Iraq cleric snubs PM’s orders

NAJAF, Iraq – Iraq’s interim prime minister yesterday ordered Shi’ite fighters loyal to a radical cleric to leave the holy city of Najaf but the militiamen were digging in and the death toll from days of clashes mounted.

His interim government also shut down the Baghdad office of Qatar-based Al Jazeera television for one month. Allawi said a commission had been monitoring Al Jazeera to see whether it was inciting violence and hatred, and the decision was taken “to protect the people of Iraq”.The station denied the charges.Clashes erupted again around midday in Najaf and also the squalid Baghdad district of Sadr City, witnesses said.Other flashpoints in Iraq were tense following three days of fighting between US troops and militiamen loyal to Shi’ite Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr that has killed hundreds of people and challenged the authority of prime minister Iyad Allawi.The health ministry said at least 43 people had been killed in Najaf and Baghdad during the 24 hours to yesterday morning.”We hope that this thing ends as soon as possible,” a heavily guarded Allawi told reporters at the start of a visit to Najaf, 160 km south of Baghdad.”I believe gunmen should leave the holy sites… quickly, lay down their weapons and return to the rule of order and law.”Allawi went straight into talks with the governor of Najaf, the holiest Shi’ite city in Iraq.He was accompanied by his interior and defence ministers and other top officials.Despite the order from Allawi, fighters roamed the streets of Najaf and fortified their positions with mines around the crypts and mausoleums of the city’s ancient cemetery, one of the oldest in the Middle East and scene of the worst fighting.In Baghdad, an American OH-58 Delta helicopter made a “precautionary landing” northwest of Sadr City, but US military officials said initial reports indicated it had mechanical trouble.Major General Peter Chiarelli of the First Cavalry Division said both pilots were safe.Militiamen from Sadr’s Mehdi Army claimed the aircraft was shot down.In Sadr City, a stronghold for the young firebrand cleric, hundreds of militiamen armed with AK-47 assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades manned checkpoints.The U.S. marines said on Friday they had killed 300 militiamen in Najaf.A militia spokesman put losses at 36 dead.Speaking at a base near Najaf late on Saturday, Lieutenant Colonel John Mayer, battalion commander of the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, said a two-month old truce between US forces had the Mehdi Army had been torn up and that “all bets are off”.He did not elaborate.Allawi has gone out of his way to bring Sadr into the political fold despite the worst fighting since April.An aide to the cleric said on Saturday that Sadr wanted a negotiated settlement to end the fighting.Allawi’s order for the fighters to leave Najaf came a day after he announced a limited amnesty for Iraqi insurgents that lasts for 30 days.It only applies to those who have committed minor crimes, not murderers, rapists or looters.Yesterday, an Iraqi National Guard was killed and another wounded when a roadside bomb ripped through their patrol north of Baghdad.In the town of Kifl to the south, three police officers were killed and two wounded when gunmen fired assault rifles and rockets at a police station.- Nampa-ReutersAllawi said a commission had been monitoring Al Jazeera to see whether it was inciting violence and hatred, and the decision was taken “to protect the people of Iraq”.The station denied the charges.Clashes erupted again around midday in Najaf and also the squalid Baghdad district of Sadr City, witnesses said.Other flashpoints in Iraq were tense following three days of fighting between US troops and militiamen loyal to Shi’ite Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr that has killed hundreds of people and challenged the authority of prime minister Iyad Allawi.The health ministry said at least 43 people had been killed in Najaf and Baghdad during the 24 hours to yesterday morning.”We hope that this thing ends as soon as possible,” a heavily guarded Allawi told reporters at the start of a visit to Najaf, 160 km south of Baghdad.”I believe gunmen should leave the holy sites… quickly, lay down their weapons and return to the rule of order and law.”Allawi went straight into talks with the governor of Najaf, the holiest Shi’ite city in Iraq.He was accompanied by his interior and defence ministers and other top officials.Despite the order from Allawi, fighters roamed the streets of Najaf and fortified their positions with mines around the crypts and mausoleums of the city’s ancient cemetery, one of the oldest in the Middle East and scene of the worst fighting.In Baghdad, an American OH-58 Delta helicopter made a “precautionary landing” northwest of Sadr City, but US military officials said initial reports indicated it had mechanical trouble.Major General Peter Chiarelli of the First Cavalry Division said both pilots were safe.Militiamen from Sadr’s Mehdi Army claimed the aircraft was shot down.In Sadr City, a stronghold for the young firebrand cleric, hundreds of militiamen armed with AK-47 assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades manned checkpoints.The U.S. marines said on Friday they had killed 300 militiamen in Najaf.A militia spokesman put losses at 36 dead.Speaking at a base near Najaf late on Saturday, Lieutenant Colonel John Mayer, battalion commander of the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, said a two-month old truce between US forces had the Mehdi Army had been torn up and that “all bets are off”.He did not elaborate.Allawi has gone out of his way to bring Sadr into the political fold despite the worst fighting since April.An aide to the cleric said on Saturday that Sadr wanted a negotiated settlement to end the fighting.Allawi’s order for the fighters to leave Najaf came a day after he announced a limited amnesty for Iraqi insurgents that lasts for 30 days.It only applies to those who have committed minor crimes, not murderers, rapists or looters.Yesterday, an Iraqi National Guard was killed and another wounded when a roadside bomb ripped through their patrol north of Baghdad.In the town of Kifl to the south, three police officers were killed and two wounded when gunmen fired assault rifles and rockets at a police station.- Nampa-Reuters