Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr calls for jihad in Iraq

Turkish Weekly
11 December 2014

Muqtada al-Sadr, a leading Iraqi Shiite political figure, ordered his Peace Brigade militia on Thursday to prepare for jihad within 48 hours, according to a statement released by Sadr’s deputy, Abu Dua El-Isawi.

The decision was “due to the dangerous situation of the holy city Samarra from terrorists,” El-Islawi said. The militia will wait for Sadr’s orders before taking further steps.

Iraq has been gripped by a security vacuum since June, when the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, or ISIL, stormed the northern province of Mosul and declared what it calls a caliphate in Iraq and Syria.

Sadr’s armed militias have previously been sent to Samarra to protect Shiite holy shrines.
11 December 2014