Article

2008-03-31 Iraq

Fighting rages in Iraq, death toll higher than 300, UN calls for lifting curfew

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Posted by Fred 2008-03-31 00:00|| || Front Page|| [5 views ] Top
File under: Mahdi Army

#1 Bill Roggio: Sadr orders followers to end fighting

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Sadrâs call for an end to fighting by his followers comes as his Mahdi Army has taken high casualties over the past six days. Since the fighting began on Tuesday, 358 Mahdi Army fighters were killed, 531 were wounded, 343 were captured, and 30 surrendered. The US and Iraqi security forces have killed 125 Mahdi Army fighters in Baghdad alone, while Iraqi security forces have killed 140 Mahdi fighters in Basrah.

From March 25-29 the Mahdi Army had an average of 71 of its fighters killed per day. Sixty-nine fighters have been captured per day, and another 160 have been reported wounded per day during the fighting. The US and Iraqi military never came close to inflicting casualties at such a high rate during the height of major combat operations against al Qaeda in Iraq during the summer and fall of 2007.

US and Iraqi forces are maintaining the high pace of operations against the Mahdi Army and the Special Groups. While the daily reporting from Iraq is far from over, initial reports indicate at least 18 Mahdi Army fighters have been killed and another 30 captured.

US soldiers killed 14 Mahdi fighters in Baghdad during a series of separate engagements. Iraqi security forces killed four Mahdi Army fighters and captured another 30 in Babil province, where a major offensive led by the police has been underway.
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Posted by 3dc 2008-03-31 02:12|| 2008-03-31 02:12|| Front Page Top

#2 TOPIX > HIZBOLLAH PREDICTS DEMISE OF US AGENDA IN REGION; + IRAN, NOT AL-SADR, LEADING/ORDERING SHIA ATTACKS IN IRAQ.

SADR > the question becomes WHY!?

Posted by JosephMendiola 2008-03-31 03:03|| 2008-03-31 03:03|| Front Page Top

#3 Good. Fling away the agenda and attack towards unlimited objectives using the indirect approach and ginsu knife theory.

Posted by Zebulon Angavick7428">Zebulon Angavick7428 2008-03-31 05:32|| 2008-03-31 05:32|| Front Page Top

#4 Sadr's fighters don't seem to have improved their combat skills much since 2004. I presume the Iranians (or maybe Hizbollah)tried to help them but it evidently do much good.

Posted by mhw 2008-03-31 09:00|| 2008-03-31 09:00|| Front Page Top

#5 Notice that the only thing the UN wants to do is resupply the Mahdi army.

Posted by AlanC 2008-03-31 09:30|| 2008-03-31 09:30|| Front Page Top

#6 Maybe the reason is because they dress all in black with black ski masks so nobody will recognize them.

Posted by wxjames 2008-03-31 09:30|| 2008-03-31 09:30|| Front Page Top

#7 mhw, the Iranians have been training the Syrians, Hezbollah, Hamas, and Mahdi. The American have been training the Iraqi. You be the judge of how that is working out.

Not only that, but the Iraqi Army is taking the lead in this battle.

Want to guess the panic/concern in Tehran at this hour?

If this was a dress rehearsal for future mid east activity, expect the verbal rhetoric to increase to cover for the lack of military capability.

Posted by Skunky Glins5285">Skunky Glins5285 2008-03-31 12:53|| 2008-03-31 12:53|| Front Page Top

#8 thanks skunky,

it would be so great if the Iraqis could

- decisively defeat Sadr in the south
- cripple Al Q in the Mosul area

and then

- send (maybe by late summer) a small detachment to afghanistan to help train the afghans.

Posted by mhw 2008-03-31 13:18|| 2008-03-31 13:18|| Front Page Top

#9 ...the UN Special Envoy to Iraq, in remarks to KUNA, called for lifting the curfew temporarily to allow UN teams send necessary supplies to the residential areas where civilians were running out of necessities.

The UN: The Pizza Delivery Boys of the War on Terror.

Posted by tu3031 2008-03-31 14:39|| 2008-03-31 14:39|| Front Page Top

#10 Appears the Iranians are teaching the Mahdi/Special Groups only certain things - obviously not the same schtuff Hesb'allah is getting.

Then again, given the proximity to Iran, the Iranians might not want to train the Mahdi et al to a level that they could cause problems later for their masters....

Posted by Pappy 2008-03-31 15:17|| 2008-03-31 15:17|| Front Page Top

#11 Follow up to my last: Appears Sadr is publicly condemning the Iranians because a) his forces are taking a beating and the Iranians aren't helping him, b)the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq has joined in beating up the Mahdi,c) the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq are/were getting more funding from Iran than the Mahdis.

In English: Mookie thinks the Iranians back-stabbed him by letting other Iranian-backed forces and an 'Iranian-tool' Maliki (who heads a Kurdish/Sunni Arab/Shiite Arab Iraqi government) attack his forces to determine who'll control the Shiites, which in any case will still be Iranian-backed...

Posted by Pappy 2008-03-31 21:10|| 2008-03-31 21:10|| Front Page Top

#12 ROFL, tu. :-D

Posted by Barbara Skolaut">Barbara Skolaut 2008-03-31 21:18|| http://ariellestjohndesigns.com/]">[http://ariellestjohndesigns.com/] 2008-03-31 21:18|| Front Page Top

#13 tu3031,

LOL! That's the best!

Posted by JDB 2008-03-31 21:38|| 2008-03-31 21:38|| Front Page Top

#14 From March 25-29 the Mahdi Army had an average of 71 of its fighters killed per day. Sixty-nine fighters have been captured per day, and another 160 have been reported wounded per day during the fighting.

Jeebus, that's an average of 300 killed/captured/wounded per day! Way to go IA! No wonder Sadr's screaming "Uncle" like a lil' girl so quickly. Mehopes that because it's the Iraqis doin' bidness the MSM won't pay as much attention and that the IA will go in for the kill. Now is NO time to let up because he's screaming "uncle," it's time to put him down for good.

Posted by BA 2008-03-31 21:50|| 2008-03-31 21:50|| Front Page Top

23:49 JosephMendiola
23:18 JohnQC
23:11 JohnQC
23:09 JohnQC
23:08 JohnQC
23:07 Glenmore
23:06 Steve White
23:04 Hillary
22:58 JohnQC
22:55 Sock Puppet of Doom
22:39 eltoroverde
22:30 Injun Unereck9646
22:28 JosephMendiola
22:23 Nanook of the North (the little Eskimo boy)
22:22 Spoluse Ghibelline1686
22:21 Unique Battle
22:21 JosephMendiola
22:15 Thush Gonque
22:06 BA
21:51 Skunky Glins5285
21:50 BA
21:38 JDB
21:30 Pappy
21:26 Pappy