Iran and Al-Sadr: Destabilizing the Middle East

The online publication Middle East Newsline reported October 13th that the Iranian government had transferred millions of dollars, weapons and military expertise to the Mahdi Army controlled by radical Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. This report in and of itself is not really newsworthy because it has long been known that the Iranians were close to al-Sadr and were providing him with materiel support since the U.S.-led invasion in March 2003. 

What is newsworthy is that the level of support to al-Sadr's militia continues to increase with each passing month as Iran attempts to position itself as the strongest political, economic, and military power in the Middle East. 

Al-Sadr, whose religious and military headquarters is located in the southern Iraqi city of An Najaf, has been a thorn in the side of the United States since the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom. His militia has confronted both the Americans and the British in bloody battles and his political party has consistently obstructed the Iraqi government. 

The religious leaders controlling the government in Iran see their fellow Shiite, al-Sadr, as a vehicle for fomenting unrest in Iraq by using him to exert Iranian influence in the war-torn country. The Iranians can funnel weapons, money, and military expertise to al-Sadr, who is making a political play for power himself, while denying to the world that they are actively interfering in the internal affairs of their neighbor. 

The Iranians are using al-Sadr much as they used Hezbollah in the recent Israeli - Lebanese conflict. By waging proxy wars the Iranians are able to increase their clout within the Shiite community without causing difficulties for the government in Tehran. 

The ultimate goal is to establish a Shiite hegemony in a region largely ruled by Sunni governments. This Iranian posturing worries other nations in the region, particularly Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, and Syria, who feel threatened by the rising power of Shiite factions.