Al-Sadr followers remove weapons from shrine

REBEL Shi’ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr’s gunmen removed their weapons from the revered Imam Ali Shrine in Najaf yesterday in a step aimed at ending the two-week-old uprising.

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.