Al-Sadr left his Baghdad stronghold some weeks ago, the official said, and is believed to be in Tehran, where he has family. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss U.S. monitoring activities, said fractures in al-Sadr's political and militia operations may be part of the reason for his departure. The move is not believed to be permanent, the official said.
Sadr went where he felt safe--Iran. Sadr is an Iranian hand puppet and it is hard to argue that Sadr represents some indigenous movement after this display.
Hopefully, we can continue to take apart the extremists of Sadr's organization, pressure the less fanatical to defect to the government, and push the Sunni Arabs to halt their resistance.
