Al-Sadr has fled to Iran, U.S. says

BAGHDAD, Iraq — The mystery over the whereabouts of Muqtada al-Sadr deepened Wednesday with the U.S. military spokesman saying the Shiite militia leader had fled to Iran, his supporters insisting he was still in Iraq — and no sign of the anti-American cleric himself.

A senior U.S. official said Tuesday in Washington that al-Sadr left Iraq for Iran ahead of the security crackdown in Baghdad. That raised concern over al-Sadr's ability to direct his militia, which could fragment into uncontrollable gangs in the absence of its leader.

On Wednesday, the chief U.S. military spokesman, Maj. Gen. William Caldwell, said only that al-Sadr "is not in the country" and that "all indications are in fact that he is in Iran."

Caldwell said U.S. authorities have been tracking al-Sadr's movements for months. He would not speculate whether al-Sadr fled to escape the crackdown.

But the mercurial al-Sadr, who is not believed to have visited Baghdad in more than two years, often drops out of public view for weeks or months at a time. He failed to turn up for a planned speech Monday in the southern city of Najaf, where he lives, and has not been seen in public since Jan. 3.

Iraqi lawmakers and officials loyal to al-Sadr categorically denied that he had left the country but refused to say where he was, citing his personal safety. One aide, speaking on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to release information, said al-Sadr sleeps in a different location every night to guard against attack.

When al-Sadr preaches at a mosque in Kufa, a town near Najaf, his security officers send out decoy convoys to confuse would-be attackers. His main fear is said to be an attack by rival Shiites, but he is also worried about the Americans and assassins hired by Sunni religious extremists< who consider Shiites to be heretics.

A spokesman for al-Sadr's political movement said the U.S. claim was part of an American "psychological warfare" campaign to prod the cleric into a public appearance so they could arrest him.

"Muqtada al-Sadr's leadership is a brave one, and he will not leave the battlefield," said the spokesman, Saleh al-Ukaili.

Another official in al-Sadr's organization, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of security concerns, speculated al-Sadr may have planted the Iran story to confuse the Americans about his whereabouts.