Iraqi Forces Battle Mehdi Army in Basra for 2nd Straight Day

This is the largest operation that the Iraqi forces are engaged in without any assistance from coalition forces.. If the Iraqi forces can take care of the mehdi army without any help this will be a good sign of things to come. Reuters

BASRA, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraqi forces fought militants loyal to Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr on Wednesday in the second day of a campaign the government hopes will end militia control without the help of foreign troops.

The fighting centered on the southern oil-rich city of Basra but has spread to Baghdad and other towns and has killed more than 60 people and wounded hundreds.

The sounds of gunfire and explosions could be heard echoing throughout Basra on Wednesday as Iraqi security forces fought their biggest military campaign without U.S. or British troops.

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His followers have launched a disobedience campaign, ordering shops, universities and schools to shut down, and he has threatened a "civil revolt" if attacks continue.

The worst fighting was in Basra, where a health official said 40 people had been killed and 200 wounded. The city, like much of the Shi'ite south, has seen turf wars between Sadr's followers and those of rival Shi'ite groups.

In the capital, a health official said 14 people were killed and more than 140 wounded in clashes in Sadr City, the Shi'ite slum named for the cleric's slain father, where the younger Sadr and his Mehdi Army militia have widespread influence.