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US officials know for certain that the young Shi'a cleric is in the neighboring country, according to David Satterfield, senior advisor to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Iraq, in an interview with the Associated Press.
Juxtaposing "thinking" and "knowing," Satterfield said, "We know he's out of the country, we don't think," adding, "He's in Iran, which is where he has been since mid-January," the AP writes.
"I can't speculate on why Muqtada al-Sadr has chosen to reside in Iran," Satterfield said. "I can only note the political circumstances."
Satterfield did not offer new evidence of Sadr's whereabouts.
Sadr aides insist that Sadr is in Iraq, and Iran has denied that the cleric is in its territory.
The US maintains that Sadr slipped out of the county during preparations for the Baghdad security plan, which is now approaching the end of its third month.
