Salah al-Ubaidi, a spokesman for the Sadr Movement, says that it will not boycott the fall provincial elections, exactly. The Movement will not run candidates under its own name, but will rather have some Sadrists run on other party lists, and will through support behind independents. This strategy is similar to that of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, which cannot field candidates because it is a religious organization, but which has its candidates run under other party banners. The strategy appears to have been necessary in Sadr’s case because he does not intend to dissolve his Mahdi Army militia, and the al-Maliki government is threatening not to allow his party to run because the party workers are tied to the militias.
McClatchy reports political violence in Iraq on Sunday:
‘ BaghdadUnknown gunmen attacked a home in Adil neighbourhood, killed the mother, father and daughter and injured the son at 5 am Sunday. Investigation as to the motives behind this attack is still on going.
A roadside bomb targeted a National Police patrol in Rustamiyah, southeast Baghdad, near the Jabha petrol station injuring 2 policemen and one civilian at 8 am today.
A roadside bomb exploded injuring 2 civilians in Wahda neighbourhood at 7 am Sunday.
3 unidentified bodies were found in Baghdad today by Iraqi Police. 1 in Zayuna; 1 in Mansour and 1 in al-Risala.
Nineveh
Mosul University teacher, Weleed Saadalla was assassinated by gunmen on his doorstep at 8 am Sunday. He was about to head for work with his two young sons who were injured in the incident.
A suicide car bomb targeted the Directorate of Police in the town of Tilkeif, 20 km to the north of Mosul, Sunday. The guards in the watch towers suspected the car and shot the driver but still the car detonated killing one policeman, injuring 4 others.
Gunmen broke into the offices of lawyer Adel Hussein al-Wagaa in al-Dargaziyah neighbourhood, northeast Mosul, shot him dead and escaped.
Kirkuk
1 civilian and 1 Iraqi army soldier killed and 2 soldiers injured in explosion of IED targeting the army patrol in central Kirkuk, near the Fourth Bridge. The army vehicle was completely destroyed.
Salahuddin
1 Iraqi soldier killed and 3 injured as a roadside bomb targeted their patrol on the main route between Kirkuk and Tuz Khormatu this morning.’
Tom Engelhardt on hardended US bases in Iraq as invisible ziggurats hidden from the US public.