Al-Sadr followers remove weapons from shrine
The move came as al-Sadr’s followers were working out the hand-over of control of the shrine to Iraq’s highest Shi’ite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Husseini al-Sistani, who is in London recovering from medical treatment.
Al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army have used the walled compound as a stronghold and refuge - and turning it over would likely mean an end to their revolt.
Al-Sistani agreed to take control of the shrine, and one al-Sadr aide said the keys to the shrine could be handed over, though details were still being worked out.
Sporadic gunfire and occasional explosions were heard in the city last night, but far less than previous nights.
By nightfall, al-Sadr’s followers remained in control, but they were no longer bringing their weapons inside the walled compound of the holy site.
Many armed militiamen were still circulating in the Old City district around the shrine but as they entered the compound they left their guns with comrades outside, then reclaimed them as they exited. Inside the compound, unarmed fighters mingled with civilians.
No weapons were seen in the shrine and militant leaders denied any were hidden inside.
The surprise moves to resolve the crisis came a day after Iraq’s interim prime minister, Ayad Allawi, threatened to storm the shrine, a move certain to cause bloodshed and infuriate Shi’ites across Iraq. On Thursday and during that night, US warplanes bombed militia positions in Najaf in fighting that killed 77 people and wounded 70 others.
But with Najaf yesterday at its quietest in weeks, Allawi backed off his threats, saying a peaceful resolution was possible.
“We are not going to attack Muqtada al-Sadr and the mosque,” Allawi told the BBC World Service. “The olive branch is still extended, he can take advantage of the olive branch.”
The government wants al-Sadr and his followers incorporated into the political process, Iraqi National Security adviser Mouaffaq al-Rubaie said. He told CNN that al-Sadr was not a terrorist and did not pose a strategic threat to Iraq like al-Qaida and other extremists did.
“The political process and democracy in Iraq is so accommodating that it can and will accommodate even the most extremist group, including Muqtada al-Sadr,” he said.
Al-Sadr has so far rejected the other main government demand - that he disband his Mahdi Army. But if he pulls out of the shrine, it would likely mean the end of the fighting that erupted on August 5.
The sanctity of the area made uprooting al-Sadr’s fighters a daunting task. US forces had ruled out an American assault on the site and had faced tough fighting in a vast cemetery nearby.
Handing over the shrine to al-Sistani’s religious authorities appeared to be a face-saving way to emerge from the stand-off for al-Sadr.
“We don’t want to appease the government. We want to appease the Iraqi people,” an aide to al-Sadr, Ahmed al-Shaibany, said as he headed to al-Sistani’s office to discuss handing over the keys.
In a sermon read out on his behalf Al-Sadr said he wanted the religious authorities to take control of the Old City from his Mahdi Army.
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