LOC23:09
20:09 GMT
WASHINGTON, Aug. 29 (KUNA) -- The United States will take a "wait and see"
attitude toward the announcement by Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr that he was
freezing operations of his Mahdi Army, State Department deputy spokesman Tom
Casey said on Wednesday.
"Statements have been made by Muqtada al-Sadr in the past, and sometimes we
have seen an impact as a result of them. Sometimes we have not," Casey said.
"So I think we will just have to wait and see what occurs on the ground."
The Mahdi Army, as well as other militia groups, have been responsible for
prompting sectarian violence, including killings, and the existence of these
kinds of militia groups outside the security forces and structures of Iraq is
something that needs to change, Casey said.
To the extent that the al-Sadr announcement has an impact on either
limiting violence or getting the Mahdi Army "one step closer to going out of
business, it would be positive," Casey said. "But I think it is pretty hard to
say, at this point, what impact it would or would not have.
"
Coalition and Iraqi security forces will continue to stand against
sectarian violence and take actions against any militias that are trying to
undermine security in Baghdad and elsewhere, he said. (end)
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