"The United States knows for certain that radical Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr is still living next door in Iran, a senior State Department official said Friday, disputing aides to the anti-American religious and political leader.
"We know he's out of the country, we don't (merely) think" so, said David Satterfield, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's top adviser for Iraq. "He's in Iran, which is where he has been since mid-January.".....
"I can't speculate on why Muqtada al-Sadr has chosen to reside in Iran," Satterfield said. "I can only note the political circumstances."
U.S. officials have said that al-Sadr slipped out of Iraq during preparations for President Bush's 12-week-old troop buildup and a joint U.S.-Iraqi security sweep that was focused on chaotic Baghdad.
They have not provided photos or other proof, generally citing the sensitivity of intelligence-gathering in Iraq....."
No comments:
Post a Comment