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Iraqi security clashes with militias in Basra

Iraqi army to lead fight in Basra

By Sara A. Carter
March 27, 2008

Fighters loyal to Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr gather in a residential area in the southern city of Basra yesterday. U.S. military and counterterrorism officials expect battles with Sheik al-Sadr's Mahdi Army to intensify.

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U.S. military and counterterrorism officials say they expect clashes with Shi'ite militias in Basra to escalate in the upcoming weeks, but U.S. commanders are not likely to move forces into the region, leaving the Iraqi army to lead the fight.

The U.S. military has been providing air and liaison support to Iraqi forces for the past two days as the fighting intensified in both the southern city of Basra and Shi'ite neighborhoods of Baghdad, leading to the death of nearly 50 people in both cities and injuring nearly 200 in the battle.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who has been camping in Basra to monitor the crackdown, issued a warning to the Shi'ite militias yesterday that if they didn't lay down weapons within the next 72 hours they would be facing severe consequences.

"The prime minister is personally leading the efforts," a U.S. military official in Baghdad said. "We have some small liaison elements with them and will provide close air support if they request it, but no intent right now to move any forces closer or down there," the official added. "Remember, this is a province that was turned over to Iraq."

In Baghdad, several volleys of rockets slammed into the U.S.-protected Green Zone for the third day this week, and the U.S. Embassy said three Americans were seriously wounded, the Associated Press reported. At least eight Iraqis were killed elsewhere in the capital by rounds that apparently fell short, police said.

Two American soldiers were killed yesterday in separate attacks in Baghdad, the military said.

Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia agreed to a six-month cease-fire in August, and extended it by another six months from March 1. The current fighting in the oil city of Basra threatens to end that cease-fire.

The Sadrists are angry over recent raids and detentions, saying U.S. and Iraqi forces have taken advantage of the August cease-fire to crack down on the movement, the AP reported.

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