Monday, April 02, 2007
Talabani - Mahdi Army has stopped activities
Security
BBC - Iraqi President Jalal Talabani says the Shia militia known as the Mehdi Army has stopped its activities on the orders of its leader, Moqtada Sadr. The president described this as a positive response to the six-week-old Iraqi-US security push in Baghdad. Many of the bombings in the country are blamed on Sunni insurgents.
Meanwhile, there are conflicting reports about the number of people who were killed in two suicide truck bomb attacks in the northern town of Tal Afar on Tuesday. The interior ministry said 152 people died, making it the deadliest single attack of the insurgency. But the figure was disputed by the mayor of the town, and dismissed by the US, which said the official count was 83 dead. Iraqi spokesman Brig Abdul Kareem Khalaf explained the delay in raising the death toll, saying 100 homes had been destroyed in the main blast.
Analysts say the bombing campaign has continued largely unabated since the Baghdad security crackdown began. Reprisals by Shia militias on Sunnis, however, have reportedly fallen.
The Mehdi Army is one of the groups blamed for such attacks. It has been described by the US as the greatest threat to security in Iraq. "People now are co-operating with government forces against terrorism as part of the security plan," Mr Talabani said. "Not to mention the fact that the Mehdi Army has become inactive. "Apparently the instructions of brother Moqtada Sadr have been effective, whereby there are no longer complaints by brother Sunni Arabs about attacks against them like before."
Meanwhile, there are conflicting reports about the number of people who were killed in two suicide truck bomb attacks in the northern town of Tal Afar on Tuesday. The interior ministry said 152 people died, making it the deadliest single attack of the insurgency. But the figure was disputed by the mayor of the town, and dismissed by the US, which said the official count was 83 dead. Iraqi spokesman Brig Abdul Kareem Khalaf explained the delay in raising the death toll, saying 100 homes had been destroyed in the main blast.
Analysts say the bombing campaign has continued largely unabated since the Baghdad security crackdown began. Reprisals by Shia militias on Sunnis, however, have reportedly fallen.
The Mehdi Army is one of the groups blamed for such attacks. It has been described by the US as the greatest threat to security in Iraq. "People now are co-operating with government forces against terrorism as part of the security plan," Mr Talabani said. "Not to mention the fact that the Mehdi Army has become inactive. "Apparently the instructions of brother Moqtada Sadr have been effective, whereby there are no longer complaints by brother Sunni Arabs about attacks against them like before."
Labels: Jalal Talabani, Mahdi Army, Moqtada Al-Sadr, Tal Afar
