Sadrist Lawmaker Blames Governor Of Karbala For Igniting War
Governor al-Khazaali on left
Karbala, Mar 29, (VOI) – A Sadrist lawmaker held on Saturday Karbala governor Aqeel al-Khazaali responsible for military operations flaring up in the province since Friday evening and leaving dozens of gunmen and security personnel killed or wounded.
“Karbala governor Khazaali is responsible for the current security escalation in the province after a speech he delivered on Friday evening in which he termed the Sadrists as outlaws,” Naseer al-Essawi told Aswat al-Iraq – Voices of Iraq – (VOI).
The Sadrists are Iraqis loyal to Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr.
“The Karbala neighborhoods of al-Qadissiya, al-Askari, al-Ghadir and al-Hur are witnessing armed conflicts since Friday evening as government forces attacked the Sadrists in those areas,” he said, adding the clashes “left a number of casualties.”
On Friday Karbala, 130 km south of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, witnessed a demonstration that supported the government’s military operation in Basra province, which started on Tuesday with the aim of tracking down Sadr’s Mahdi Army militias.
During the demonstration, Khazaali, who belongs to Shiite leader Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim’s Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council (SIIC), delivered a speech in which he said the Iraqi people “are making a new epic by confronting gunmen acting under criminal slogans.”
He added, “The masses in Karbala stand with Premier Nouri al-Maliki in the fight to eliminate those forces,” noting “those armed groups are nothing but criminal gangs who want to steal our economy and kids’ smiles.”
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