Sadr City was spared from most of the massacres that were leaving 50 , 60 or 70 bodies throughout Baghdad per day because of the blockade and the tight Mahdi Army control of the district . However , al-Qaeda elements did conduct suicide and car bomb attacks in the district against Shias . One of the deadliest attacks was a series of car bombs and mortar attacks in Sadr City on November 23 , 2006 , that began at 15:10 and ended at 15:55 , which left at least 215 civilians dead and some 257 wounded . Six car bombs and two mortar rounds were used in the attack on the Shi'ite Muslim slum . 3 days later , on 26 November 2006,3 more US Army soldiers were killed by an IED right outside Sadr City . Included in those killed were PFC Joshua C Burrows E Co 1-8 Cavalry , 1st Cavalry Division and 2 officers . In response to these bloody bombings , rogue Mahdi Army militiamen formed death squads and conducted ethnic cleansing of Sunni neighborhoods of Baghdad which left thousands of people dead
series of car bombs and mortar attacks
23 November 2006 Sadr City bombings
Siege of Sadr City