Moqtada at Brave New Films

People & Power - Beyond the Wall - Oct 25 - Part 1

2008-10-29T00:52:13Z

Has the US military troop surge worked in Iraq? Has the Al-Mahdi army finally been defeated, and is this the end of the armed Shia resistance to the occupation?

Filmmakers Rick Rowley and David Enders returned to Muqtada Al-Sadr's stronghold in Baghdad's Sadr City to look for answers for People & Power.

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People & Power - Beyond the Wall - Oct 25 - Part 2

2008-10-28T22:55:28Z

Has the US military troop surge worked in Iraq? Has the Al-Mahdi army finally been defeated, and is this the end of the armed Shia resistance to the occupation?

Filmmakers Rick Rowley and David Enders returned to Muqtada Al-Sadr's stronghold in Baghdad's Sadr City to look for answers for People & Power.

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Inside Story - Iraq security deal - Oct 24 - Part 2

2008-10-27T06:52:22Z

The Iraqi government has criticised US military chief Mike Mullen for warning of "major security losses" if Iraq does not pass a key security deal.

Previously, US Defense Secretary Robert Gates has warned of "dramatic consequences" if Washington and Baghdad do not agree a security deal on US forces in Iraq.

In an unexpected move, Iraq's cabinet is demanding changes to a draft deal already agreed with Washington, which would allow US forces to stay in Iraq until 2011.

The draft has also been strongly opposed by the faction led by radical Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr, who brought thousands of supporters on to the streets of Baghdad on Saturday in protest. It has also been opposed by Sunni Muslim clerics and other opposition parties in Iraq.

Inside Story asks what is likely to happen after the December 31 deadline?

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Inside Story - Iraq security deal - Oct 24 - Part 1

2008-10-27T06:52:22Z

The Iraqi government has criticised US military chief Mike Mullen for warning of "major security losses" if Iraq does not pass a key security deal.

Previously, US Defense Secretary Robert Gates has warned of "dramatic consequences" if Washington and Baghdad do not agree a security deal on US forces in Iraq.

In an unexpected move, Iraq's cabinet is demanding changes to a draft deal already agreed with Washington, which would allow US forces to stay in Iraq until 2011.

Inside Story asks what is likely to happen after the December 31 deadline?

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Violence in Iraq Rages as President Bush hails the surge.

2008-10-28T03:30:11Z

Afshin Rattansi in Tehran in Iran interviews Press TV's Amanda Lindhout in Baghdad.

Spinning the Bloodshed in Basra
Washington Post
By Dan Froomkin
Special to washingtonpost.com
Thursday, March 27, 2008; 1:43 PM

As fighting rages in Basra, the White House is unleashing a forceful spin campaign to frame the Iraqi government's offensive there as a positive outcome of the U.S. troop surge and a symbol of better days to come.

Speaking to an invitation-only audience at an Air Force base in Dayton, Ohio, this morning, President Bush argued that the Basra incursion "shows the progress the Iraqi security forces have made during the surge" and "demonstrates to the Iraqi people that their government is committed to protecting them. . . .

"The enemy, you know, will try to fill the TV screens with violence," he scoffed. "But the ultimate result will be this: Terrorists and extremists in Iraq will know they have no place in a free and democratic society."

But is the bloodshed in Basra an example of a unified central government asserting itself and the Iraqi army standing up? Or is it further evidence of the internecine strife ravaging the country? Will Basra become a symbol of the restoration of the rule of law? Or will it turn out to be a step toward heightened violence?

There is plenty of reason to doubt the White House spin.

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Moqtada Al Sadr's Man In Baghdad on General Petraeus

2008-10-28T03:30:09Z

Afshin Rattansi in Tehran talks to Moqtada Al Sadr's spokesman in Baghdad about Congressional testimony from General Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker.

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Inside Iraq - Shia peace pact - 04 Jan 07 - Part 2

2008-10-17T03:31:00Z

The recent peace pact between Iraq's most influential Shia clerics - Moqtada al-Sadr and Abdul Aziz al-Hakim - is seen by political observers as a significant shift towards stabilising Iraq's warring Shia factions. Inside Iraq asks if the pact will provide the anchor for political stability in Iraq and if the ceasefire declared last August will remain or if violence will flare up again after the 6 months dateline is up in February.

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Inside Iraq - Shia peace pact - 04 Jan 07 - Part 1

2008-10-17T03:30:59Z

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Sadr City, Iraq

2008-12-02T04:53:20Z

Sadr City is a small neighborhood in Baghdad that holds over half the city's population. It was the center of Shi'a resistance to Saddam's regime, the Northern epicenter of the two Shi'a intifadahs, and is now the stronghold of Moqtada Al Sadr's Mehdi Army. A Big Noise camera spent a summer in Sadr City and brought back these video clips.

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