Sadrists say assaults are political

BAGHDAD, April 30 (UPI) -- The spokesman for Moqtada Sadr said the U.S. and Iraqi siege on Sadr City is an effort to eliminate the Sadrist bloc before the October provincial elections.

Saleh al-Obeidi said U.S. officials fear the Sadrist Movement, the political party of Moqtada Sadr, could win handily in the October elections due to its strong base of support among the Shiite population in Iraq.

The crackdown on Sadr loyalists in Sadr City following Iraqi military operations in Basra, another Sadr stronghold, is an attempt to undermine that support, he told the Iranian Press TV.

"We think some political sources have provoked and pushed Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to launch this campaign against our people," he said.

Obeidi added the launch of the operations in Sadr City coincided with talks on the status of forces agreement between the U.S. and Iraqi governments, setting the stage for a long-term U.S. commitment to Iraq that the Sadrists vehemently oppose.

"They know Sadrists would be the first party to denounce it so they have put a great pressure on the movement so that we don't reject the agreement," he added.