Foreign Correspondence

[otraque]

<<The Shiite bloc closed ranks and Abdul-Mahdi declined to sign, for now. In an emergency meeting Monday with Talabani, seven Shiite leaders rejected the president's demand for them to abandon al-Jaafari's nomination. Talabani planned to continue the meeting Tuesday evening to try to resolve the crisis.>. That Abdul-Mahdi, the candidate that Sadr cut off at the pass the last time(i think it is th same name--but i need get used to these names:) must have had major pressure on him again, to back-off from signing.
I think we now know what Sadr meant.
This is a show of power by Sadr, he has blocked the U.S. move to oust Jaafari now.

i can only think back how during Najaf insurrection, when U.S. referred to Sadr as a smalltime thug of no account.
And they had a warrant from the Allawi government to arrest him on suspicion of murder.