Irak

[Shahab3]

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Aug 11, 2009

Shi'ite unity deal explodes US myth
By Gareth Porter

WASHINGTON - The agreement announced last week between Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and a Shi'ite resistance group called the League of the Righteous (As'ib al Haq) formally ended the group's armed opposition to the regime in return for the release of its leader and eight other Shi'ite detainees. This deals a final blow to the US military's narrative of an Iranian "proxy war" in Iraq.
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And Maliki - with the encouragement of Iran - was working on a strategy for achieving the complete withdrawal of US forces from Iraq through diplomatic means, which he did not reveal to the Americans until summer 2008.

Meanwhile, the Iranian Qods Force commander was playing the role of mediator between Maliki and the Sadrists, encouraging the latter to reach ceasefires with the government on the promise that he would get American troops out of the country.

Representatives of the League of the Righteous have said their reconciliation with Maliki is based on a common aim of expelling the US military influence from Iraq.
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