Sources: Mahdi Army Expressing Siege Mentality

A child wearing a shirt with the image of al-Sadr today at Friday prayers in Sadr City, Baghdad

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - Two Shiite militia commanders said Thursday that Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has stopped protecting radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's Madhi Army under pressure from Washington, while the fighters described themselves as under seige in their Sadr City stronghold.

Their account of an organization now fighting for its very existence could represent a tactical and propaganda feint, but there was mounting evidence the militia is increasingly off balance and has ordered its gunmen to melt back into the population. To avoid capture, commanders report no longer using cell phones and fighters are removing their black uniforms and hiding their weapons during the day.

Read the rest at the Guardian

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