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Iraqi cleric orders militia's stand-down

American officials are skeptical of the move by Muqtada al-Sadr, saying they want to see concrete action from him.

BAGHDAD - Anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr took his Mahdi Army out of action for up to six months Wednesday to overhaul the feared Shiite militia - a stunning move that underscores the growing struggles against breakaway factions with suspected ties to Iran.

A spokesman for Sadr said the order also means the Mahdi Army would suspend attacks against U.S. and coalition forces.

But it's unclear how much influence Sadr still wields over Shiite groups blamed for waves of attacks, including powerful roadside bombs that remain the chief killer of U.S. troops. American officials, meanwhile, reacted with skepticism and urged Sadr to rein in his fighters.

The announcement by Sadr, who formed the militia after Saddam Hussein's fall in 2003, appeared aimed at distancing himself from suspected Iranian-backed Mahdi factions he can no longer control. It also sought to deflect criticism for his followers' perceived role in this week's fighting in Karbala that aborted a Shiite religious festival and claimed more than 50 lives.

Thousands of pilgrims fled as fighting erupted Tuesday between Mahdi Army members and forces linked to a rival Shiite militia, the Badr Brigade.

The battles are part of wider power struggles by armed Shiite groups for control of the Shiite heartland of southern Iraq, which includes major religious shrines and most of the country's vast oil riches. The splintering of the Mahdi Army has opened new fronts across the south.

In a statement, Sadr said he would "freeze" the Mahdi Army "for a period not exceeding six months." The goal, the statement said, is to reorganize the force "in such a manner that would maintain and preserve the prestige of this symbol of the faith."

A spokesman for Sadr, Ahmed al-Shaibani, saidthe Mahdi Army also was "suspending the taking up of arms against occupiers as well as others."

The effects of Sadr's announcement were far from clear, and it received a cool reception in Washington and among military commanders in Baghdad.

"What really matters here is actions, and so those are the measures of merit that we'll be watching for," said Brig. Gen. Kevin Bergner, a U.S. military spokesman.

In Washington, Defense Department press secretary Geoff Morrell urged Sadr and other militia leaders to join "the legitimate Iraqi security forces and be accountable to the central government" but said it was too early to determine the significance of Sadr's announcement.

Sadr's militia staged two bloody uprisings against U.S.-led forces in 2004 and has been blamed for attacks against coalition troops since then, despite numerous cease-fire agreements.

The Mahdi Army also was blamed for killing thousands of Sunnis and forcing others from their homes during a wave of sectarian reprisal attacks after the February bombing of a Shiite shrine in Samarra.

U.S. 'regrets' detention of 8 Iranians

Eight Iranians, including two diplomats, were released by U.S. forces Wednesday after being detained in Baghdad because unauthorized weapons were found in their cars, the U.S. military said.

Saadi Othman, an adviser to Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. general in Iraq, told the British Broadcasting Corp. that the detentions were "regrettable." The unlicensed weapons belonged to the delegation's Iraqi guards.

The detention - along with TV images of them being led away blindfolded and handcuffed - drew swift condemnation Wednesday from Tehran officials. But the scene, widely broadcast in the United States, did not appear on Iranian state TV.

Developments

Contracts under scrutiny: The Army will examine as many as 18,000 contracts awarded over the past four years to support U.S. forces in Iraq to determine how many are tainted by waste, fraud and abuse, Army Secretary Pete Geren announced Wednesday. Overall, the contracts are worth close to $3-billion.

Military split on surge: President Bush may not get a unified view from senior military leaders in September on how well the U.S. troop buildup in Iraq is working and how long it should continue, Geoff Morrell, the new Pentagon press secretary, said Wednesday.

Pullout risks 'minimal': Most U.S. troops can be withdrawn safely from Iraq in roughly one year and the Bush administration should begin planning the pullout immediately, according to a study released Wednesday by the Center for American Progress, a self-described "progressive think tank" headed by John D. Podesta, a former chief of staff to former President Clinton.

Abu Ghraib reprimand: A military jury in Fort Meade, Md., recommended a reprimand Wednesday for Army Lt. Col. Steven L. Jordan, the only officer court-martialed in the Abu Ghraib abuse scandal, sparing him any prison time for disobeying an order to keep silent about the abuse investigation.

[Last modified August 30, 2007, 02:09:24]