I wasn't worried that the last ceasefire agreed to by the Iraqi government and Sadr in Sadr City meant that Sadr had won:
The "cease-fire" between the Sadrists and the Iraqi government just lasts four days. But it looks more like the Sadrists have just agreed to get out of the way while the mission of the government and US forces continues to grip Sadr City[.]
The campaign continues in Sadr City:
Thousands of Iraqi troops moved unchallenged into Baghdad's Sadr City Tuesday to seize the Shiite militia stronghold, in the largest attempt yet by the government to impose control, an Iraqi military spokesman said.
The large Iraq force backed by tanks entered the sprawling district before dawn, with troops taking up positions on street corners and deploying on rooftops as Iraqi Humvees patrolled the streets, residents said.
The move is the strongest attempt yet by the government to impose
control over the district, which has long been the unquestioned bastion of the Mahdi Army, the militia loyal to Muqtada al-Sadr. Iraqi and U.S. troops have in the past largely stayed on the neighborhood's edges.
"Unquestioned" bastion? Basra residents haven't seemed particularly fond of Sadr once his goons were suppressed and scattered (down but not out, I'm sure). Once government security forces are entrenched in Sadr City and the people there face less of a threat from the ire of the militias, we will see if Sadr's support is built on loyalty or fear.
