Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr called on his supporters across Iraq to stop fighting against U.S. and Iraqi forces and is considering joining the political process, one of his aides said Monday.
The announcement by al-Sadr came as his aides were trying to negotiate an end to fighting in the Baghdad slum of Sadr City and in the southern city of Basra.
Al-Sadr "has called for a halting of all military operations in Iraq, and we are studying the idea of joining the political process," said Naim al-Kaabi, an aide in Baghdad, according to The AP.
"This latest initiative shows that we want stability and security in this country by ending all confrontation in all parts of Iraq," said Sheikh Raed al-Khadami, al-Sadr's spokesman in Baghdad. "Al-Sadr's office in Najaf will call within the next two days to join the political process."
Meanwhile, a US soldier was killed and two others injured when a homemade bomb went off in northern Iraq on Sunday, the US military said Monday, bringing to at least 729 the number of American troops who have been killed in action in Iraq since 2003. (albawaba.com)
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