Al-Sadr Tells Militia to Turn Over Shrine in Najaf
112467
Radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr ordered his fighters Thursday to hand control of a revered Najaf shrine to top Shiite religious authorities, hours after U.S. forces bombed militant positions and Iraq's prime minister made a "final call" for the cleric's militia to surrender.
547208
NAJAF, Iraq - Militants loyal to firebrand cleric Muqtada al-Sadr said Saturday that they had handed over the keys to a revered Muslim shrine in the holy city of Najaf to top Shiite religious leaders, a move that marks a crucial step toward ending two weeks of fighting.    The militants, however, remain in control of the Imam Ali Shrine while final details of the transfer are worked out, said al-Sadr aide Ahmed al-Shaibany...
34884
NAJAF, Iraq - Radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr accepted a peace plan Wednesday that would disarm his militia and remove them from their hideout in a revered shrine, raising hopes of resolving a crisis that has angered many of Iraq's majority Shiites and threatened to undermine the fledgling interim government.    But al-Sadr has made contradictory statements in the past, and aides to the cleric said he still wanted to negotiate details of the deal to end two weeks of fighting between his forces and U.S.-led troops...
182287
NAJAF, Iraq - Followers loyal to radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr said Friday they were preparing to hand control of the revered Imam Ali Shrine to top Shiite religious authorities in a bid to end a two-week-old uprising in the holy city of Najaf.    Al-Sadr aide Ahmed al-Shaibany said he was on his way to the office of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq's top Shiite Muslim cleric, to offer to present officials there with keys to the shrine...
412183
The delegation of Iraqis was aiming to convince a rebellious Shiite cleric to evacuate a shrine in Najaf.
428435
Militia fighters began to leave the Shrine of Imam Ali on Friday, taking up positions outside the sacred site or fleeing the city, after rebellious Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr offered to return custody of the complex to moderate clerics.
373771
Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani plans to lead a march to the shrine in Najaf that has been commandeered by rebel Mahdi fighters.
630766
BAGHDAD, Iraq - A delegation of Iraqis arrived in Najaf on helicopters Tuesday to present radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr with a peace proposal aimed at ending the violent insurgency wracking the holy city.    The peace proposal, cobbled together Iraq's National Conference in Baghdad, demanded that al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia put down its arms and join Iraq's political process in exchange for amnesty...
107220
NAJAF, Iraq  - Rebel Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr  on Friday ordered his men inside Najaf's Imam Ali mosque to lay  down their weapons and join thousands of Shi'ite pilgrims  outside the shrine.
302910
BAGHDAD, IRAQ - Shiite Muslim cleric Muqtada al-Sadr signaled that he would accept a plea from Iraqi leaders to dissolve his militia and vacate the sacred Imam Ali shrine in Najaf, but he asked for further ...
592425
Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani plans to lead a march to the shrine in Najaf that has been commandeered by fighters loyal to Moktada al-Sadr.
400282
Najaf, Iraq - Militants loyal to firebrand Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr remained in control of a revered shrine at the centre of the crisis in Najaf on Saturday as they bickered with top Shia leaders over how to hand the holy site over.
568003
NAJAF, Iraq  - Radical Shi&#39;ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr has agreed to disarm his Iraqi militia and leave a holy shrine but only after a truce with encircling US marines.
154019
BAGHDAD, Iraq - Radical Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr declared yesterday he is prepared to withdraw his fighters occupying the revered Imam Ali shrine, a step that could end the two-week-old battle in Najaf. But al-Sadr&#39;s aides said talks ...
121620
NAJAF, Iraq  - A radical cleric is preparing to hand control of a shrine at the heart of a Shi&#39;ite uprising in Iraq to religious authorities, but still rejects demands by the interim prime minister to disband his militia.
554253
NAJAF, Iraq  - Iraq's most influential Shi'ite  cleric headed for the battered city of Najaf on Thursday to try  to persuade rebels holed up inside a sacred shrine to leave and  end a three-week uprising that has killed hundreds.
511090
NAJAF, Iraq - Militiamen loyal to rebel Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr on Friday removed weapons from the revered Imam Ali Shrine in Najaf in a step aimed at ending the 2-week-old uprising centered on the holy site.    Iraq's highest Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Husseini al-Sistani, agreed to take control of the shrine, which al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia turned into a stronghold and refuge during their fight with U.S...