Pat Dollard | Young Americans

Related: Al Sadr Blames U.S. For Partner’s Assassination

Related: One Of Al Sadr’s Top Dogs/Partner’s Assassinated

CYA, or was he in on it? Did the U.S. pull off an op without telling him? Has Iran, whose decided Al Sadr’s now useless other than as a figurehead with a famous last name, decided it’s time to further disempower him, or even kill him, starting with those around him first? Was he acting too big for his britches with Iran, embarrassed that they had to co-sign the Basra peace treaty for him, and so did Iran decide to send him a warning shot by killing his partner? I know he’s blaming the U.S., and he may be right, but he may also be in denial….

Baghdad, Apr 11, (VOI) – Iraqi Premier Nouri al-Maliki condemned on Friday the assassination of Sayyid Riad al-Nouri, one of the senior aides of the Shiite Cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, in Najaf.

Prime Minister al-Maliki ordered security forces to open a probe on the incident to arrest the perpetrators, while al-Sadr’s office in Baghdad announced three days of mourning.

“The premier condemned the assassination of Sayyid Muqtada al-Sadr’s aide, Riad al-Nouri, head of al-Sadr’s office in Najaf, and ordered security forces to investigate the incident,” the state-run al-Iraqia satellite channel said.

Earlier today, Hayder al-Jabiri, from Sadr’s office in Najaf, told Aswat al-Iraq – Voices of Iraq – (VOI) “Riad al-Nouri, one of the key assistants of Muqtada al-Sadr, was shot in front of his home in al-Furat neighborhood, northern Najaf, while returning from the Friday prayers.”

“Unidentified gunmen in a car that carried no number plate opened fire at Nouri, who received a bullet in the head,” Jabiri said.
Ahmed Deibal, the official spokesman for the civil administration in Najaf, 180 km southwest of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, said a curfew was imposed as of Friday afternoon until further notice over the slain leading Sadrist bloc member.

“Najaf will be under an indefinite curfew as of Friday afternoon for security reasons,” Deibal told VOI.

Meanwhile, al-Sadr office in Baghdad announced three days of mourning following the assassination of Riad al-Nouri,.

“Martyr al-Sadr office in Baghdad announces three days of mourning, starting from Friday, to remember the deceased,” Salman al-Freji told VOI.
Al-Freji did not reveal further details in this regard.

Najaf is 180 km southwest of Baghdad.