Death squads operated from inside Iraqi government, officials say

By Matthew Schofield
Knight Ridder Newspapers

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Senior Iraqi officials Sunday confirmed for the first time that death squads composed of government employees had operated illegally from inside two government ministries.

"The deaths squads that we have captured are in the defense and interior ministries," Minister of Interior Bayan Jabr said during a joint news conference with the Minister of Defense. "There are people who have infiltrated the army and the interior."

Also, Sunday, a series of deadly attacks hit the Shiite Baghdad neighborhood of Sadr City, which had recently been relatively safe, initiating another round of sectarian killings and threatening to provoke more.

Seven car bombs were left in markets around the poor Shiite area. Two exploded at 5:30 p.m., another at 5:35 p.m., two at 5:40 p.m. in a different market, and one at 5:45 p.m. Police found and defused the seventh.

The blasts, set off at the busiest time of the day just after poor residents would have returned from their jobs, yet before curfew, killed 46 people and wounded another 204. By Sunday night, the suburb of 2.5 million had been sealed off by police and the private militia of radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, the Mahdi Army.

The targeting of Sadr City could provoke a strong political backlash. Sadr City is a bastion of support for al-Sadr, a key backer of Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari's bid for re-election. Al-Jaafari's nomination is strongly opposed by Sunni and Kurdish leaders, although he is supported by United Iraqi Alliance, the Shiite political bloc that is the largest in parliament.

The Mahdi Army was also extremely active in attacks on Sunni mosques in the aftermath of last month's bombing of a key Shiite shrine in Samarra that touched off a wave of sectarian killings.

Elsewhere around Baghdad, a series of roadside bombs and gun attacks killed another 17 people.

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"We're from the government, we're here to kill you."

So? this is news?

Or propaganda?

Sadr appeals for calm in Baghdad

quote:

Mr Sadr also criticised US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld ...

"May God damn you," Mr Sadr said of Mr Rumsfeld. "You said in the past that civil war would break out if you were to withdraw, and now you say that in case of civil war you won't interfere."

Al-Sadr preaches restraint

quote:

"I could order the Mahdi Army to root out the terrorists and fundamentalists but this would lead us into civil war and we don't want that," the Shia cleric told a news conference in the city of Najaf on Monday.

"I hold the occupiers responsible for this tragedy," al-Sadr said. "I consider them the ones who ordered it."

Which goes along with previous reports of him ordering the Mahdi army to protect Sunni mosques.

Which goes against the line from the above report which reads -

quote:

The Mahdi Army was also extremely active in attacks on Sunni mosques in the aftermath of last month's bombing of a key Shiite shrine in Samarra that touched off a wave of sectarian killings.