"the breakaway factions.... [are] better organized and funded than Sadr"
Yeah, and Sadr don't got no support, duh!!!!
Followers of radical Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, seen on a poster at center, attended prayers in Baghdad yesterday. (KARIM KADIM/ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Related: The Real Muqtada al-Sadr
Occupation Iraq: Sectarian Saviors
Occupation Iraq: Sadr City Women Speak
Prop 201 tutorial
Occupation Iraq: The Four Million Man March
Occupation Iraq: Protests the MSM Can't Miss
Special Police Commandos
I'm not going to highlight much, readers; you can take the s*** propaganda wrapped around what I've said and linked and decide for yourself.
"Anti-American cleric faces challenge to power in Iraq; Dissident faction of Sadr's group gaining support" by Qassim Abdul-Zahra, Associated Press | February 21, 2009
BAGHDAD - The firebrand anti-American cleric whose militia battled US troops for years is facing a strong challenge for leadership of Iraq's poor, urban Shiites from a small, well-organized faction with loose links to Iran, senior figures within his movement say.
The split within Moqtada al-Sadr's organization has widened as Shiite groups weigh the outcome of last month's provincial elections and prepare for a national ballot this year that will determine the leadership in Baghdad.
The dissident faction is expected to mount a campaign to become a rival force appealing to Sadr's base among poor Shiites, senior officials close to the cleric said in interviews this week. This would offer greater openings for Tehran's influence in Iraq and give political cover to the so-called "special groups" of Sadrists that have continued attacks on US-led forces.
Yeah, either MALIKI-BACKED DEATH SQUADS, etc, or Israeli, British, or American false-flag artists!!!
For Sadr, the internal battle may become a crucial test of his credibility and resilience after being weakened by crackdowns on his once-powerful and now disbanded militia, the Mahdi Army....
Results from the Jan. 31 balloting, announced Thursday, had Sadr's loyalists gaining a handful of seats on influential provincial councils across Iraq's Shiite south. This was seen as a sign that Sadr is politically wounded, although he is considered still capable of staging a comeback.
Related: Occupation Iraq: Maliki Stole Election
The splinter group within the movement wants to take on that role, however, and is angling to supplant Sadr amid wider political jockeying among Iraq's Shiite majority.
This is what the COVERT INTEL APPARATUS of the U.S. is designed to do!! As we see in places like Somalia or Pakistan, there is always a THIRD GROUP that is an OFFSHOOT AFTER some failure of policy. That's the problem: these guys kicking around the globe have back-up plans upon back-up plans!!
Let's face it, the U.S allegedly went there to liberate guys like Sadr (whose family was assassinated by Hussein's agents and whose family stayed while our exile favorites like Chalabi fled) but NEVER LIKED HIM because he is an IRAQI NATIONALIST who OPPOSES OCCUPATION! U.S. has had a hard-on for the guy ever since!
Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a more secular-oriented Shiite, saw his allies make strong showings across the south in the provincial races, giving the government the early advantage against an expected challenge in national elections from the largest Shiite political group, the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council, which also has close ties to Iran.
Sadr's sharp rhetoric against the US-led invasion in 2003 and his militia's later battles with American forces catapulted him from relative obscurity to a position of power, particularly among poor and powerless Shiites. But his standing began to erode after Sadr lost control of longtime strongholds in Basra, Baghdad, and Amarah after Maliki launched offensives against Shiite militias last year.
I get tired of arguing Zionist lies of revision, I really do: Occupation Iraq: U.S. Assault Continues
Also see:
At the same time, the splinter "special groups" set their own course, pushing on with attacks on US-led forces even after the young cleric declared a unilateral cease-fire in 2007 and then dissolved the Mahdi Army last year. Now the breakaway faction with ties to the armed groups is planning to field candidates in the elections for the Iraqi Parliament, with the apparent goal of transforming parts of Iraq into a Shiite state modeled after Iran....
The breakaway leaders complain about what they say were the younger Sadr's missteps, including dismantling the Mahdi Army, once Iraq's biggest and most feared Shiite militia. Two senior Sadrists , estimated the breakaway factions represent 30 percent of the movement and say it is better organized and funded than Sadr's camp.
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