Sadr 'won't leave Najaf'

2004-08-20 18:52

Doha - An aide of Moqtada Sadr said on Friday the radical Iraqi Shiite leader was still in the holy city of Najaf and would not leave it alive, after reports that Iraqi police had taken over a revered shrine proved unfounded.

"Sayyed Moqtada Sadr is a son of Najaf and leader of the Mehdi Army (militia) in Najaf. He will not leave Najaf except (through) martyrdom," Sheikh Ahmed al-Shaibani told Al-Jazeera television.

Shaibani scoffed at government reports that Iraqi police were in control of the Imam Ali shrine and had arrested some 400 militiamen of the Mehdi Army.

An AFP correspondent at the scene saw the militiamen still holed up in the shrine late on Friday, with no Iraqi police in sight.

In Baghdad, a spokesperson for the interim government said earlier that Iraqi police had arrested some 400 militiamen at the Imam Ali shrine.

"Iraqi police entered the shrine in Najaf city and all armed militia were evicted," said the spokesperson, who asked not to be named.

"About 400 people were arrested, but the Iraqi police could not get hold of Moqtada Sadr."

Interior ministry spokesperson Sabah Kadhim for his part told CNN that 500 militiamen "in poor condition" were prepared to surrender without a shot being fired and "were escorted from the shrine".

Asked where Sadr was, Kadhim replied, "It's possible that he may have escaped overnight."

- AFP