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Muqtada al-Sadr's march from wanted by the law to the difficult number in Iraq
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Wednesday 15 June 2022 10:04
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Al-Sadr was the only Shiite leader who defied both Tehran and Washington, an equation that seemed to make him popular with millions (Reuters)[/size]
The Iraqi Shiite cleric, [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] , turned from an outlaw, wanted dead or alive during the period of the US military presence in Mesopotamia, to an influential figure in the political arena before turning into the most powerful figure in the country. But even with his immense influence, al-Sadr was unable to end a prolonged stalemate over [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] , and so his Sadrist bloc's deputies resigned in parliament last Sunday, June 12 (June 12), after asking them to submit their resignations.
Al-Sadr, a populist leader who strongly opposes the influence of both Iran and the United States, said that he took this step "as a sacrifice from me for the country and the people to rid them of an unknown fate."
Despite the withdrawal, al-Sadr still wields enormous influence with hundreds of thousands of supporters who can organize protests. His move would greatly increase the risk of a power struggle within[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] in Iraq.
Family Credit Al
-Sadr was virtually unknown outside of Iraq before the US-led war in 2003, but he quickly became a "symbol of resistance to occupation", drawing much of his influence from his family.
Al-Sadr is the son of Ayatollah Muhammad Sadiq al-Sadr, who was assassinated in 1999 after his outspoken criticism of Saddam Hussein, then Iraq's president. His father's cousin, Muhammad Baqer, was also assassinated in 1980.
"His family legacy, without him, I don't think he would have been where he is today," said Randa Selim, a researcher at the Middle East Institute.
Despite the risks, al-Sadr never fled Iraq, unlike other prominent figures in post-Saddam governments who had returned from Iran and the West after the invasion.
Saddam's execution and the repetition of Al-Sadr's name
Leaked footage showed that witnesses who attended Saddam's execution in 2006 after he was convicted of killing 148 people in a Shiite-majority town 25 years ago, mocked him by chanting Muqtada al-Sadr's name as he was taken to the gallows.
Al-Sadr was the first to form a Shiite faction to fight the American forces. And he led two uprisings against the United States, which prompted the US Department of Defense (the Pentagon) to consider his army, the "Mahdi Army", the greatest threat to Iraq's security.
In 2004, the US occupation authority issued an arrest warrant against Al-Sadr and said that he was wanted dead or alive in connection with the killing of the Shiite leader Abdul Majeed Al-Khoei in 2003, who returned to Iraq during the American war and resided in the holy city of Najaf for Shiites.
Al-Sadr denied any role in the killing of Al-Khoei and was never charged.
"The Mahdi Army"
Al-Sadr has withstood 19 years of turmoil since the "Mahdi Army" attacked US forces with guns and rocket-propelled grenades in the alleys and streets of Baghdad and southern cities.
His followers also fought the Iraqi army, ISIS fighters, and rival Shiite factions.
During the sectarian civil war in Iraq between 2006 and 2008, the "Mahdi Army" was accused of forming assassination squads to kidnap and kill Sunni figures, while al-Sadr denied using violence against his countrymen.
In 2008, then-Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a Shiite rival to Sadr, ordered a major offensive that crushed the Mahdi Army in the southern city of Basra.
Later that year, al-Sadr ordered a cessation of armed operations, and announced that the Mahdi Army would transform into a cultural and social organization called Saraya al-Salam.
Al-Sadr later decided to compete in the highly complex politics of Iraq, and over time gained more popularity after pledging to eradicate rampant corruption in the state.
With his distinctive turban, the self-proclaimed champion of the poor and dispossessed Sadr could rally hundreds of thousands of supporters in the streets whenever he wanted.
In 2016, Sadr's supporters stormed parliament inside Baghdad's fortified Green Zone, after denouncing the failure to reform the political quota system, which he blames for rampant corruption because it was used by political leaders to appoint their supporters to key jobs.
Al-Sadr warned that if corrupt officials and the quota system persisted, the entire government would be brought down and no one would be excluded.
He ordered his supporters to end their sit-in at the gates of the Green Zone after then-Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi presented a new cabinet lineup aimed at fighting corruption.
Former ally
Sadr reintroduced himself before parliamentary elections in 2018, forming an alliance with communists and secularists.
Marginalized for years by Iranian-backed Shiite rivals, he emerged victorious in a powerful comeback in which he seized control of ministries and government jobs.
Sadr has exploited public discontent with his former ally Iran and a political elite that Iraqis say has Tehran's support.
Al-Sadr was the only Shiite leader who defied both Tehran and Washington, an equation that seemed to make him popular with millions who felt they did not benefit from their government's close ties to Iran or the United States.
Al-Sadr called for the departure of the remaining 2,500 US forces, and told Tehran that he would not leave Iraq in its grasp.
Iraq has been a proxy battleground for influence between the United States and Iran since the war that toppled Saddam and paved the way to power for the Shi'ite majority, led by figures Tehran has courted for decades.
Most of Iraq's Shiite political establishment remains skeptical or even hostile to Sadr. However, al-Sadr's political organization, the "Sadr Movement", has dominated the Iraqi state apparatus since the 2018 elections, holding senior positions in the ministries of interior, defense and communications.
The former armed movement swept the parliamentary elections in 2021, and came in first place, and the number of seats dominated by al-Sadr in parliament, which consists of 329 seats, increased to 73, after his bloc consisted of 54 deputies.
This victory dealt a severe blow to the Shiite groups loyal to Iran, whose parliamentary representation collapsed.
Al-Sadr announced the result, saying, "The victory of the people over the militias." Delight prevailed among his supporters.
And at least one of the leaders of the pro-Iranian militias said that the armed groups are ready to use violence if necessary to ensure they do not lose influence after elections they deem to be rigged.
Politician Hussein al-Aqabi said that al-Sadr's policy of not relying on the United States or Iran had paid off, unlike parties dependent on regional powers, which "ended up almost in the shadows."
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He enjoys enormous influence and popularity and is a strong opposition to the influence of both Iran and the United States
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Wednesday 15 June 2022 10:04
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
Al-Sadr was the only Shiite leader who defied both Tehran and Washington, an equation that seemed to make him popular with millions (Reuters)[/size]
The Iraqi Shiite cleric, [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] , turned from an outlaw, wanted dead or alive during the period of the US military presence in Mesopotamia, to an influential figure in the political arena before turning into the most powerful figure in the country. But even with his immense influence, al-Sadr was unable to end a prolonged stalemate over [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] , and so his Sadrist bloc's deputies resigned in parliament last Sunday, June 12 (June 12), after asking them to submit their resignations.
Al-Sadr, a populist leader who strongly opposes the influence of both Iran and the United States, said that he took this step "as a sacrifice from me for the country and the people to rid them of an unknown fate."
Despite the withdrawal, al-Sadr still wields enormous influence with hundreds of thousands of supporters who can organize protests. His move would greatly increase the risk of a power struggle within[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] in Iraq.
Family Credit Al
-Sadr was virtually unknown outside of Iraq before the US-led war in 2003, but he quickly became a "symbol of resistance to occupation", drawing much of his influence from his family.
Al-Sadr is the son of Ayatollah Muhammad Sadiq al-Sadr, who was assassinated in 1999 after his outspoken criticism of Saddam Hussein, then Iraq's president. His father's cousin, Muhammad Baqer, was also assassinated in 1980.
"His family legacy, without him, I don't think he would have been where he is today," said Randa Selim, a researcher at the Middle East Institute.
Despite the risks, al-Sadr never fled Iraq, unlike other prominent figures in post-Saddam governments who had returned from Iran and the West after the invasion.
Saddam's execution and the repetition of Al-Sadr's name
Leaked footage showed that witnesses who attended Saddam's execution in 2006 after he was convicted of killing 148 people in a Shiite-majority town 25 years ago, mocked him by chanting Muqtada al-Sadr's name as he was taken to the gallows.
Al-Sadr was the first to form a Shiite faction to fight the American forces. And he led two uprisings against the United States, which prompted the US Department of Defense (the Pentagon) to consider his army, the "Mahdi Army", the greatest threat to Iraq's security.
In 2004, the US occupation authority issued an arrest warrant against Al-Sadr and said that he was wanted dead or alive in connection with the killing of the Shiite leader Abdul Majeed Al-Khoei in 2003, who returned to Iraq during the American war and resided in the holy city of Najaf for Shiites.
Al-Sadr denied any role in the killing of Al-Khoei and was never charged.
"The Mahdi Army"
Al-Sadr has withstood 19 years of turmoil since the "Mahdi Army" attacked US forces with guns and rocket-propelled grenades in the alleys and streets of Baghdad and southern cities.
His followers also fought the Iraqi army, ISIS fighters, and rival Shiite factions.
During the sectarian civil war in Iraq between 2006 and 2008, the "Mahdi Army" was accused of forming assassination squads to kidnap and kill Sunni figures, while al-Sadr denied using violence against his countrymen.
In 2008, then-Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a Shiite rival to Sadr, ordered a major offensive that crushed the Mahdi Army in the southern city of Basra.
Later that year, al-Sadr ordered a cessation of armed operations, and announced that the Mahdi Army would transform into a cultural and social organization called Saraya al-Salam.
Al-Sadr later decided to compete in the highly complex politics of Iraq, and over time gained more popularity after pledging to eradicate rampant corruption in the state.
With his distinctive turban, the self-proclaimed champion of the poor and dispossessed Sadr could rally hundreds of thousands of supporters in the streets whenever he wanted.
In 2016, Sadr's supporters stormed parliament inside Baghdad's fortified Green Zone, after denouncing the failure to reform the political quota system, which he blames for rampant corruption because it was used by political leaders to appoint their supporters to key jobs.
Al-Sadr warned that if corrupt officials and the quota system persisted, the entire government would be brought down and no one would be excluded.
He ordered his supporters to end their sit-in at the gates of the Green Zone after then-Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi presented a new cabinet lineup aimed at fighting corruption.
Former ally
Sadr reintroduced himself before parliamentary elections in 2018, forming an alliance with communists and secularists.
Marginalized for years by Iranian-backed Shiite rivals, he emerged victorious in a powerful comeback in which he seized control of ministries and government jobs.
Sadr has exploited public discontent with his former ally Iran and a political elite that Iraqis say has Tehran's support.
Al-Sadr was the only Shiite leader who defied both Tehran and Washington, an equation that seemed to make him popular with millions who felt they did not benefit from their government's close ties to Iran or the United States.
Al-Sadr called for the departure of the remaining 2,500 US forces, and told Tehran that he would not leave Iraq in its grasp.
Iraq has been a proxy battleground for influence between the United States and Iran since the war that toppled Saddam and paved the way to power for the Shi'ite majority, led by figures Tehran has courted for decades.
Most of Iraq's Shiite political establishment remains skeptical or even hostile to Sadr. However, al-Sadr's political organization, the "Sadr Movement", has dominated the Iraqi state apparatus since the 2018 elections, holding senior positions in the ministries of interior, defense and communications.
The former armed movement swept the parliamentary elections in 2021, and came in first place, and the number of seats dominated by al-Sadr in parliament, which consists of 329 seats, increased to 73, after his bloc consisted of 54 deputies.
This victory dealt a severe blow to the Shiite groups loyal to Iran, whose parliamentary representation collapsed.
Al-Sadr announced the result, saying, "The victory of the people over the militias." Delight prevailed among his supporters.
And at least one of the leaders of the pro-Iranian militias said that the armed groups are ready to use violence if necessary to ensure they do not lose influence after elections they deem to be rigged.
Politician Hussein al-Aqabi said that al-Sadr's policy of not relying on the United States or Iran had paid off, unlike parties dependent on regional powers, which "ended up almost in the shadows."
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