Where is radical Shiite cleric?
Thursday’s security initiatives come as speculation continues over the whereabouts of firebrand Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. (Watch why al-Sadr’s whereabouts are a mystery ) Sami al-Askari, an adviser to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and a member of parliament, joined the White House and U.S. military Thursday in saying that al-Sadr had left for Iran. But while the Bush administration asserts the radical cleric has been there for two weeks, al-Askari said al-Sadr left for the Islamic republic a few days ago. Al-Askari, the first Iraqi official to confirm the U.S. report on al-Sadr, provided no further details. The al-Sadr movement has backed the prime minister, who is also a Shiite. Senior Bush administration sources have said al-Sadr fled to Iran out of fear for his safety, but an al-Sadr aide said Wednesday that the cleric was still in the holy city of Najaf, about 75 miles (120 kilometers) south of Baghdad. On Thursday, two members of the Iraqi parliament’s Sadrist bloc — S
