Brown
You feel that by killing or capturing Sadr we may make a martyr out of him. That may be so. however, is it not just as possible that the only real support Sadr has is the 1000 or so armed followers he has with him and that the Iraqi's will be glad to be rid of him. .
Au,
It takes an awful lot of blind optimism to believe that Au. There are tens of thousands in pro-Sadr protests. Including thousands who are offering to act as human shields
I also refer you to this poll which was commissioned by the US backed CPA in May which said that 67% of Iraqis polled supported Sadr.
CPA poll
I am not going to enjoy seeing Sadr's funeral.
Iraqi forces have taken over the mosque and Sadr has fled....or something.
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) -- Militiamen loyal to rebel Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr on Friday removed their weapons from the revered Imam Ali Shrine in Najaf as part of an arrangement aimed at ending a 2-week-old anti-U.S. uprising centered on the holy site.
Iraq's highest Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Husseini al-Sistani, agreed to take control of the shrine, which al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia turned into a stronghold and refuge during their fight with U.S. forces.
Al-Sadr aides were working out a handover of the keys to the site with al-Sistani followers. One aide said the keys could be given later Friday.
By Friday evening, militants had withdrawn all their weapons from the shrine compound, where civilians and unarmed militia members mingled in peace. In previous days, the walled compound had been filled with hundreds of chanting and bellicose gunmen.
The surprise pullback came a day after Iraq's interim prime minister, Ayad Allawi, threatened to storm the shrine, a move certain to cause bloodshed and infuriate Shiites across Iraq. On Thursday and overnight, U.S. warplanes bombed militia positions in Najaf in fighting that killed 77 people and wounded 70 others.
But after daybreak, Najaf was the quietest in weeks, and Allawi backed off his threats, saying a peaceful resolution was possible.
