Two stories are in the news right now that deal with the same topic-the nature of the relationship between US General David Petraus and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki. One is in the LA Times and other is an AP story. The theme and general focus of the story is the same in both yet the tone subtly, but effectively different. But articles indicate that there is indeed friction between the two, yet it is the AP article which asserts it is far worse to the point of being a problem. Lets take a look.

First, lets look at the lede of LA Times version, the one that downplays or doesn’t sex up the intensity of the row as does the AP story.

U.S. and Iraqi officials acknowledged today that differences existed between Prime Minister Nouri Maliki and the top U.S. commander but denied that the Iraqi leader wanted Gen. David H. Petraeus removed.

Now the AP lede:

 A key aide says Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s relations with Gen. David Petraeus are so poor the Iraqi leader may ask Washington to withdraw the overall U.S. commander from his Baghdad post.

So the AP says that Maliki may demand Patreus ouster, but the LA Times story says thats not the case. Why? One clue comes from the sourcing.

The LA Times uses Haider Aladi, a Maliki adviser, as primary source of quotes from the Iraqi government. The AP quotes Sami al Askari. And it is al Askari-the AP source-who says that Maliki may demand Petraus removal.  By their own story, the AP outs al Askari as the one who made the demand:

Sami al-Askari, a key aide to al-Maliki and a member of the prime minister’s Dawa Party, said the policy of incorporating one-time Sunni insurgents into the security forces shows Petraeus has a “real bias and it bothers the Shiites,” whose communities have been targeted by Sunnis in Iraq’s sectarian conflict.

“It is possible that we may demand his removal,” al-Askari said.

A lawmaker from the al-Sadr bloc, who wouldn’t allow use of his name because of the political sensitivity of the matter, said al-Maliki once told Petraeus: “I can’t deal with you anymore. I will ask for someone else to replace you.”

The LA Times does quote Sami al Askari, but limits it to this:

“They are working together, even if there are differences,” said Sami Askari, one of the prime minister’s aides and a member of his Shiite Dawa Party.

Is easy to wonder if the similarities of spellings in Arabic names confuses english speaking journalists and readers. Its also common knowledge that Islamists commonly manipulate this to confuse us.

Moreover, AP also quotes who it describes as a Sadrist politician, Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zibari:

Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari told Newsweek magazine the Petraeus-al-Maliki relationship is “difficult.” For one thing, the Americans retain control of the Iraqi military. “The prime minister cannot just pick up the phone and have Iraqi army units do what he says. Maliki needs more leverage,” Zebari said.

The prime minister has complained to President Bush about the policy of arming Sunnis, said the Sadrist lawmaker.

The LA Times story provides some evidence that the one who’s saying that Maliki may ask for Petraus too be removed is one the AP sources for its story, Sami al Asakari:

News reports Friday quoted a Shiite politician who is close to Maliki and affiliated with anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada Sadr as saying that Maliki had told Petraeus he couldn’t work with him and wanted him replaced.

Remember, its Sami al Askari telling the AP:

“It is possible that we may demand his removal,” al-Askari said.

Its easy to conclude that its Sami al Askari is the one who made the quote Friday,  the one who’s trying to advance the friction angle and that he is also one of the Iraqi Sadr block in Parlaiment. The Sadr block wants the US out and is loyal to Iran. Its Mahdi Army is fighting US and Iraqi troops as we speak. Its quite understandable this Sadr block and any of its politicians would want the general out who is currently, well, kicking there ass.

So why is AP getting its background quotes from an Sadr source? The LA Times reporter didn’t use extensive quotes from Sami al Askari. Is it that the Sadr block politicians know to go to the AP already and know that they are a willing mouthpiece for their propoganda?