tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1953410733493889728.post4733872494700518394..comments2024-02-29T12:38:32.191-08:00Comments on MUSINGS ON IRAQ: What Does Iraq’s Sadr Want?Joel Winghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09611810110771744360noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1953410733493889728.post-4669774510475975912012-06-18T12:16:45.573-07:002012-06-18T12:16:45.573-07:00Joel,
I agree with you that Sadr is not likely to...Joel,<br /><br />I agree with you that Sadr is not likely to be acting at the behest of Iran. Visser's line echoes Nimrod Raphaeli who as I recall described Sadr as 'Iran's mouthpiece in Iraq'. That's not to deny that Sadr has ties with Iran, but he is sensitive to the notion that he is a foreign agent and I think his rejection of Ayatollah al-Haeri's fatwa is significant. In fact, according to some sources in Najaf and the Sadrist movement, Sadr made clear that he would only accept such a fatwa from Sistani or al-Fayad, since he sees them as voices acting on behalf of Iraq and not foreign powers. <br /><br />I believe what foremost motivates Sadr is that he is a relatively young figure eager to establish himself as a kingmaker among political factions if not leading the Shi'a of Iraq, hence his eagerness to 'show up' the likes of Maliki.<br /><br />On a final point, I note many observers say that Sadr turned to Iran after the U.S. began targeting him. Isn't it also relevant to consider the fact that in 2007 Maliki began turning against the Sadrists to consolidate his power at the time (e.g. shuffling his cabinet to exclude the Sadrists) as he no longer perceived the Sunni insurgency to be an existential threat, in contrast to the previous year when his forces were protecting the Mahdi Army in the sectarian civil war centred on Baghdad?Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimihttp://www.aymennjawad.orgnoreply@blogger.com