Radical, Powerful Iraqi Cleric is a Hardcore Gamer

Radical, Powerful Iraqi Cleric is a Hardcore Gamer

July 1, 2007
Muqtada al Sadr is a gamer?

When he's not trying to consolidate his power, the radical Shi'ite cleric, best known for his virulent opposition to the American presence in Iraq, apparently kicks backs with video games, although it's unclear which games or systems he prefers.

How do we know?

GamePolitics gleaned the news from the current issue of Time (cover date July 9). In the mag, Joe Klein pens One Last Chance, a report on U.S. General David Petraeus and the state of the so-callled "surge" by American forces. While reading Klein's article, we were surprised to come across this:
But the most important man in Iraq is the other Shi'ite prince, Muqtada al Sadr, who is 33 and the nominal leader of the most powerful militia in the country, the Mahdi Army. Al-Sadr is often called mercurial - he's supposedly a fervent video game player - ...

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Submitted by G-Dog - July 2, 2007 at 8:06 am -0500
If the militant Islam thing was actually about infidels, heathens, and great Satans and not about just hating America, then they would have been flying jet liners into Amsterdam were pot and prostitution are both legal.
Submitted by tempo - July 2, 2007 at 7:32 am -0500
He's 33, male, educated, and has much disposable income; that is the average gamer demographic. no?

He's probably into Prince of Persia(iran/iraq).

remember the hysteria a few years ago when the iraqi's bought 4000 ps2's
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=21118
Submitted by Merc25 - July 2, 2007 at 6:39 am -0500
How do we know this story wasn't written from an anti-gamer. My parents say that President Bush plays videogames for an hour everyday, but they hate games and Bush, so the story merely reinforces their hatred of both.
Submitted by CamerLGB - July 2, 2007 at 6:39 am -0500
lol,

£20 on Ninendogs and/or Animal Crossing :P
Submitted by Rob - July 2, 2007 at 6:05 am -0500
They're trying to say terrorism is the caused by video games.
Submitted by Clyde Wyman - July 2, 2007 at 5:09 am -0500
I don't believe the fact that this insane cleric would be a video gamer. Besides, those Christians and Islamists call Da Vinci Code "a lie". Though of course they call every fictional stuff a lie. And guess what? Their religions are also lies.

So if they don't have anything that has meaning to say, don't say it. It only shame your "The King of Kings and the Lord of Lords" or should I say, "The Liar of Liars and the Joker of Jokers". After all, Jesus hates me.
Submitted by David - July 2, 2007 at 2:53 am -0500
Actually I have it on good authority that Muqtada Al-Sadr's favourite game is Princess Maker 4. After a hard days brutality and thuggery and rabble rousing on the streets of Baghdad, there's nothing Al-Sadr likes more than to unwind by guiding his favourite fairy princess through those troubling everyday decisions, like what to wear to the debutante's ball, or whether to tell her best friend Sally her boyfriend's been cheating on him. Awww bless...

He also likes to play the odd game of Counterstrike too, although be advised that the last wallhacking bitchz0r who headshotted him on dust2 was later found face down in a Baghdad parking lot with less kneecaps than he started with.
Submitted by Lavarock - July 1, 2007 at 11:47 pm -0500
I really want to find out what his favorite game is, and possibly, his XBL gamertag? Oh, the joy.
Submitted by Spaniard - July 1, 2007 at 11:14 pm -0500
I am suprised that nobody pointed at the videogame "bomberman". I know, he is not from Al-Qaeda, but it was such an easy joke...
Submitted by Twin-Skies - July 1, 2007 at 10:33 pm -0500
This is just pure speculation on my part...

But perhaps Sadr's a fervent fan of casual video games? There's a ton of them on the web, and even the supposedly "non-gamer" crowd plays them habitually.
Submitted by Austin Lewis - July 1, 2007 at 9:06 pm -0500
I know. Shit, I considered holding people hostage until the new Duke Nukem came out. Not really, I still got the old ones.
This looks like the kinda bullshit people like to use to lump videogamers in with terrorists.
Submitted by Lichbane - July 1, 2007 at 9:07 pm -0500
Not all games are produced by "the west" ... http://www.afkarmedia.com/en/index.htm produces a few.
Submitted by jakethe8lf - July 1, 2007 at 8:41 pm -0500
He's probably really angry at America because of the Duke Nukem delays.
Submitted by Andrew - July 1, 2007 at 8:34 pm -0500
I'm guessing it's more like computer solitaire and chess.
Submitted by Michael - July 1, 2007 at 8:19 pm -0500
My guess is "Under Seige" ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Under_Siege_(video_game) ). Lets face it: With America's Army out there, how could anyone blame these guys for making their own games from their own standpoint. Any extemist views are simply a reaction to games like "America's Army" that involve shooting Muslims.
Submitted by Twixn - July 1, 2007 at 8:04 pm -0500
I hear he is a 'Food Eater' aswell. And he is also
a 'Water Drinker'. Other facts about this guy that
are obviously caused him to be a terrorist.
Submitted by Unrated - July 1, 2007 at 7:21 pm -0500
I think I pwned that n00b a couple of times!
Submitted by FoxmanZEO - July 1, 2007 at 7:11 pm -0500
There are actually small time PC game developers in the middle east/wherever. (Or at least, in the places that still have electricity.)
Surprisingly their games feature very little about the 'west', there's one that tells the fictional story of a young Israeli (or Palestinian, I always confuse the two) boy, that takes up arms against... who ever it is that they're in a piss about lately.

Then again, solitaire translates quite easily.
Submitted by timmyjoe012345 - July 1, 2007 at 6:31 pm -0500
hmm.... A terrorists favorite game...

Burnout???

Mario Kart??? His favorite item would be the bomb-omb...

Oh god, me and my horrible jokes are going to hell...
Submitted by Tubatic - July 1, 2007 at 5:43 pm -0500
I'd say that gaming isn't necessarily a thing that the West can take ownership of. Much of the big name console gaming started from Japanese companies, and there are game developers all over the world. If the man were to follow a personal gaming restriction against Western made games, he'd still have a large array of titles to play without a conflict of his morals.
Submitted by Tubatic - July 1, 2007 at 5:44 pm -0500
Values, not morals :p
Submitted by Terminator44 - July 1, 2007 at 4:10 pm -0500
I'd like to add that this guy, contrary to what he says, doesn't seem that religous at all. He allegedly relies on an Iranian Ayatollah for advice on theological matters. Not to mention that most of his manuvers seem to be politically, rather than religously, motivated. Thus, I wouldn't be suprised if he enjoyed the occassional puzzle game or the like. I doubt it would conflict with his beliefs.

Still, I prefer the GTA player from Baghdad this site profiled a few months back.

http://gamepolitics.com/2007/01/11/580/#comments
Submitted by KTP - July 1, 2007 at 3:16 pm -0500
That guy is 33?

Wow, he does not age well.
Submitted by Silver_Derstin - July 1, 2007 at 3:09 pm -0500
I'm going to randomly suggest his favorite game is Tales of Symphonia. Just because it's that good of a game.
Submitted by PHOENIXZERO - July 1, 2007 at 2:20 pm -0500
I'm going to bet he likes the occasional "Date Sim".......
Submitted by Shih Tzu - July 1, 2007 at 1:42 pm -0500
20 bucks on Loco Roco.
Submitted by Darth_Toxic - July 1, 2007 at 1:47 pm -0500
I'm also expecting someone (CoughJTCough) to turn this into a 'See? I told you that gamers are terrorists!' thing.
Submitted by roby00 - July 1, 2007 at 1:29 pm -0500
why do we want to advertise that terrorists play videogames?
im sure it would be almost as helpful to the industry as announcing the colombine kids played videogames.
Submitted by PyroHazard - July 1, 2007 at 1:11 pm -0500
This asshole tried to suicide bomb me in Gears Of War.
Submitted by Neebs - July 1, 2007 at 12:41 pm -0500
His favorite game is Peggle of course!
Submitted by gamepolitics - July 1, 2007 at 11:17 am -0500
@ Darrell - no, you're reading that wrong... "the evidence says otherwise" phrase refers to Muqtada being called "mercurial"...

I probably should edit that out to be more clear.
Submitted by ZippyDSMlee - July 1, 2007 at 11:41 am -0500
I bet he watches US movies and listens to music too,because people in power do not have to live like the drones(common folk)....
Submitted by Kyouryuu - July 1, 2007 at 11:05 am -0500
"All joking aside, it seems kind of weird. Videogames are largely a creation of the West (and non-Islamic East)- shouldn’t this guy be opposed to them?"

Not really. You find contradictions to the hatred of the West all over what these organizations do. Groups like Al Queda embrace the Internet, for example, in spreading their ideals. They post videos of their hostages on the Internet. And at the same time, they hate the West.

As with any group with political foundations, there are double standards abound.
Submitted by Darrel - July 1, 2007 at 10:57 am -0500
Also:

"he’s supposedly a fervent video game player - but the the evidence says otherwise…"

This means it may not be true, especially since the line "evidence says otherwise". Means he's probably a casual gamer (one who plays solitaire or those terrorist created flash games just for kicks. Like "Whack the Bush")
Submitted by Darrel - July 1, 2007 at 10:54 am -0500
Nah, I don't think they'd spin an anti game article from THAT. It's too insignificant. Besides, everyone knows the hottest story is about this:

http://entertainment.msn.com/news/article.aspx?news=267474&GT1=10150

Captain America's Death. (which would probably be retconned soon. Mark my words)
Submitted by Vladimir - July 1, 2007 at 10:49 am -0500
He probably only plays terrorist-created games like "Night of Bush Capturing" or whatever it was that was reported on so long ago. :d
Submitted by Grahamr - July 1, 2007 at 10:45 am -0500
Yea, good 'ol JT and LL are going to have their fun with this.
Submitted by Zerodash - July 1, 2007 at 10:42 am -0500
All joking aside, it seems kind of weird. Videogames are largely a creation of the West (and non-Islamic East)- shouldn't this guy be opposed to them? Just like movies being a global medium, games can also be seen as an encroachment on local/traditional entertainment.

In his mind, I guess its OK if he plays them- just like how these radical leaders have no problem strapping bombs to their youths but never having the balls to do it themselves...

I wonder if Fox News (or another sensationalist news organization) will spin this into an anti-game story.
Submitted by Grahamr - July 1, 2007 at 10:34 am -0500
Or Battlefield 2 with the MEC(middle east coalition)

or better yet, Insurgents.
Submitted by John Doe - July 1, 2007 at 10:19 am -0500
I'd have to say C&C Generals... Try to guess his favorite campaign. ;)
Submitted by University Update - Iraq - Radical, Powerful Iraqi Cleric is - July 1, 2007 at 9:49 am -0500
[...] White House Link to Article iraq Radical, Powerful Iraqi Cleric is a Gamer » Posted at GamePolitics.com on Sunday, July 01, 2007 Radical, Powerful Iraqi Cleric is a Gamer July 1st, 2007 Muqtada al Sadr is a gamer? ... for his virulent opposition to the American presence in Iraq, apparently kicks backs with video games, although ... reading Klein’s article, we were surprised to come across this: But the most important man in Iraq View Entire Article » [...]
Submitted by Daniel - July 1, 2007 at 9:49 am -0500
I'm guessing Counter Strike. :P
Submitted by G-Dog - July 1, 2007 at 9:42 am -0500
I'm going to go out on a limb and say his favorite game is MS Flight Simulator.
Submitted by PlayItBogart - July 1, 2007 at 9:47 am -0500
I'd say SOCOM. He always wants to pick the terrorist team, and PKs his team if he draws SEAL.
Submitted by Clyde Wyman - July 1, 2007 at 9:24 am -0500
Woah... I never knew an Islamist would be a hardcore gamer.
Submitted by Grahamr - July 1, 2007 at 9:23 am -0500
"F***ing Noob coaliton and sunnis, GTFO before i pwn your faces!"

Is on h4x!
Submitted by DarkTetsuya - July 2, 2007 at 1:43 pm -0500
Great, so now not only do videogames make people violent, they make the terrorists too?
Submitted by point09micron - July 5, 2007 at 10:57 am -0500
He's probably playing Katamari right now, waiting for his import of Doki Doki Majo Shinpan to arrive.
Submitted by Christian - July 4, 2007 at 7:54 am -0500
Breaking news: Gaming causes religious extremism says bribed hobo, do you know where your kids are???
Submitted by Linkreincarnate - July 4, 2007 at 2:23 am -0500
He plays a horde shaman...
Submitted by Fazeel Gareeboo - July 3, 2007 at 10:50 am -0500
Hey you never know, we are mostly assuming he plays a war game, but I agree with David ... very likely to be playing "Princess Maker 4". For most of us, computer games is an opportunity to do something we do not get to do in our everyday life :-).
Submitted by Muqtada Al-Sadr: Militia Leader, Radical Cleric, Gamer | blo - July 2, 2007 at 10:44 am -0500
[...] In Iraq, Operation Last Chance [Time, via GamePolitics] [...]
Submitted by ZippyDSMlee - July 2, 2007 at 10:30 am -0500
G-Dog
because there to busy gettign laid and smoking a joint,while the US fundies gather power and raid other countries for kicks 0-o


tempo
4000 sounds like enough for all the rich and there,its like "US gov:ZOMG they are goign to build nukes with it..."Iraq:are you kidding it would void the warranty,do you know the shipping cost of getting it replaced!!!"
LOL
Submitted by StuffWeLike.com » Blog Archive » Big-time Iraqi - July 2, 2007 at 9:40 am -0500
[...] [Via GamePolitics] (No Ratings Yet)  Loading ... [...]
Submitted by me - July 2, 2007 at 9:30 am -0500
It must be Unreal Tournament. I'm pretty sure I've blown him up a few times.
Submitted by Counter Strike - September 2, 2007 at 7:31 am -0500
Counter Strike...

Counter Strike...
Submitted by Meh - April 10, 2008 at 2:03 pm -0500
He obviously plays World of Warcraft, Blood Elf hunter :|
I met him the other day, he wiped our raid :(
Blamed the Coalition government cos they hacked his ISP.

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