But the same article does say that some of Sadrs thugs have said they have no intention of standing down. How much influence then does Iran really have? Im 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 NYTs 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
Firsthand Look at Basra Shows Value of White Flag
***********What a strange title******************
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
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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
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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.
This is impossible. The lamestream media assured us that Iran was not getting involved with Iraq.
What did he say.....”Don’t Kill me Bro”...lol
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
Special Operations Firefight in Iraq ( Special Forces )
Link to Firefight Video....
The Firefight Video was from Sadr City ...date and time was not disclosed....but it is very intense....
So if Qom is bombed, think it will quiet down in Iraq?
McCain needs to win in November for that to happen....
Not just Him but a whole lot of them need to.
Agree. Bill will present the facts, with no embroidery.
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