Mahdi Army Training

I haven't commented much on the current Sadrist uprising in southern Iraq because it feels like a re-run. However, this article may highlight at least one new development, as the Army of the Mahdi receives training from former Republican Guard types from Falluja. This shows the further development of the collaboration between various insurgent elements first noted last spring. In addition, it's clearly happening right under the nose of the intermin Iraqi government, which shows just how much they can control what's going on. The silver lining is that this may create grounds for political cooperation between the groups and lessen the chances of an Iraqi civil war.