Today’s Daily Telegraph is reporting that Moqtada al-Sadr has indicated his willingness to surrender and disband the Mahdi Army, which would likely halt the 10-day old Shia rising.
According to the Telegraph, Sadr is said to be “buckling under the twin pressures of a massive build-up of American forces near his base and demands for moderation from the country's ayatollahs.” Sadr and his militia control Najaf, but his emissaries have reportedly told US authorities and the Iraqi Governing Council (ICG) that, if his personal safety is guaranteed, he would agree to submit to trial in an Iraqi court on charges of having last year ordered the assassination of a rival cleric. Unless the leak is calculated disinformation, Sadr’s sudden capitulation is surprising, because he had vowed a fight to the death, his mass support was growing, and it was widely felt the Americans would not assault Najaf, a Shia holy site. But the Telegraph says Sadr has been subject to intense pressure from the senior Shia clergy and the Iranian government, which favours the SCIRI, a rival Shia faction. Article on http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;$sessionid$CRGUYNIF1XGP3QFIQMGCFF 4AVCBQUIV0?xml=/news/2004/04/15/wirq15.xml&sSheet=/news/2004/04/15/ixnewstop .html Also: www.supportingfacts.com Sorry for any cross posting.
