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Hojatoleslam Muqtada al-Sadr (b. 1974?) is a young Iraqi Shi'a cleric, the son of the famous Shi'a cleric Mohammad Sadeq al-Sadr. The elder al-Sadr, a well-respected figure throughout the Shi'a world, was killed with two of his sons by the Saddam Hussein government in February 1999 in Al-Najaf, the power-center of the al-Sadr clan. The Ba'ath Government of Saddam Hussein increased repressive activities in predominantly Shi’a areas to prevent mourning observances and popular demonstrations. Of the four Sh'ia executed for the assassinations, one was in prison at the time of the murders.

Muqtada al-Sadr has gained popularity among younger Iraqis following the toppling of the Hussein government by the 2003 invasion of Iraq, mostly owing to his status as his father's son, for he has no formal religious standing to interpret the Koran and relies for religious advice on an Iranian cleric exiled in Iraq, Ayatollah Kazem al-Haeri. The al-Sadr faction are opposed by the al-Hakim family and their supporters.

Muqtada is vocally opposed to the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) occupation and has stated that he has more legitimacy than the Coalition-appointed Iraqi Governing Council. In September 2003, he declared a shadow government in opposition to the CPA that is currently governing Iraq. It is common belief that al-Sadr wishes to create an Islamic theocracy in Iraq, although al-Sadr himself has stated that he wishes to create an "Islamic democracy". Though he has always opposed the Coalition occupation, and has harsh words for anyone he considers as supporting the Coalition, at times he has hinted that if the Governing Council is given more authority and expanded to include "other parties", he might be mollified.

Al-Sadr commands strong support (especially in the Sadr City ghetto in Baghdad, named after his father), and in June 2003 raised a militia (reportedly, dubbed the "Imam Mahdi Army") estimated to number in the tens of thousands. Reportedly, the Sadr's militia carries significant meaning as Muslims believe that the Mahdi will appear during the last days of the world. This militia has several times engaged in violent conflicts with Coalition forces and has formed its own religious courts and prisons. He is rumored to be responsible for the assassination of Imam Abdul Majid al-Khoei and several other prominent attacks, including the car bombing assassination of rival Shi'a leader Ayatollah Sayed Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim.

The CPA has on several occassions threatened to arrest al-Sadr, but so far has not attempted to do so, possibly due to the threat of civil unrest as a result. At the end of March 2004, Coalition authorities in Iraq, shut down Sadr's newspaper, Al Hawza, on charges of inciting violence. The Coalition authorities said false reporting, including articles that ascribed suicide bombings to Americans, could touch off violence.

Quotations

• "There is no use for demonstrations, as your enemy loves to terrify and suppress opinions, and despises peoples."
• "I ask you not to resort to demonstrations because they have become a losing card and we should seek other ways, terrorize your enemy, as we cannot remain silent over its violations."

See also

• U.S.-led occupation of Iraq
• Mohammad Sadeq al-Sadr

External links

• Global Security analysis and biography
• Shadid, Anthony, "Militia unchallenged in raid on Gypsy village". The Washington Post, April 5, 2004.