Hundreds of US soldiers entered the Shiite stronghold of Sadr City yesterday in the first major push into the area since a US-led security sweep began last month around Baghdad.
Soldiers conducted house-to-house searches, but met no resistance in a district firmly in the hands of the Mehdi Army militia led by radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, said Lieutenant Colonel David Oclander.
The move into Sadr City came following negotiations with political leaders in the neighborhood.
Major General William Caldwell, a US military spokesman, told al-Arabiya television US officials have had daily dialogue with community leaders in Sadr City.
"If you go to Sadr City today you will see joint Iraqi and American troops cooperating with the head of the Sadr City council," Caldwell said in comments translated into Arabic.
"There is no problem between the two sides, and we are trying to set up a small security center there," he said.
Al-Sadr had withdrawn his militia under intense pressure from the government, but there were worries that a large-scale military push without political clearance could bring a backlash and jeopardize the entire security effort.
"The indication that we are getting is a lot of the really bad folks have gone into hiding," Oclander said.
Police said there had been US military activity at the al-Jazair police station in Sadr City since Friday, where troops were thought to be converting the facility into a joint operations center. Bulldozers maneuvered in the station's yard.
US troops, assisted by Iraqi forces, also moved through the Jamila area on the northern edge of Sadr City and sealed off some streets, police said. Last year, US patrols came under frequent attack in Jamila.
A spokesman for Sadr's bloc in parliament, Falah Hassan, said there was "no reason" for such a "provocative act."
"We told [Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri] al-Maliki that if there is an arrest operation against anyone, it should be done by Iraqi forces," Hassan said.
"We understood that Iraqi forces only would conduct the search and that if they faced resistance, then US forces could intervene," he said. "But that was not the case with today's operation."
Sadr City presents one of the most difficult steps in the security sweeps that began on Feb. 14.
The Mehdi Army's cooperation is essential to keep the plan from derailing, but al-Sadr has complained about the heavy US role in the raids and its inability to stop car bombs and other attacks blamed on Sunni insurgent groups.
also see story:
Iraqi PM announces Cabinet reshuffle
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source