BAGHDAD — Sadr City, the section of the Iraqi capital previously known as Revolution City and then Saddam City, has long been seen as a violent place filled with the disenfranchised.
It is bursting at the seams with an estimated population of some 3.5 million, half the population of Baghdad. High unemployment, dire poverty and a long history of militia violence have made Sadr City a no-go area for many Baghdad residents, despite marked improvement in security in recent years.