Al-Sadr issues 'final warning' over Iraq crackdown

Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr issued a “final warning” to the Iraqi government to halt the US-Iraqi crackdown against his followers or he would declare “open war until liberation”.

A full-blown uprising by al-Sadr, who led two rebellions against US-led forces in 2004, could lead to a dramatic increase in violence in Iraq at a time when the Sunni extremist group al Qaida in Iraq appears poised for new attacks after suffering severe blows last year.