Thursday, September 06, 2007
U.S. commander - British hostages still alive
Security
(The Times) - Lieutenant-General Raymond Odierno, the second-most-senior US commander in Iraq said that he had reason to believe that the five British hostages who were seized from Baghdad’s Finance Ministry three months ago were still alive. General Odierno said he received daily reports on the fate of the five British hostages, and added: “We have reason to believe they are still alive.” He refused to elaborate, and would not say whether there had been any contact with the kidnappers.
However, he confirmed that “rogue elements” of the al-Mahdi Army, a militia loyal to the radical Shia cleric Hojatoleslam Moqtada al-Sadr, were responsible. He challenged Hojatole-slam al-Sadr and his followers to prove that the ceasefire they announced last week - ostensibly to tackle the breakaway factions - was genuine by identifying the kidnappers. “Identify who these rogue elements are. Tell us where these hostages are. We think that’s something you can talk about,” he said.
One of the splinter groups is led by Abu Dera, an infamous Shia death squad leader who broke with Hojatole-slam al-Sadr last year after refusing to end his sectarian killing spree. General Odierno confirmed a report in The Times last week that Abu Dera was involved in the kidnapping.
However, he confirmed that “rogue elements” of the al-Mahdi Army, a militia loyal to the radical Shia cleric Hojatoleslam Moqtada al-Sadr, were responsible. He challenged Hojatole-slam al-Sadr and his followers to prove that the ceasefire they announced last week - ostensibly to tackle the breakaway factions - was genuine by identifying the kidnappers. “Identify who these rogue elements are. Tell us where these hostages are. We think that’s something you can talk about,” he said.
One of the splinter groups is led by Abu Dera, an infamous Shia death squad leader who broke with Hojatole-slam al-Sadr last year after refusing to end his sectarian killing spree. General Odierno confirmed a report in The Times last week that Abu Dera was involved in the kidnapping.
Labels: Abu Dera, British hostages, Lieutenant-General Raymond Odierno, Mahdi Army
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Death squad leader named in abduction of Brits
Security
(The Times) - Iraq’s most infamous Shia death squad commander was accused yesterday of masterminding the kidnapping of five British citizens who have not been heard from since their abduction in Baghdad three months ago. Hoshyar Zebari, Iraq’s Foreign Minister, told The Times that a group led by Abu Dera, a legendary figure with strong Iranian connections who is renowned for his brutality, was behind the abduction of the five Britons from the Iraqi Finance Ministry on May 29.
Mr Zebari said there was a striking similiarity between their abduction and that of Iraq’s Deputy Oil Minister by Abu Dera’s supporters on August 14. In both instances well-organised forces broke into heavily protected compounds.
The minister and five colleagues were seized by gunmen dressed in security force uniforms who forced their way into the offices of Iraq’s crude oil marketing agency. The Britons were seized by armed men dressed as Iraqi policemen who broke into the Finance Ministry. “I believe the same group who did this did the Ministry of Finance [raid],” Mr Zebari said in an interview in which he also cautioned of “catastrophic consequences” if
Mr Zebari said there was a striking similiarity between their abduction and that of Iraq’s Deputy Oil Minister by Abu Dera’s supporters on August 14. In both instances well-organised forces broke into heavily protected compounds.
The minister and five colleagues were seized by gunmen dressed in security force uniforms who forced their way into the offices of Iraq’s crude oil marketing agency. The Britons were seized by armed men dressed as Iraqi policemen who broke into the Finance Ministry. “I believe the same group who did this did the Ministry of Finance [raid],” Mr Zebari said in an interview in which he also cautioned of “catastrophic consequences” if
Abdel Jabber al-Wagaa, the Deputy Oil Minister, and his colleagues were released unharmed on Tuesday after what Mr Zebari described as “tough” negotiations with the kidnappers.
These talks enabled the Iraqi authorities to establish who the kidnappers were. However, Mr Zebari said he was unaware of any contact with the kidnappers of the Britons – a computer consultant and four security guards – and could not say for certain that they were still alive. “People say that since there’s not been any announcements or videos they may have been killed, but I really don’t know,” he said.
Britain has consistently refused to discuss its efforts to rescue the hostages, or even to name them, and an embassy spokeswoman in Baghdad declined to comment on Abu Dera’s alleged involvement yesterday. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is in contact with the families of the five hostages and has advised them all not to speak publicly.
The al-Mahdi Army is said to have splintered in recent months, with breakaway factions backed by Iran being blamed for some of the worst violence. Abu Dera is believed to lead one of those. He is an elusive figure who is spoken of with awe in the Shia slums of Sadr City, where he was raised.
After the US invasion of 2003 he is thought to have been a leading member of the al-Mahdi Army and to have led attacks on American troops. And when Sunni extremists bombed the Shia shrine in Samarra in 2006 he is said to have led the Shia death squads that killed thousands of innocent Sunnis in revenge. Locals say the Iraqi police allowed him free passage.
Stories of his barbarity are legion. A profile published by the Jamestown Foundation reports that he once commandeered several ambulances, drove them into a Sunni neighbourhood and announced on loudspeakers that Shias were slaughtering Sunnis. The young Sunnis who rushed to help were killed.
He allegedly offers his victims the choice of being executed through suffocation, shooting or being smashed to death with cinder blocks. There is a video recording of a man believed to be Abu Dera kidnapping Saddam Hussein’s lawyer Khamis al-Obeidi, parading him through the streets of Sadr City, and then shooting him three times in the head.
Abu Dera, whose real name is Ismail al-Zerjawi, is thought to be in his late thirties, married with two sons. His daring raids into Sunni communities have made him a hero to many poor young Shias. To others he is known as the “Shiite Zarqawi” – a reference to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the former leader in al-Qaeda in Iraq who exhorted Sunnis to kill Shias.
Britain has consistently refused to discuss its efforts to rescue the hostages, or even to name them, and an embassy spokeswoman in Baghdad declined to comment on Abu Dera’s alleged involvement yesterday. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is in contact with the families of the five hostages and has advised them all not to speak publicly.
The al-Mahdi Army is said to have splintered in recent months, with breakaway factions backed by Iran being blamed for some of the worst violence. Abu Dera is believed to lead one of those. He is an elusive figure who is spoken of with awe in the Shia slums of Sadr City, where he was raised.
After the US invasion of 2003 he is thought to have been a leading member of the al-Mahdi Army and to have led attacks on American troops. And when Sunni extremists bombed the Shia shrine in Samarra in 2006 he is said to have led the Shia death squads that killed thousands of innocent Sunnis in revenge. Locals say the Iraqi police allowed him free passage.
Stories of his barbarity are legion. A profile published by the Jamestown Foundation reports that he once commandeered several ambulances, drove them into a Sunni neighbourhood and announced on loudspeakers that Shias were slaughtering Sunnis. The young Sunnis who rushed to help were killed.
He allegedly offers his victims the choice of being executed through suffocation, shooting or being smashed to death with cinder blocks. There is a video recording of a man believed to be Abu Dera kidnapping Saddam Hussein’s lawyer Khamis al-Obeidi, parading him through the streets of Sadr City, and then shooting him three times in the head.
Abu Dera, whose real name is Ismail al-Zerjawi, is thought to be in his late thirties, married with two sons. His daring raids into Sunni communities have made him a hero to many poor young Shias. To others he is known as the “Shiite Zarqawi” – a reference to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the former leader in al-Qaeda in Iraq who exhorted Sunnis to kill Shias.
Labels: Abdel Jabber al-Wagaa, Abu Dera, British hostages, Finance Ministry, Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, Iran, Ismail al-Zerjawi, Mahdi Army, Shiite Zarqawi
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
British Foreign Office appeals for information on hostages
Security
(The Times) - The Foreign Office admitted today that diplomats have no proof that five British civilians kidnapped in Iraq are still alive, as it launched a fresh appeal for information nearly two months after their abduction. The group, made up of four security guards and a consultant, were taken hostage on May 29 at the Iraqi Finance Ministry by dozens of armed insurgents dressed in the fatigues of police commandos.
One of those abducted was a consultant working for BearingPoint, an international firm providing technical and computer advice to the Iraqi Government, and the other four were security guards employed by GardaWorld, a Canadian-owned company which has offices in London and Hereford. The raid, which took place in broad daylight, was considered one of the most brazen abductions of Westerners since the fall of Saddam Hussein.
In a statement issued by the British embassy in Baghdad today, the Government appealed for information about the hostages' plight. The statement was issued in Arabic and aimed specifically at an Iraqi audience. "It’s now 55 days since the five British men were taken. We and their families are increasingly concerned for their welfare," Matthew Lodge, the British charge d’affaires in Baghdad told reporters.
"We have no evidence about their conditions, and we would like to know they are alive and well. We remain willing to listen and talk to those who may have any information about our people." A Foreign Office spokeswoman said that the statement was issued "to support ongoing work" to track down the hostages. She added: "We have not had proof of life." The decision to issue the statement is considered unusual in this case as the Foreign Office has deliberately kept a low profile since the hostages were taken.
Unlike the BBC's large-scale publicity campaign over the Alan Johnston kidnapping in Gaza, diplomats have decided that keeping the names, details and families of those kidnapped out of the media spotlight would be the best way to secure their release. On June 7, the British Ambassador to Iraq, Dominic Asquith, issued a statement appealing for their release and indicating that the Government was prepared to talk to the kidnappers.
Two weeks later, General David Petraeus, the top US commander in Iraq, told The Times that the five were being held by a secret cell of the Mahdi Army militia that was armed, trained and funded by Iran. Despite the Foreign Office's efforts, however, little evidence has emerged as to where the five are being held over the past two months.
The battle for information about the hostages was dealt a further blow when The Times disclosed on July 10 that Canon Andrew White, a vicar who had been working independently towards their release, had been forced to leave the country because of a "serious security threat". It had been reported that the kidnappers had threatened to kill the hostages unless Canon White, who worked at the last Anglican church in Iraq, stopped trying to find out where they were.
One of those abducted was a consultant working for BearingPoint, an international firm providing technical and computer advice to the Iraqi Government, and the other four were security guards employed by GardaWorld, a Canadian-owned company which has offices in London and Hereford. The raid, which took place in broad daylight, was considered one of the most brazen abductions of Westerners since the fall of Saddam Hussein.
In a statement issued by the British embassy in Baghdad today, the Government appealed for information about the hostages' plight. The statement was issued in Arabic and aimed specifically at an Iraqi audience. "It’s now 55 days since the five British men were taken. We and their families are increasingly concerned for their welfare," Matthew Lodge, the British charge d’affaires in Baghdad told reporters.
"We have no evidence about their conditions, and we would like to know they are alive and well. We remain willing to listen and talk to those who may have any information about our people." A Foreign Office spokeswoman said that the statement was issued "to support ongoing work" to track down the hostages. She added: "We have not had proof of life." The decision to issue the statement is considered unusual in this case as the Foreign Office has deliberately kept a low profile since the hostages were taken.
Unlike the BBC's large-scale publicity campaign over the Alan Johnston kidnapping in Gaza, diplomats have decided that keeping the names, details and families of those kidnapped out of the media spotlight would be the best way to secure their release. On June 7, the British Ambassador to Iraq, Dominic Asquith, issued a statement appealing for their release and indicating that the Government was prepared to talk to the kidnappers.
Two weeks later, General David Petraeus, the top US commander in Iraq, told The Times that the five were being held by a secret cell of the Mahdi Army militia that was armed, trained and funded by Iran. Despite the Foreign Office's efforts, however, little evidence has emerged as to where the five are being held over the past two months.
The battle for information about the hostages was dealt a further blow when The Times disclosed on July 10 that Canon Andrew White, a vicar who had been working independently towards their release, had been forced to leave the country because of a "serious security threat". It had been reported that the kidnappers had threatened to kill the hostages unless Canon White, who worked at the last Anglican church in Iraq, stopped trying to find out where they were.
Labels: Bearingpoint, British Foreign Office, British hostages, Canon Andrew White, Finance Ministry, GardaWorld, Mahdi Army, Matthew Lodge
Monday, July 02, 2007
The triad which holds the fate of Iraq in its hands
Security
(Azzaman) - There are three groups which hold the fate of Iraq in their hands. American invaders, despite their mighty military power, are not part of it. Sadly enough, all the three are a direct or indirect product of the U.S. invasion and administration of the country. The three were almost non-existent prior to the U.S. presence in the country.
The abduction of five Britons throws much light on who really has Iraq’s destiny in their hands. There have been three versions of who has been behind the kidnapping. The government, ruling out al-Qaeda, has pointed the finger at Mahdi Army, the militia group run by Shiite Cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.
The Sadr movement has blamed its rival, the Badr corps, the military wing of the Supreme Islamic Council. Badr and Mahdi army are influential within the government currently ruling the country and Qaeda is a terrorist group mounting devastating attacks that target U.S. invaders, government troops and Iraqi Shiites.
So the government has distanced Qaeda from the kidnapping, blaming the Mahdi Army. The Mahdi Army accuses Badr Corps. Badr Corps says the abduction was for sure carried out by Mahdi army as it occurred within army’s zone of influence.
The accusations and counter accusations provide a good picture of the situation in the country. It shows that there are three groups of note in Iraq which hold its destiny in balance. These three groups – Qaeda, Mahdi Army and Badr Corps – are the most active and vibrant in Iraq. No one in Iraq can ignore their existence or responsibility for the calamities that began descending on Iraq with the advent of the Americans.
This bloody triad which rules the Iraqi street is the cause for the destruction of Iraq and the liquidation of any hope for the creation of a modern state. But while Qaeda is being chased and fought, the other two groups are inside the government which is turning a blind eye on their actions. Qaeda is a disease, a cancerous tumor that must be removed, but it is sad to see that two more tumors are being nurtured despite their devastating consequences.
The abduction of five Britons throws much light on who really has Iraq’s destiny in their hands. There have been three versions of who has been behind the kidnapping. The government, ruling out al-Qaeda, has pointed the finger at Mahdi Army, the militia group run by Shiite Cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.
The Sadr movement has blamed its rival, the Badr corps, the military wing of the Supreme Islamic Council. Badr and Mahdi army are influential within the government currently ruling the country and Qaeda is a terrorist group mounting devastating attacks that target U.S. invaders, government troops and Iraqi Shiites.
So the government has distanced Qaeda from the kidnapping, blaming the Mahdi Army. The Mahdi Army accuses Badr Corps. Badr Corps says the abduction was for sure carried out by Mahdi army as it occurred within army’s zone of influence.
The accusations and counter accusations provide a good picture of the situation in the country. It shows that there are three groups of note in Iraq which hold its destiny in balance. These three groups – Qaeda, Mahdi Army and Badr Corps – are the most active and vibrant in Iraq. No one in Iraq can ignore their existence or responsibility for the calamities that began descending on Iraq with the advent of the Americans.
This bloody triad which rules the Iraqi street is the cause for the destruction of Iraq and the liquidation of any hope for the creation of a modern state. But while Qaeda is being chased and fought, the other two groups are inside the government which is turning a blind eye on their actions. Qaeda is a disease, a cancerous tumor that must be removed, but it is sad to see that two more tumors are being nurtured despite their devastating consequences.
Labels: Al Qaeda, Badr Corps, British hostages, Mahdi Army
Friday, June 29, 2007
Shia politicians doubt Maliki's support base in an already splintered coalition
Politics
(Gulf News) - Shiite politicians have been doubting the Iraqi prime minister's support base among the Shiite political parties and whether the Shiite bloc will eventually topple him. Information released by an official in Moqtada Al Sadr's faction, revealed that Nouri Al Maliki poses a threat to the group. Haidar Hussain, a leader in Al Sadr's military wing, the Mahdi Army, told Gulf News: "We are certain that all American and British military campaigns are conducted with Al Maliki's knowledge and support.
"We thought the opposite, that is why leader Moqtada Al Sadr sent him a letter advising him to step down as long as he cannot stand against America's dominance on security and military resolutions in Iraq." Gazi Al Darraji, an Iraqi analyst, told Gulf News: "Since the kidnapping of five Britons from the Iraqi Finance Ministry a month ago, the relationship between Al Maliki and Al Sadr is not well because the kidnapping is considered a serious blow to Al Maliki's power."
Karbala, the second holiest city in Iraq, was home to a Shiite religious front opposed to Al Maliki's government. The front figures include Shiite clergymen Mohammad Al Yacoubi, Mahmoud Al Hasani and Mohammad Al Baghdadi, who called for Al Maliki to leave office. The Shiite opposition against the Iraqi prime minister comes along with other pressures on him to quit heading the Iraqi Ministers' council.
Buthaina Al Haydari, an Iraqi political researcher at Baghdad University, told Gulf News: "I believe that Al Maliki tried to please both Americans and Al Sadr, and that is impossible to achieve because two of them are fighting fierce rounds in Najaf, Diwaniyah, Nasiriyah and Al Sadr neighbourhood in Baghdad. Besides, some demands from Washington clashed with Al Maliki's opinions ... especially on the national reconciliation and dissolving of militia."
There are also rumours about differences between Al Maliki and Adel Abdul Mahdi, a member of the Shiite coalition. Discord sprang between the two after Abdul Mahdi hinted in a coalition meeting that Al Maliki's survival may end the unity of the Shiite coalition and it may withdraw the paper of selecting the new Prime Minister.
A source in Dawa Party, which Al Maliki belongs to, told Gulf News: "Abdul Mahdi went to the religious authorities in Najaf and asked them to put pressure on Al Maliki to step out and that is the reason for the discord between them."
"We thought the opposite, that is why leader Moqtada Al Sadr sent him a letter advising him to step down as long as he cannot stand against America's dominance on security and military resolutions in Iraq." Gazi Al Darraji, an Iraqi analyst, told Gulf News: "Since the kidnapping of five Britons from the Iraqi Finance Ministry a month ago, the relationship between Al Maliki and Al Sadr is not well because the kidnapping is considered a serious blow to Al Maliki's power."
Karbala, the second holiest city in Iraq, was home to a Shiite religious front opposed to Al Maliki's government. The front figures include Shiite clergymen Mohammad Al Yacoubi, Mahmoud Al Hasani and Mohammad Al Baghdadi, who called for Al Maliki to leave office. The Shiite opposition against the Iraqi prime minister comes along with other pressures on him to quit heading the Iraqi Ministers' council.
Buthaina Al Haydari, an Iraqi political researcher at Baghdad University, told Gulf News: "I believe that Al Maliki tried to please both Americans and Al Sadr, and that is impossible to achieve because two of them are fighting fierce rounds in Najaf, Diwaniyah, Nasiriyah and Al Sadr neighbourhood in Baghdad. Besides, some demands from Washington clashed with Al Maliki's opinions ... especially on the national reconciliation and dissolving of militia."
There are also rumours about differences between Al Maliki and Adel Abdul Mahdi, a member of the Shiite coalition. Discord sprang between the two after Abdul Mahdi hinted in a coalition meeting that Al Maliki's survival may end the unity of the Shiite coalition and it may withdraw the paper of selecting the new Prime Minister.
A source in Dawa Party, which Al Maliki belongs to, told Gulf News: "Abdul Mahdi went to the religious authorities in Najaf and asked them to put pressure on Al Maliki to step out and that is the reason for the discord between them."
Labels: abduction, Adel Abdul Mahdi, British hostages, Dawa party, Haidar Hussain, Karbala, Mahdi Army, Mahmoud Al Hasani, Mohammad Al Baghdadi, Mohammad Al Yacoubi, Moqtada Al-Sadr, Nouri Al-Maliki
Monday, June 25, 2007
Petraeus - Iranian trained militia responsible for kidnapping Brits
Security
(The Times) - A group funded, trained and armed by Iran was responsible for kidnapping five British civilians in Baghdad last month, according to the commander of US forces in Iraq. General David Petraeus told The Times on teh 21st that he believed that the men, four security guards and a consultant, were alive and added that there had been repeated attempts to free them. No demands have been made for their release.
Commandos searching for the hostages have staged a series of raids on suspected terrorist hide-outs. “There have been several operations to try to rescue them, we just have not had the right intelligence,” General Petraeus said. “There is a very intensive effort ongoing to try to locate and rescue them.”
The remarks are the first official acknowledgement of secret hostage rescue efforts that the British authorities refuse to comment on. They are also likely to inflame relations with Iran further. The general said that the terrorist cell responsible had very close ties to the Iranian authorities, but he fell short of accusing Tehran of complicity.
Since the group was snatched from the Finance Ministry in Baghdad three weeks ago, Britain has sent hostage negotiators and antiterrorist experts to help in the hunt. The British Embassy in Baghdad said that staff were working hard to secure their release.
General Petraeus said that Britain and the US had suffered at the hands of the group he blamed for abducting the British hostages. He identified it as a secret cell of al-Mahdi Army. Of the cell responsible for the kidnap, he said: “They are not rank-and-file Jaish al-Mahdi. They are trained in Iran, equipped with Iranian [weapons], and advised by Iran.”
Commandos searching for the hostages have staged a series of raids on suspected terrorist hide-outs. “There have been several operations to try to rescue them, we just have not had the right intelligence,” General Petraeus said. “There is a very intensive effort ongoing to try to locate and rescue them.”
The remarks are the first official acknowledgement of secret hostage rescue efforts that the British authorities refuse to comment on. They are also likely to inflame relations with Iran further. The general said that the terrorist cell responsible had very close ties to the Iranian authorities, but he fell short of accusing Tehran of complicity.
Since the group was snatched from the Finance Ministry in Baghdad three weeks ago, Britain has sent hostage negotiators and antiterrorist experts to help in the hunt. The British Embassy in Baghdad said that staff were working hard to secure their release.
General Petraeus said that Britain and the US had suffered at the hands of the group he blamed for abducting the British hostages. He identified it as a secret cell of al-Mahdi Army. Of the cell responsible for the kidnap, he said: “They are not rank-and-file Jaish al-Mahdi. They are trained in Iran, equipped with Iranian [weapons], and advised by Iran.”
Labels: British hostages, General David Petraeus, Iran, Ministry of Finance
Thursday, June 07, 2007
British ambassador to Iraq appeals for release of kidnapped Brits
Security
(BBC) - The British ambassador to Iraq has appealed for the release of five kidnapped Britons who were seized by armed militia. The five men were seized on May 29 from Baghdad's Finance Ministry by gunmen believed to be the Mehdi Army militia. British Ambassador Dominic Asquith has now issued a statement in English and Arabic, appealing for information.
He said he was "greatly concerned" about the men, whose families were "deeply worried". One of the five has been named as 28-year-old Alec MacLachlan, from Llanelli in Wales. The search for Mr MacLachlan and his four companions is continuing in Sadr City, a suburb of the Iraqi capital.
The area is a stronghold for the Mehdi Army. It is being searched by both US and Iraqi troops. Mr Asquith said: "I am greatly concerned about these five men. "Their families are deeply worried not to have news of them. "I ask those holding them to release them so they may return to their families.
"We have people here in Iraq who are ready to listen to any person about this incident, or any person who may be holding these men and who may wish to communicate." The men - a computer expert and four bodyguards - were taken from the building by kidnappers wearing police uniforms who staged the capture without firing a shot, according to senior Iraqi officials.
He said he was "greatly concerned" about the men, whose families were "deeply worried". One of the five has been named as 28-year-old Alec MacLachlan, from Llanelli in Wales. The search for Mr MacLachlan and his four companions is continuing in Sadr City, a suburb of the Iraqi capital.
The area is a stronghold for the Mehdi Army. It is being searched by both US and Iraqi troops. Mr Asquith said: "I am greatly concerned about these five men. "Their families are deeply worried not to have news of them. "I ask those holding them to release them so they may return to their families.
"We have people here in Iraq who are ready to listen to any person about this incident, or any person who may be holding these men and who may wish to communicate." The men - a computer expert and four bodyguards - were taken from the building by kidnappers wearing police uniforms who staged the capture without firing a shot, according to senior Iraqi officials.
Labels: Alec MacLachlan, British hostages, Dominic Asquith, Ministry of Finance, Sadr City
Monday, June 04, 2007
Mahdi Army calls for Brits in Basra to be confined to base
Security
(The Times) - The militia believed to have seized five British hostages in Baghdad last week has called for UK forces in southern Iraq to be confined to base. Representatives of the Mahdi Army of Moqtada al-Sadr, the radical Shi’ite cleric, have demanded an immediate end to patrols in Basra and attempts to kill its leaders, according to one well connected but unconfirmed source.
They are also seeking the release of nine Mahdi officials from British and American custody, including Sheikh Abdul al-Hadi Darraji, Sadr’s chief spokesman, who was detained by US troops in January. In public statements the Iranian-backed Mahdi Army has denied that it abducted the British computer expert and four security guards captured in an audacious raid on Iraq’s finance ministry last Tuesday.
However, according to a senior Iraqi government source, one of Sadr’s officials visited Nouri al-Maliki, the prime minister, on Wednesday night. The official said the men were “safe and sound” but would not be freed until the Mahdi demands were met, the source added. Maliki is said to have responded by urging that the hostages be freed immediately and promising that an agreement would follow.
As the hunt for the hostages intensified, an SAS major in charge of about 300 British special forces in Baghdad was playing a leading role. The British team comprised around 80 SAS men, 120 para-troopers from the Special Forces Support Group and 100 intelligence experts including members of the Special Reconnaissance Regiment. The intelligence effort was augmented by a small team from MI6.
Early sweeps of Baghdad were focused on Sadr city, a sprawling Shi’ite slum with 2m inhabitants. One Mahdi Army source said that as a result the hostages had been transferred to Diyala province, between Baghdad and the Iranian border.
The meeting in Maliki’s office followed an approach by an Iraqi MP allied to the Mahdi Army, who offered to introduce what one source called a “Sadrist mediator”. He is said to have called for the curbs on British forces after they supported an Iraqi operation in which Abu Qadir, the militia’s leader in Basra, was shot dead.
They are also seeking the release of nine Mahdi officials from British and American custody, including Sheikh Abdul al-Hadi Darraji, Sadr’s chief spokesman, who was detained by US troops in January. In public statements the Iranian-backed Mahdi Army has denied that it abducted the British computer expert and four security guards captured in an audacious raid on Iraq’s finance ministry last Tuesday.
However, according to a senior Iraqi government source, one of Sadr’s officials visited Nouri al-Maliki, the prime minister, on Wednesday night. The official said the men were “safe and sound” but would not be freed until the Mahdi demands were met, the source added. Maliki is said to have responded by urging that the hostages be freed immediately and promising that an agreement would follow.
As the hunt for the hostages intensified, an SAS major in charge of about 300 British special forces in Baghdad was playing a leading role. The British team comprised around 80 SAS men, 120 para-troopers from the Special Forces Support Group and 100 intelligence experts including members of the Special Reconnaissance Regiment. The intelligence effort was augmented by a small team from MI6.
Early sweeps of Baghdad were focused on Sadr city, a sprawling Shi’ite slum with 2m inhabitants. One Mahdi Army source said that as a result the hostages had been transferred to Diyala province, between Baghdad and the Iranian border.
The meeting in Maliki’s office followed an approach by an Iraqi MP allied to the Mahdi Army, who offered to introduce what one source called a “Sadrist mediator”. He is said to have called for the curbs on British forces after they supported an Iraqi operation in which Abu Qadir, the militia’s leader in Basra, was shot dead.
Labels: Abu Qadir, Basra, British hostages, Diyala, Mahdi Army, Nouri Al-Maliki, Sheikh Abdul al-Hadi Darraji
Friday, June 01, 2007
U.K. may approach Iran for help to find British hostages
Security
(The Guardian) - Britain is considering a direct approach to Iran for help in discovering the whereabouts of four British security guards and a financial consultant abducted in Iraq and who was responsible for seizing them. The issue was raised yesterday at a meeting of Cobra, Whitehall's emergency committee, the Guardian has learned.
Senior Iraqi officials said they were working on the theory that the gang behind the kidnapping was a rogue faction of the Mahdi army of the radical Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, possibly operating under the influence of Iranian intelligence. "We do not think that Sadr ordered this operation, but we are almost certain that some militia members who profess loyalty to him were involved," said a senior foreign ministry official.
He said that "the lack of organisation and discipline" within the Mahdi army's ranks had allowed the Iranians to move in and bring some of Sadr's fighters under their control. "They [the Iranians] want to show the US that they have influence over the Mahdi army, and that the US must come to them for help," he said.
Well-placed British officials pointed out yesterday that the Mahdi army was now made of different groups, not all of which are under Mr Sadr's control. Secret rogue cells in the militia are known to have links with Iran's revolutionary guards, though well-placed British officials also said these could operate without Iranian help.
The SAS, which is represented on the Cobra committee, is ready to intervene immediately if intelligence emerges on the whereabouts of the five Britons. An SAS team is on standby in Baghdad, prepared for such a crisis, and an MI5 intelligence officer has flown to the capital.
In Baghdad yesterday, US Humvees and Bradley fighting vehicles, backed up by helicopters, took up positions around the Shia stronghold of Sadr City as US soldiers and Iraqi commandos pushed deeper into the district on the second day of operations aimed at finding the hostages.
The US military said they had arrested two members of a "secret cell terrorist network", but it was unclear whether they were connected to the abduction. Another raid targeted the home of a Shia cleric, Abdul-Zahra al-Suwaidi, who runs Mr Sadr's headquarters in Sadr City. The four security guards working for a Canadian-based firm, GardaWorld, and an expert from a US management consultancy firm, BearingPoint, were abducted from the finance ministry building in the capital by up to 40 men, some dressed in police uniforms, on Tuesday and driven towards Sadr City.
A spokesman for Mr Sadr denied that the kidnapping was officially sanctioned. "We are an obvious target. To do such a provocative act as this kidnapping would be counterproductive," said Salah al-Obeidi. "We are committed to the political path and it is working well for us."
Mr Sadr, who presents himself as an Iraqi nationalist, made his first public appearance in the country for four months last week, calling for American troops to leave and criticising the meeting between the Iranian and US ambassadors as an interference in Iraq's affairs.
His move was seen in part as an attempt to rally his movement, amid reports of splits. "In many ways the US has a common interest with Muqtada," said Patrick Clawson, deputy director of research at the conservative Washington Institute for Near-East Policy. He said Iran was working with a series of Mahdi army commanders and in many cases they were people Muqtada had kicked out of his movement. "The Iranians have never felt comfortable with a powerful Iraqi figure like Muqtada, who they don't completely control."
Mr Obeidi dismissed speculation that the abduction was connected to the killing of a senior Mahdi army official in Basra last week. "This was a well organised operation that would have taken some time to prepare," he said. British officials agreed. However, an Iraqi security official said the authorities were also considering the possibility that the abduction might be linked to the seizure of five Iranian officials by US forces in a raid in Irbil. Tehran has been pressing for the men's release.
Senior Iraqi officials said they were working on the theory that the gang behind the kidnapping was a rogue faction of the Mahdi army of the radical Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, possibly operating under the influence of Iranian intelligence. "We do not think that Sadr ordered this operation, but we are almost certain that some militia members who profess loyalty to him were involved," said a senior foreign ministry official.
He said that "the lack of organisation and discipline" within the Mahdi army's ranks had allowed the Iranians to move in and bring some of Sadr's fighters under their control. "They [the Iranians] want to show the US that they have influence over the Mahdi army, and that the US must come to them for help," he said.
Well-placed British officials pointed out yesterday that the Mahdi army was now made of different groups, not all of which are under Mr Sadr's control. Secret rogue cells in the militia are known to have links with Iran's revolutionary guards, though well-placed British officials also said these could operate without Iranian help.
The SAS, which is represented on the Cobra committee, is ready to intervene immediately if intelligence emerges on the whereabouts of the five Britons. An SAS team is on standby in Baghdad, prepared for such a crisis, and an MI5 intelligence officer has flown to the capital.
In Baghdad yesterday, US Humvees and Bradley fighting vehicles, backed up by helicopters, took up positions around the Shia stronghold of Sadr City as US soldiers and Iraqi commandos pushed deeper into the district on the second day of operations aimed at finding the hostages.
The US military said they had arrested two members of a "secret cell terrorist network", but it was unclear whether they were connected to the abduction. Another raid targeted the home of a Shia cleric, Abdul-Zahra al-Suwaidi, who runs Mr Sadr's headquarters in Sadr City. The four security guards working for a Canadian-based firm, GardaWorld, and an expert from a US management consultancy firm, BearingPoint, were abducted from the finance ministry building in the capital by up to 40 men, some dressed in police uniforms, on Tuesday and driven towards Sadr City.
A spokesman for Mr Sadr denied that the kidnapping was officially sanctioned. "We are an obvious target. To do such a provocative act as this kidnapping would be counterproductive," said Salah al-Obeidi. "We are committed to the political path and it is working well for us."
Mr Sadr, who presents himself as an Iraqi nationalist, made his first public appearance in the country for four months last week, calling for American troops to leave and criticising the meeting between the Iranian and US ambassadors as an interference in Iraq's affairs.
His move was seen in part as an attempt to rally his movement, amid reports of splits. "In many ways the US has a common interest with Muqtada," said Patrick Clawson, deputy director of research at the conservative Washington Institute for Near-East Policy. He said Iran was working with a series of Mahdi army commanders and in many cases they were people Muqtada had kicked out of his movement. "The Iranians have never felt comfortable with a powerful Iraqi figure like Muqtada, who they don't completely control."
Mr Obeidi dismissed speculation that the abduction was connected to the killing of a senior Mahdi army official in Basra last week. "This was a well organised operation that would have taken some time to prepare," he said. British officials agreed. However, an Iraqi security official said the authorities were also considering the possibility that the abduction might be linked to the seizure of five Iranian officials by US forces in a raid in Irbil. Tehran has been pressing for the men's release.
Labels: Abdul-Zahra al-Suwaidi, Basra, British hostages, Cobra, Iran, Iranian detainees, Mahdi Army, Moqtada Al-Sadr, SAS, Sheikh Salah al-Obeidi
