Iraqi prime minister asserts independence, gains stature

"The bombs came after the Americans came. When they are there, they are controlling security, so who is to blame?" says Ali al-Saidi, an Internet cafe owner. "When [US forces] entered Sadr City, we were worried. When they leave, we feel safer."

"The Americans are trying to make trouble in Sadr City," asserts Abu Ali. "They want to return Sadr City and the Mahdi Army to a war situation."

US forces fought pitched battles with the Mahdi Army in the holy city of Najaf and in Sadr City in April and August 2004. Sadr has since ordered his fighters not to attack US forces, and his support of Maliki's fragile Shiite coalition ended a months-long deadlock earlier this year.

After Maliki's order to remove the checkpoints, Sadr's office crowed in a statement to supporters: "Your patience and unity brought victory."

US forces have rubbed increasingly against Sadr's militia in recent months, with friction turning to gunfights at times. And the Mahdi Army, while winning kudos among many Shiites for defending them against Sunni insurgent attack, is also believed to be behind some sectarian killings that are leaving more than 2,500 Iraqis dead each month.

A second purpose of the US-Iraqi checkpoints was to snare a Shiite man alleged to be a death-squad leader. Residents and Sadr supporters jump to Abu Deraa's defense, countering that he is a simple man with a penchant for helping hostages get released from kidnapping gangs.

"One man gave him a camel for helping free his son," says Abu Kumail, a money changer who has seven children. "He saved a Sunni man from a gang – does that mean he is a leader of the death squads?"

"We are feeling that whenever [Americans] raid in Sadr City, they leave many bombs and IEDs [roadside bombs]," says Abu Kumail. "Who is the terrorist? We didn't know terrorism in our country before the [2003] US invasion."

Coming after one of the bloodiest months for US troops since the 2003 Iraq campaign began – 105 Americans died in October – some say US commanders preferred not to push harder on Sadr City now.

"It's a victory for the Iraqi people," says Abu Kumail. "They obeyed the cleric's order [for a strike], and they proved to the government and American soldiers they are peaceful people, and civilized.

"It's a victory, too, for the government," he adds. "They proved their power with a decision, a small justice that is fair to the people."

In a suburb that is home to an estimated 2.5 million Iraqis, Maliki's decision is resounding widely.

But so, too, do rumors that US troops are behind some of the blasts. Among the most common reasons cited here for a US interest in more war: Iraqi Shiites and militias have grown too powerful, both in government and outside of it; and even more conflict would justify a longer US presence, according to this perception.

"The Americans have different ways to make these blasts," charges Abu Ali, the jobless young man. "Sometimes they do it, and plant these bombs. Sometimes they create the good environment for bombs."

"We are not seeing [bombs being planted], but the Americans control the night," he adds, making a deductive leap. "All IEDs and bombs are planted at night, in the curfew."

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