On April 4, 2004, U.S. troops from the 1st Cavalry Division in Baghdad were sent to secure the Shi’a militia-controlled district known as Sadr City, in light of protests. The district of Sadr City had been under the control of the Iran-affiliated Imam Muqtada al-Sadr, who also commanded the militia group known as Jaish al-Mahdi, or the Mahdi Army.
This day would later become known as “Bloody” or “Black” Sunday, and the beginning of the Siege of Sadr City.
Now, more than 13 years later, the National Geographic Channel will be premiering, “The Long Road Home,” on Tuesday night, which focuses on the soldiers and families impacted by the events surrounding Black Sunday.
“Based on Martha Raddatz’s New York Times Best-Seller of the same name, the series relives a heroic fight for survival during the Iraq War, when the 1st Cavalry Division from Fort Hood was ferociously ambushed on April 4, 2004, in Sadr City, Baghdad — a day that came to be known as ‘Black Sunday,’” said National Geographic, when it released the trailer for the miniseries. “The series cuts between the action on the ground in Iraq and that of the homefront back in Texas, where wives and families await news for 48 hellish hours, expecting the worst.”
The cast of “The Long Road Home” includes Michael Kelly (Doug Stamper from Netflix’s “House of Cards”), Jason Ritter, and Kate Bosworth.

“The Long Road Home” premieres tonight on the National Geographic Channel at 9/8c, and continues throughout November and December.
James Fox, for LIMA CHARLIE NEWS
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