Iraqi PM Gives Shiite Militias Ultimatum

Gunmen Who Do Not Surrender And Renounce Violence Within 3 Days Will Face Arrest

(CBS/AP)  Iraq's prime minister on Wednesday gave gunmen in the southern oil port of Basra a three-day deadline to surrender their weapons and renounce violence as Iraqi troops clashed with Shiite militia fighters for a second day.

Suspected Shiite extremists also unleashed rockets or mortars against the U.S.-protected Green Zone in central Baghdad for the third day this week.

Three Americans were seriously injured in Wednesday's attacks, U.S. Embassy spokeswoman Mirembe Nantongo said. At least eight Iraqis also were killed after several mortar or rocket rounds apparently fell short in several areas in Baghdad, according to police and hospital officials.

The ultimatum came as Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki remained in Basra to supervise a crackdown against the spiraling violence between militia factions vying for control of the center of the country's vast oil industry located near the Iranian border.

Basra has been largely run by militias, most notably the powerful Mahdi Army, controlled by radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, and getting any of them to voluntarily give up their arms was going to be a daunting task. "The prospects of that are very low," says CBS News reporter Phil Ittner.

At least 55 people were killed and 300 wounded in Basra and Baghdad in fighting that broke out Tuesday and spread to the capital's main Shiite district of Sadr City, according to Iraqi police and hospital officials.

"This has been a difficult and challenging few days," U.S. military spokesman Maj. Gen. Kevin Bergner said. "It has been a period of significant effort by the Iraqi government."

However, the White House called the fighting "the exact opposite" of a setback.

"This is exactly what we all want to see - which is the government of Iraq taking the initiative that was afforded to it by the surge to go aggressively after illegal criminal gangs" and militias in the Basra region," spokesman Tony Fratto told reporters Wednesday.

The violence has raised fears that the cease-fire declared in August by al-Sadr could unravel, presenting the gravest challenge to the Iraqi government in months.

Officials in al-Sadr's headquarters in Najaf, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue, said the anti-U.S. cleric had sent local representatives to ask al-Maliki to leave Basra and to resolve the problems peacefully. The aides also told the government no negotiations could be held until Iraqi reinforcements withdrew from the city.

A resumption of intense fighting by his Mahdi Army militia could kill more U.S. soldiers and threaten - at least in the short run - the security gains Washington has hailed as a sign that Iraq is on the road to recovery.

CBS News chief foreign correspondent Lara Logan reports that two U.S. military convoys were attacked Tuesday night by Mahdi Army militiamen.

In an effort to win support, al-Sadr ordered his men to deliver the Holy Koran to Iraqi soldiers and police manning checkpoints - the gesture was apparently well received, says Logan.

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

They also have accused rival Shiite parties, which control Iraqi security forces, of engineering the arrests to prevent them from mounting an effective election campaign. The showdown with al-Sadr has been brewing for months but has accelerated since parliament agreed in February to hold provincial elections by the fall.

Bergner insisted the Sadrists weren't being singled out and blamed Iranian-backed rogue militia factions for the recent violence, although he declined to link Tehran directly to the fighting.

The military spokesman also noted the Iraqi government was taking the lead in the Basra operation, although U.S. troops were involved as members of transition teams helping train the Iraqis.

He said the Iraqi government had appealed to Iran to help restore calm in Basra.

"This is not a battle against the (Mahdi Army) nor is it a proxy war between the United States and Iran," he said. "It is the government of Iraq taking the necessary action to deal with criminals on the streets."

Tensions continued Wednesday in Basra, the center of the country's vast oil industry located near the Iranian border. Gunfire echoed through the streets as Iraqi soldiers and police fought the Mahdi Army, police said.

Reinforcements were sent to Iraq's second-largest city from the Shiite holy city of Karbala, Interior Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Abdul-Karim Khalaf said, adding a large number of gunmen have been detained.

Mortar rounds also hit a detention center in central Basra and injured 10, police said.

Sadiq al-Rikabi, a chief adviser to al-Maliki, said gunmen who fail to turn over their weapons to police stations in Basra by Friday will be targeted for arrest. He added that they also must sign a pledge renouncing violence.

"Any gunman who does not do that within these three days will be an outlaw," he said.

The burgeoning crisis - part of an intense power struggle among Shiite political factions - has major implications for the United States. It also will test the skill and resolve of Iraq's Shiite-led government in dealing with Shiite militias, with whom the national leadership had maintained close ties.

British troops have remained at their base at the airport outside Basra and were not involved in the ground fighting, although their planes were providing air surveillance, according to the British Ministry of Defense. It said Wednesday that the Iraqis had not asked it to intervene.

British forces turned over responsibility for Basra to the Iraqis in late December but say they will assist the Iraqis upon request.

Militia factions also have been fighting U.S. and Iraqi forces in Baghdad and other cities in reaction to the Basra crackdown.

Hundreds of al-Sadr supporters took to the streets Wednesday in Baghdad and Karbala, demanding the government stop military operations in Basra and withdraw all security forces.

"We strongly condemn the assaults being conducted by the occupation forces along with the Iraqi security forces who have sold themselves to the renegade occupier," said Sheik Saleh al-Eraibi, who was leading a demonstration in Sadr City.

Nobody claimed responsibility for the attacks against the Green Zone, which houses the American and British embassies as well as the Iraqi government headquarters.

Two rockets struck the parking lot of the Iraqi Cabinet, but no casualties were reported, an Iraqi security official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to release the information.

The U.S. spokesman blamed Iranian-backed Shiite militia factions, saying most of the rockets had been fired from predominantly Shiite areas in eastern Baghdad, particularly Sadr City.

An American financial analyst working for the embassy was killed in a rocket attack on Sunday. Another volley slammed into the area on Tuesday, but no deaths or major casualties were reported

Bergner played down concerns that clashes with Shiite extremists could distract from the fight against al Qaeda in Iraq, saying the Sunni-led terror network remains the No. 1 threat to stability in Iraq.

"We have said all along that the security challenge facing Iraq is very much a mosaic," Bergner said. "We have consistently operated against that mosaic."

[ajmarine1]

1

[pfd572]

Muslims killing Muslims. This has now become a full out religious civil war. Terrorists attacking terrorists and betraying their own countrymen. We have no business being involved in a civil war, which we are partially responsible for in the first place. It will soon become a full-out war of genocide against minorities, non-combatants and the innocent. Thanks Bush, for now making us responsible and perhaps the only line of defense against the genocide. This should be the responsibility of all member nations of the U.N., not just us. Stupid, Stupid, Stupid Bush and his ''men''.

[missingamerica]

"Sweeps were launched at dawn to rid the city of militias and criminal gangs that ruled the streets even before the British handed over control to the Iraqis in December."

lolll...now that wasn''t nice, sneaking a shot at the Brits into your reporting...

[skyk-2009]

Where are all the McBush supporters this morning? Last week they were out spreading the spin about how great Iraq had become. Hummm??

[underdogus]

Where are all the Al-Jazeera network supporters this morning?...FloydZepp,Feelfree1,Jwhitman....

[demslie]

America''''s Afghanistan. That would be poignant if we weren''''t ALSO bogged down in that failure too.

Boy the NeoFreaks and their "Jesus loves Death" supporters sure have screwed up the world.

Posted by FloydZepp

The exact Anti-American, Anti-Christian words used by IRAN, Al Qaeda and Democrats.

[mcvet]

Al Mazri has planned his Tet Offensive. His Al Qada Fighters are appearing throughout Iraq. Now is the time to move against him. The Coalition should destroy his revolt.


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Posted by Antillo99 at 07:43 AM : Mar 26, 2008
+ report abuse

Duh?? Where did the Article speak of "Al Queda"? ROFLMAO Maybe you should try listening to real and accurate news for a change. You sound like Old Man McSame!! Sieg Heil Bush

[mcvet]

Where are all the Al-Jazeera network supporters this morning?...FloydZepp,Feelfree1,Jwhitman.
...


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Posted by underdogus at 07:22 AM : Mar 26, 2008
+ report abuse

I don''t know about those American''s but I do know were ONE bootlicker is... trashing fellow American''s who do not agree with the Party! Sieg Heil Bush!! Come on you swastika toten moron, let the fuhrer hear ya! Sieg Heil Bush!! Good little bootlicker!

[demslie]

Notice these posts are for Democrats who have the same Evil Anti-American Hate as IRAN and Al Qaeda. Never will you hear Democrats say an angry word at their friends the Terrorist Murderers. Nope, The relative calm was shattered by the Death loving ISLAM Terrorist but Democrats make excuses for their genocide while joining their Al Qaeda partners in denouncing the US.

[mcvet]

The exact Anti-American, Anti-Christian words used by IRAN, Al Qaeda and Democrats.


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Posted by demslie at 07:44 AM : Mar 26, 2008
+ report abuse

How so? DO you Nazi''s have a direct line to those you CLAIM to know about? I got a feeling it''s like everything else you Bootlickers come up with. IT''s a diversion to keep from talking about the massive blunders, all the LIES and the cost of a war that NEVER had to be. Just a guess?? SIEG HEIL BUSH!!

[underdogus]

Floyd-Muhammad-Zepp...He claims to be a Jihadist supporter with the objective of providing awareness with regard to Jihad.......

[mcvet]

Notice these posts are for Democrats who have the same Evil Anti-American Hate as IRAN and Al Qaeda. Never will you hear Democrats say an angry word at their friends the Terrorist Murderers. Nope, The relative calm was shattered by the Death loving ISLAM Terrorist but Democrats make excuses for their genocide while joining their Al Qaeda partners in denouncing the US.


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Posted by demslie at 07:48 AM : Mar 26, 2008
+ report abuse

Now I do not know what the political views of these American''s are.. never asked them. Why does that matter to you Nazi''s. They had NO control over what you freaks did and had no way of stopping it. Now according to the way Democracy works YOU bootlickers have gotten us into a major problem here and again have LIED to us about this war based on LIES. You see I do not know their politics but I do know a lie when I hear one. There are 935 of them listed and documented that were told to the American People by the Bush Administration to get us into this war. Now those ARE real and those DID kill American''s. Maybe you should take off the swastika''s and address them?? Sieg Heil Bush!!

[mcvet]

Floyd-Muhammad-Zepp...He claims to be a Jihadist supporter with the objective of providing awareness with regard to Jihad.......


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Posted by underdogus at 07:51 AM : Mar 26, 2008
+ report abuse

Well tell us swastika breath what did the person say that was WRONG? You Nazi''s go around attacking everyone personally and NEVER once address the issue''s.. the LIES! The INCOMPETENCE! It''s rediculous. You can''t just pretend you weren''t in charge all those years you know. Sieg Heil Bush!!

[underdogus]

Now I do not know what the political views of these American''''s Posted by MCVet ..FeelFree1 lives in Australia, the B.astard!

[mcvet]

Now I do not know what the political views of these American''''''''s Posted by MCVet ..FeelFree1 lives in Australia, the B.astard!


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Posted by underdogus at 07:56 AM : Mar 26, 2008
+ report abuse

You''re point is?? Where he lives, what his politic''s is has WHAT to do with the issues being discussed. I''m so fed up with the Arrogance of you bootlickers. For some reason and I have yet to understand why, you feel it necessary to make yourself feel "superior" to all who do not agree with the "party". How about discussing the ISSUES and the LIES. Who raises that issue and points out that lie is important to no one. Sieg Heil Bush.

[underdogus]

I would challenge you to accept the one true God most holy ALLAH posted by FloydZepp march,23 ..that''s your buddy McVet!!

[obama_christ]

Lets have a moment of silence to recognize the death of the 4,000th U.S. Soldier in Iraq.

Also the 1,000,000th Iraqi

And 5,000,000 Iraqi Refugees.

Thats long enough...."You gotta Fight, for your right, to Parrrrty"

[mcvet]

I would challenge you to accept the one true God most holy ALLAH posted by FloydZepp march,23 ..that''''s your buddy McVet!!


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Posted by underdogus at 07:59 AM : Mar 26, 2008
+ report abuse

According to our Constitution that American has a right to HIS religious beliefs the same as YOU do Sparky! You seem to be living under some illusion that I and most American''s like me are going to hate people because you call them "Muslim''s". That is an assumption YOU are gravely mistaken about. We are fighting a war here started on an AWLFUL lot of LIES. At NO point during that mountain of lies that were being dumped on We the People did that piece of human trash YOU call a President tell me or any other American we were going off to fight a Religious War. What he told us was that we couldn''t give the inspectors at the UN more time because Saddam was linked to Bin Laden and HE had Nukes that would be exploded im our streets. Now lets get some reality going here and stop attacking your fellow citizens. Sieg Heil Bush

[mcvet]

duh?? where did article mention mccain? did you read it? oh and get off your pathetic obsession to nazis you are a disgrace!! grow up!! its amazing how you get on people for attacking others that dont agree with their opinion when you do the same thing!! you are an idiot and in some serious need of some help


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Posted by jamesm12341 at 08:01 AM : Mar 26, 2008
+ report abuse

ROFLMAO You have been sucking on that swastika WAY to long there. Good morning to you fellow American. I never said the article said anything about McCain.. where did I say that? I told the poster he was getting likd McSame.. couldn''t tell Shiite from Sunni... It''s sad when you bootlickers get desperate!! Seig Heil Bush

[pronto9]

On Al-Sadr; cut the head off that snake and be done with it.

[byeneocons]

Wow, the surge is working great!

Bushie, you''re doing a heck of a job.

[zootallures2]

"widely believed to be receiving extensive support from inside Iran, though Iran''s government denies providing any material support."

And if it''s another Oliver North thang... why the US would be having a proxy war with itself. Which follows the pattern of bombing itself on 9/11 and helping North Veitnam with vehicles and intell.

The only war the US is fighting is the one on sanity.

[mudrose-2009]

About time Al-Maliki clean up the rest of Iraq. If Iraq is to become a sovereign nation that it must reel in these militias who function independent of the Iraqi military. They''ve got 3 days and all hell will then break loose. I do believe we and the Iraqi military will have the upper hand.

[zootallures2]

About time Al-Maliki clean up the rest of Iraq. If Iraq is to become a sovereign nation that it must reel in these militias who function independent of the Iraqi military. They''''ve got 3 days and all hell will then break loose. I do believe we and the Iraqi military will have the upper hand.

Posted by mudrose at 08:57 AM : Mar 26, 2008

You can have any hand you want when you run all sides.

[leftyintexas]

About time Al-Maliki clean up the rest of Iraq. If Iraq is to become a sovereign nation that it must reel in these militias who function independent of the Iraqi military. They''''ve got 3 days and all hell will then break loose. I do believe we and the Iraqi military will have the upper hand.

posted by mudrose at 08:57 AM : Mar 26, 2008

Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!

[grumpas]

At least we''''re not hoping for a major enemy offensive during the American election cycle like you are Nazi. Remember, the enemy is counting on people like you to help their cause just like the hippies from the 60''''s.

Posted by hillaryin012

Talk about people filled with hate????? Have you ever listened to yourself lately. People like you have poisoned this whole country with your venom. George Bush is doing a bang up job destroying this country without our helping the enemy! Have you taken a good look at the mess recently?????

[sgtrds]

The main reason there has been the appearance that the surge is working when it comes to suppressing violence is that Muqtada al-Sadr has his own forces on a short leash. If he lets them loose or loses control of them then the civil war catches fire again. This time lets not have our soldiers in the middle of it. Get them out now. There is no "victory" to be had in Iraq and there never was.

[watcher269-2009]

If the typical question for a war supporter is, %u201CHow much longer do we stick with an ineffective policy in Iraq?%u201D the typical response is, %u201CUntil we achieve victory.%u201D

The next question, of course, is trying to get a definition of %u201Cvictory.%u201D Fred Kaplan explains:

By the administration%u2019s own measures, then, victory in Iraq is not in sight, nor is there much evidence that the road we are treading will lead us toward that destiny. And yet our president still seems to have little comprehension of what the war that he has spawned is all about. [%u2026]

In his speech at the State Department on Monday, where he restated his goal of achieving %u201Cvictory,%u201D he also said of the fallen soldiers in Iraq that %u201Cone day people will look back at this moment in history and say, %u2018Thank God there were courageous people willing to serve because they laid the foundations for peace for generations to come.%u2019 %u201C

A wartime president who has no real allies and whose own military is too small to achieve such lofty goals should begin to scale back his rhetoric so that it has at least a patina of plausibility. By defining victory in Iraq as an outcome that lays %u201Cthe foundations for peace for generations to come,%u201D George W. Bush ensures that defeat is nearly inevitable.

All the while, of course, John McCain insists that he will deliver more of the same.

[jersupporter]

Talk about people filled with hate????? Have you ever listened to yourself lately. People like you have poisoned this whole country with your venom. George Bush is doing a bang up job destroying this country without our helping the enemy! Have you taken a good look at the mess recently????? Posted by grumpas
--------------------------------
I have personally seen the situation in Iraq - have you? You do not promise a friend something and then when the situation gets tough, you do not walk away. Our time to leave Iraq will come, but not until the Military Commanders on the ground agree that it is the time.

[zootallures2]

people like mcvet would have been handing the keys of the country over to japan after pearl harbor

Posted by jamesm12341 at 09:08 AM : Mar 26, 2008

Which keys? For a Toyota or house full of Japanese electronics? Is he the one handing the "keys" to the front door of Walmart to China after Veitnam too?

[trillion1]

I thought yesterday the article implied the Iraqis were doing this all on their own. The Iraqi''s will never do anything on their own as long as in the end they know American troops will take over when they decide to quit. Ironically the Iraqi''s want to rebuild on their own infrastructure. They have the knowledge and need the jobs but Americans know better.

[sgtrds]

1) The Shia STILL WANT a separate Iran-Friendly Enclave in the South
2) The Kurds STILL WANT Kurdistan in the North

That''''s not gonna change.

That''''s the reality of the situation.

Posted by FloydZepp at 09:16 AM : Mar 26, 2008

Absolutely. The only possible chance to avoid a civil war that kills tens of thousands more Iraqis (and even it is a longshot) is to split the country into 3 pieces. After all it''s a made-up nation anyway and none of the three main parties wants to keep it together.

jamesm12341 wrote:

"people like mcvet would have been handing the keys of the country over to japan after pearl harbor"

And people like you would have been handing over the country to the Nazis.

[briannorwood]

The "surge" is working!

[mudrose-2009]

You live is Shrub Boy Fantasy land

1) The Shia STILL WANT a separate Iran-Friendly Enclave in the South
2) The Kurds STILL WANT Kurdistan in the North

That''''s not gonna change.

That''''s the reality of the situation.
Posted by FloydZepp

You have been wrong on just about everything else so it doesn''t matter how you and your other buddies interpret the situation.

[zootallures2]

Doesn''t matter which side you are on, just as long as you pick one. They can''t have a war or make money if everyone is on the same side.

[jersupporter]

Shrillary, how many more dead American do you and pudnose think it''''ll take for you to save face? Posted by FloydZepp
-----------------------------
That is an Ignorant question.

[zootallures2]

Hate and an enemy will spin you out of control. Sadly the Islam of the Israelis has been replaced by Judaism and Christianity. Simular to that a the Arabs, is inner and outter Jihad. But like the Native Americans you are supposed to read from the universe. The earth stuggles to keep it''s orbit with the seasons and has magnetic and atmosphering outer protection. If it were to neglect it''s orbit for a missile sheild.... it would spin out of control and you would all die. You have to control yourself first.

[jersupporter]

Then you answer it. How many dead Americans do you need to save face? Posted by FloydZepp
-----------------------------
Ask that question to a Marine, Soldier, Airmen or Seamen currently serving our country next time you see them. Would you? Have you ever been to Iraq and just spent 18 months there to save face? That is simply arrogant.

[beehive21-2009]

You people making these posts are panicking ,just what your enemies what.Please, mellow out we welcome the fight brings the targets out in the open,let the military do the job and shut up.

[leftyintexas]

They are cowards and they have no case. The Liberal Fascist Chickens are coming home to roost!

Posted by hillaryin012 at 09:45 AM : Mar 26, 2008

Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha! You bushies are hilarious! Only 300 days left! Enjoy!

[mudrose-2009]

I''''ve been right on everything, dumfuk. That''''s what p!ssses your kind off so much.

Dismal Failures. RINOs and Freakvangelicals.

Posted by FloydZepp at 09:31 AM : Mar 26, 2008

Is that a fact?

[underdogus]

Floyd-muhammad-Zepp..he claims to be a Jihadist supporter with the objective of providing awareness with regard to Jihad.....

[jersupporter]

FloydZepp - have you ever served your country?

[leftyintexas]

You have been wrong on just about everything else so it doesn''''t matter how you and your other buddies interpret the situation.

Posted by mudrose at 09:29 AM : Mar 26, 2008

Well...since you brought it up....

[mudrose-2009]

Is that a fact?

Posted by mudrose at 09:53 AM : Mar 26, 2008
Yes it is. And that''''s what makes your kind mad.

We''''re much smarter than you.

Here''s what you dimnowit congress is doing to secure the country. Here Zippo who''s much smarter than the rest of us. Your Congress just passed a law saying that no matter who gets in office - the dueling clowns or McCain, they will have no authority to close our borders.

Here''s the exact provision from H.R. 2764:

"In carrying out this section, the Secretary of Homeland
Security shall --

"(i) identify the 370 miles, or other mileage determined by
the Secretary, whose authority to determine other mileage
shall expire on December 31, 2008, along the southwest
border where fencing would be most practical and
effective..."

Think about what this means...

The next President -- whether it be Obama or Clinton or
McCain -- will have no clear legal authority to build any
of the border fence at all...

We will have a pro-amnesty president who not only
doesn''t want to build the double-layer fence, he or
she legally does not have to!

So what are you worried about Zippo?

[jersupporter]

FloydZepp - people like you only serve yourself. Hatred, Bigotry and Selfishness - those three words reverently dictate what you are. Be gone with the Clowns.

[leftyintexas]

thanks to obama and hillary self destructing, 300 more until mccain

Posted by jamesm12341 at 09:54 AM : Mar 26, 2008

No harm in dreamin... so keep on... Sweet Dreams.

[sgtrds]

And to save face, they don''''t care how many American Soldiers or Iraqi Citizens have to die.

Posted by FloydZepp at 09:23 AM : Mar 26, 2008

Correct again. Bush and Cheney want to kick this war forward not because they think it has a snowballs chance in hell of success, but rather so then can blame the next administration for it''s inevitable collapse.

[underdogus]

I would challenge you to accept the one true GOD MOST HOLY ALLAH...posted by FloydZepp march 23,2008...