As we make our way through Baghdad’s surprisingly cold winter, everyone is talking about the freeze. This freeze has nothing to do with temperature; yesterday, Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr (MAS) announced that he is extending the Mahdi Army’s cease fire – or freeze – for an additional six months. The current freeze, which dates from the end of last August, was set to expire at the end of this month. While most sources hinted that he would extend the freeze, MAS waited until nearly the end of the month before making his announcement from the Iranian Holy city of Qom where here is continuing religious studies. Two weeks ago, London-based Arabic language newspaper Dar al-Hayat reported that the next step for the Sadrist movement is to evolve into a civilian organization that abides by the law.
A little background: Sadr heads the Office of the Martyr Sadr (OMS), a political-religious organization named in honor of Sadr’s father who was murdered under Saddam Hussein’s regime. OMS forms the core of the Sadrist movement or Sadr Trend as it’s sometimes called. The primary paramilitary force of OMS is Jaysh al-Mahdi (JAM) (or in English, the Mahdi Army) which formed in post-invasion Sadr City, a Shi’a slum of northeast Baghdad. While OMS made a name for itself providing basic services in Sadr City, JAM filled the security vacuum with the dissolution of the Iraqi army and police forces.
JAM has clashed with Coalition Forces (CF) on many occasions, the most serious being a series of uprisings which began in the spring of 2004 and ended in June with heavy losses. In August of last year, JAM fought against a rival Shi’a militia in the holy city of Karbala resulting in over fifty dead, many of them religious pilgrims visiting the city. Rising backlash from fellow Shi’as over the mounting death toll and sectarian violence played a role in Sadr’s decision to call a six month cease fire in which JAM would not take up arms against either other Shi’a groups or the Coalition. Although previous cease fires largely were ignored in the past, this one held and played an important part in ending the cycle of violence in Baghdad and southern, Shi’a dominated, Iraq. Thus, extending the freeze for another six months is viewed by many as paramount to maintaining the continued security.
Other important factors in maintaining security in Baghdad – and Iraq – include last year’s troop “surge” of five additional brigade combat teams, and the rise of Iraqi concerned local citizens (CLCs) groups, both Sunni and Shia, on an American banked payroll. The CLCs now call themselves “Sons of Iraq” (SOIs) and have taken the fight to Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI). Recently captured documents from AQI leaders, which were released to the press, show that AQI now considers the SOIs their number one enemy.
Although MAS is the titular champion of the Shi’a movement in Iraq and JAM, not all have chosen to follow his order: on 19 February, Shiite insurgents launched rockets at Victory Base Complex and this morning a similar attack occurred here in the International Zone. Not everyone, it would seem, is happy with the decision to extend the cease fire…
A little background: Sadr heads the Office of the Martyr Sadr (OMS), a political-religious organization named in honor of Sadr’s father who was murdered under Saddam Hussein’s regime. OMS forms the core of the Sadrist movement or Sadr Trend as it’s sometimes called. The primary paramilitary force of OMS is Jaysh al-Mahdi (JAM) (or in English, the Mahdi Army) which formed in post-invasion Sadr City, a Shi’a slum of northeast Baghdad. While OMS made a name for itself providing basic services in Sadr City, JAM filled the security vacuum with the dissolution of the Iraqi army and police forces.
JAM has clashed with Coalition Forces (CF) on many occasions, the most serious being a series of uprisings which began in the spring of 2004 and ended in June with heavy losses. In August of last year, JAM fought against a rival Shi’a militia in the holy city of Karbala resulting in over fifty dead, many of them religious pilgrims visiting the city. Rising backlash from fellow Shi’as over the mounting death toll and sectarian violence played a role in Sadr’s decision to call a six month cease fire in which JAM would not take up arms against either other Shi’a groups or the Coalition. Although previous cease fires largely were ignored in the past, this one held and played an important part in ending the cycle of violence in Baghdad and southern, Shi’a dominated, Iraq. Thus, extending the freeze for another six months is viewed by many as paramount to maintaining the continued security.
Other important factors in maintaining security in Baghdad – and Iraq – include last year’s troop “surge” of five additional brigade combat teams, and the rise of Iraqi concerned local citizens (CLCs) groups, both Sunni and Shia, on an American banked payroll. The CLCs now call themselves “Sons of Iraq” (SOIs) and have taken the fight to Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI). Recently captured documents from AQI leaders, which were released to the press, show that AQI now considers the SOIs their number one enemy.
Although MAS is the titular champion of the Shi’a movement in Iraq and JAM, not all have chosen to follow his order: on 19 February, Shiite insurgents launched rockets at Victory Base Complex and this morning a similar attack occurred here in the International Zone. Not everyone, it would seem, is happy with the decision to extend the cease fire…
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