Hoping to turn more Iraqis against terrorism, U.S. commanders have begun to reach out to Shiite tribal leaders in the same way that they began talking to Sunni insurgent leaders earlier this year.
Just as Sunnis became fed up with al Qaeda violence, defense officials say, some Shiite tribes have turned against rampaging terroristcells once connected to radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and his Mahdi Army.
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“We are just starting to get an indication of that,” said retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Thomas McInerney, a military analyst who has been briefed at the Pentagon.
He said some Shiite leaders are beginning to realize that it is better to join the Shiite-dominated government than continue an alliance with Sadr, who opposes the U.S. presence in Iraq and led two violent rebellions in 2004.
“This is Shiite tribes turning against Sadr,” McInerney said.
There are about 150 Arab Shiite and Sunni tribes in Iraq.
The Examiner reported in May that Army Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno, the top U.S. tactical commander in Iraq, had authorized top officers to make overtures to Sunni insurgent leaders who might be ready to stop fighting. Now, he is exploring the same tactic with various Shiites tribes that have spawned homegrown insurgent cells.
An Army official told The Examiner that the U.S. might be able to exploit the rivalry between the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution, a large Shiite political party, and Sadr’s Mahdi Army. The council, led by Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, rejects sectarian violence.
“The rift demonstrates that the Shia are not united,” the Army source said. “Elements are contesting for power and makes them vulnerable to compromise with outsiders for deals. We are sophisticated enough to build partnerships among the splinters.”
The military says a similar strategy worked in al Anbar province, where the U.S. persuaded Sunni tribal sheiks to break with al Qaeda and join the coalition.
The U.S. is not only dealing with the Mahdi Army and Shiite tribes but also with what it calls “special groups” – autonomous guerrilla cells trained in Iran on how to ambush convoys and raid government centers.
Commanders view these groups as too extreme for political reconciliation.
“The special groups have evolved over the past three years into what are largely rogue elements that use cellular structure to operate independently,” Brig. Gen. Kevin Bergner told reporters in Baghdad this week.
