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It was Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki who "appeared to waver" in his offensive on the forces loyal to opposition leader Muqtada al-Sadr, ABC's Miguel Marquez (embargoed link) concluded. An initial 72-hour ultimatum for the Mahdi Army to lay down its arms was extended to ten days and sweetened, with al-Maliki "offering money in exchange for guns." The militias "showed no signs of backing down" in Basra, reported CBS' Lara Logan. In Sadr City residents claimed that the helicopters' Hellfire missiles killed nine civilians, including one child. For its part the US military claimed to have killed only four, all of them guerrillas. The Iraqi government asked the US military to use "aggressive tactics" in support, Logan added. She found "a certain amount of frustration" on the US side because those tactics "violate the rules of engagement."
From the Pentagon, CBS' David Martin heard grumbling about al-Maliki. His unidentified sources told him that the Basra offensive was "put together on the fly and has degenerated into a stalemate." Even President George Bush seemed to be "caught by surprise." Also at the Pentagon, NBC's Jim Miklaszewski suggested one reason for its failure: "The Iraqi police force is heavily infiltrated with militant Shiite forces." He also cast doubt on al-Maliki's law-and-order rhetoric to justify his drive to take control of Basra: instead he is "targeting his Shiite political rivals," local tribal leaders claim. If the Battle of Basra continues, Martin warned, it may require Iraqi reinforcements, leaving US troops stretched thin elsewhere. He warned that might throw "a monkey wrench" into the current withdrawal of 3,500 troops each month: "Many of the successes of the past twelve months are in danger of being canceled out," Martin's unnamed Pentagon source told him.
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