Petraeus: 700 Mahdi Army members 'detained' in Sadr City sweeps

U.S. army soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division stand guard next to a Humvee in Baghdad's Sadr City today as house-to-house searches continue in the district that's home to over 2 million Shiites. There was no explanation of how the detainees were identified, what they were 'detained' for, or how long they will remain in detention.

Coalition forces have detained about 700 members of the Mahdi Army, the largest Shiite militia in Baghdad, the top U.S. commander in Iraq said Monday.

The militia, which is loyal to radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and has clashed with U.S. troops in the past, has mostly avoided a direct confrontation with American and Iraqi government forces, Gen. David Petraeus said in an interview with USA TODAY.

Some of the militia's top leaders have left the capital, and Iraqi government officials are negotiating with al-Sadr's political organization in an effort to disband the militia, Petraeus said.

"I think in part one reason that al-Sadr's militia has been lying low … is due to some of the discussions being held," Petraeus said in a telephone interview from Iraq. "It's also in part due to some of the leaders leaving Baghdad" and others being arrested, he said.

Read the rest at USA Today

Related Link:
Woman accuses U.S. soldiers of firing on family in Sadr city, killing 3

Related Link:
Perspective: Imagining hope in Sadr City

Related Link:
U.S.-Iraqi troops begin negotiated Sadr city searches, start set-up of Joint Security Station

Related Link:
Perspective: New Martial Law Powers Threaten Basic Rights

Related Link:
Report: Maliki 'cabinet reshuffle' to include arrests of up to 100

Related Link:
VP Hashemi: Human rights 'have not been respected' in security plan, decries focus on Sunnis

Related Link:
Maliki decree gives Baghdad commander Qanbar sweeping 'emergency powers' over police, army, populace

Related Link:
Petraeus says U.S. may use notorious Iraqi FPS security forces in Baghdad push