(2004-05-28) — The success of the latest truce with revered Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr was guaranteed today by the traditional “firing of the holy mortars at the truce partner.”

As nine mortar rounds rained down on a U.S. military base near Najaf, members of the Iraqi Governing Council (IGC) lifted cups of tea in a toast to the triumph of their latest efforts to appease Mr. al-Sadr.

“Now we truly know that peace has come to the holy city of Najaf,” said Ali Rapteen-Kevlar, a spokesman for the IGC. “In Arabic, the sacred word ‘truce’ means ‘a time of regrouping’. We know that we can trust our Brother Muqtada to honor the spirit of truce.”