Sadr stirs

Muqtada al-Sadr’s influence continues to grow in Iraq. He stands outside the conformist Iraqi political structure. U.S. and Iraqi forces hold 13 supporters of Muqtada al-Sadr after a swoop on a Shiite mosque in Mahmoudiya, 20 miles south of Baghdad. Iraqi troops confiscated weapons from the mosque . As a result Sadr called for massive demonstrations against the American occupation and the painting of Israeli and Stars & Stripes at the entrances of Mosques. His supporters made their mark.

More than 520 people have been killed since the country’s new Shiite-dominated government was announced April 28.