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“Part of the Problem”

Persians, magnanimous, agree to call off their Shiite militias. I guess this means we don’t have to use “alleged” or “U.S. accuses Iran of involvement” or any other qualifiers anymore. Apparently the mullahs are calling the shots. Iraqi lawmakers went to Qom over the weekend to ask an Iranian general to kindly stand down his murderous stooges. McClatchy:  

BAGHDAD — Iraqi lawmakers traveled to the Iranian holy city of Qom over the weekend to win the support of the commander of Iran’s Qods brigades in persuading Shiite cleric Muqtada al Sadr to order his followers to stop military operations, members of the Iraqi parliament said.

… 

The backdrop to Sadr’s dramatic statement was a secret trip Friday by Iraqi lawmakers to Qom, Iran’s holy city and headquarters for the Iranian clergy who run the country.

There the Iraqi lawmakers held talks with Brig. Gen. Qassem Suleimani, commander of the Qods (Jerusalem) brigades of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps and signed an agreement with Sadr, which formed the basis of his statement Sunday, members of parliament said.

Ali al Adeeb, a member of Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki’s Dawa party, and Hadi al Ameri, the head of the Badr Organization, the military wing of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, had two aims, lawmakers said: to ask Sadr to stand down his militia and to ask Iranian officials to stop supplying weapons to Shiite militants in Iraq.

“The statement issued today by (Muqtada al Sadr) is a result of the meetings,” said Jalal al-Din al Saghir, a leading member of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq. “The government didn’t have any disagreement with the Sadrists when it went to the city of Basra. The Sadrist movement is the one that chose to face the government.”

“We asked Iranian officials to help us persuade him that we were not cracking down on the Sadr group,” said an Iraqi official, who asked for anonymity due to the sensitivity of the subject.

He described the talks as successful but said hard-line Sadrists could goad the government into over-reacting and convince Sadr that the true aim of the Iraqi Security Forces is to destroy the Sadrists.

“I will not be surprised if the whole thing collapses,” he said.

In addition to Sadr, who is in Qom pursuing religious studies, Iraqi lawmakers met Suleimani, said Osama al Nejafi, a legislator on the parliamentary committee formed to solve the Basra crisis.

“An agreement was signed,” Nejafi said, referring to Sadr. “Iran was part of the problem and an effective part of the negotiations.”

Notice no one is celebrating or waving “Peace in our time!” papers around. The good news is the Iraqis seem to realize this is a temporary arrangement. Some people might be inclined to look at this as evidence of what they’ve said all along. Iran can be a partner for peace. But if anyone had any question about that, it has just been amply demonstrated that Iran has the power to turn it on and turn it off. That makes Iraq, in the absence of American troops, Iran’s bitch.

Don’t worry, it gets worse.

The Qom discussions may or may not bring an end to the fighting but they almost certainly have undermined Maliki - who made repeated declarations that there would be no negotiations and that he would treat as outlaws those who did not turn in their weapons for cash. The blow to his own credibility was worsened by the fact that members of his own party had helped organize the Iran initiative.

“The delegation was from the United Iraqi Alliance (dominated by the Dawa party and the Supreme Council of Iraq), and the Prime Minister was only informed. It was a political maneuver by us,” said Haider al Abadi, a legislator from Maliki’s Dawa party. “We had evidence (that Muqtada and Iranian-backed militants were fighting security forces) and we sent people urgently…If we had been waiting for one year in Baghdad we wouldn’t have had this result.” The delegation is expected to return to Iraq Monday.

Maliki welcomed Sadr’s statement as a positive development, said his advisor Sadiq al Rikabi. Anyone who abandons weapons and goes home would not be pursued, he said, adding that the offensive would continue against a list specific targets, but he would not give details, Maliki — who had said he would not leave Basra until the Shiite militias were defeated — was expected to remain in Basra for a few more days, he said.

The article goes on to note militia positions overrun in some areas, holding in others, where militiamen say they have no intention of standing down. So this stand-down agreement becomes a lot like the ceasefire that was deemed to be ongoing in the midst of pitched fighting. It sounds like al-Maliki has an opportunity to redeem himself by pressing his disarmament program.

Interesting side note. This NYT article, which does not have any Qom-plea backstory, like other reporting on the Sadr stand-down, declares al-Maliki the loser for agreeing to a negotiated end to hostilities.  This is odd because he does not in fact appear to have agreed to end hostilities or to have surrendered his disarmament demand.  But more so because the common anti-war media and political wisdom is that the United States wins by negotiating an end to hostilities, leaving adversaries in place, without achieving its goals militarily. Can we all get on the same peacenik playbook page, please?  

Topics: Iran, Iraq

  Posted by Jules Crittenden at 6:59 am on Monday, March 31, 2008

12 Responses to ““Part of the Problem””

1. Locomotive Breath 1901 Says:
   March 31st, 2008 at 7:53 am

   Al-Sadr Tells Mahdi Army To Stand Down

   But what’s the most flashy headline you read over the weekend? Iraqi army forces defect to al-Sadr. Which ledes us to EM over at HA who says the biggest loser in all of this is the ‘pro-defeat-o-crat’ MSM; so eager for an exploding sectarian violenc…

2. The Thunder Run Says:
   March 31st, 2008 at 11:07 am

   Web Reconnaissance for 03/31/2008

   A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day…so check back often.

3. Independent Liberal » The Difference Between Cease and Peace Says:
   March 31st, 2008 at 11:42 am

   [...] puts it more succinctly: “That makes Iraq, in the absence of American troops,  Iran’s [...]

4. PoliGazette » Iran Played Role in Cease Fire Says:
   March 31st, 2008 at 11:47 am

   [...] Jules Crittenden: The good news is the Iraqis seem to realize this is a temporary arrangement. Some people might be inclined to look at this as evidence of what they’ve said all along. Iran can be a partner for peace. But if anyone had any question, it has just been amply demonstrated that Iran has the power to turn it on and turn it off. That makes Iraq, in the absence of American troops,  Iran’s bitch. [...]

5. Flopping Aces » Blog Archive » Iranian Influence on Cease Fire? Says:
   March 31st, 2008 at 12:39 pm

   [...] way, Sadr was getting his butt kicked by the Iraqi army and Jules takes on the NYT’s notion that Maliki agreed to a negotiated end to hostilities: Interesting side note. This NYT article, [...]

6. Peace Like A River » Cutting the road to Kut, Part II Says:
   March 31st, 2008 at 12:58 pm

   [...] fight against Iran continues to this day. Just today Jules Crittenden writes, Persians magnanimous agree to call off their Shiite militias. I guess this means we don’t have [...]

7. Pajamas Media » Blog Archive » In Focus: Iran the Basra Peacemaker? Says:
   March 31st, 2008 at 3:19 pm

   [...] Iran’s conspicuous involvement in brokering a peace deal, Jules Crittenden says: “Some people might be inclined to look at this as evidence of what they’ve said all along. [...]

8. Muqtada al Sadr and the Difference Between Democracy Promotion and Dignity Promotion » Comments from Left Field Says:
   March 31st, 2008 at 5:24 pm

   [...] from memeorandum: Washington Post, Jules Crittenden, Swampland, McClatchy Washington Bureau, D-Day, Liberty Street, missing links, TPMMuckraker, [...]

9. Fatty Bolger Says:
   March 31st, 2008 at 6:31 pm

   Oh, they’re perfectly consistent, I think. Maliki represents the use of military force by a democratically elected government in a sovereign state. As such, he is now one of the bad guys, and every move of his must be shown in the worst possible light.

10. The Baltimore Reporter Says:
    April 1st, 2008 at 12:26 am

    [...] the one hand this means Iran can turn off the internal fighting when and where it wants to. So, as Jules Crittenden puts it, Iraq is Iran’s bitch in the absence of American forces. But the same article does [...]

11. Plumb Bob Blog » Basra Myths Says:
    April 1st, 2008 at 9:10 am

    [...] War Journal is a must-read if you want to know what’s really happening in Iraq. I also give a hat-tip to Jules Crittenden for some pretty good [...]

12. JM Hanes Says:
    April 1st, 2008 at 3:36 pm

    “In addition to Sadr, who is in Qom pursuing religious studies….”

    Once upon a time, I’d have said you can’t make this stuff up.

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