Iraq says Sadr in Najaf talks, Briton kidnapped
(Agencies)
Updated: 2004-08-13 21:32

Iraq's interim government said on Friday Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr was negotiating to leave a shrine in the holy city of Najaf, after conflicting reports on whether the firebrand was wounded in a U.S. raid.

Spokesmen for the leader of the radical Shi'ite Muslim uprising in central and southern Iraq said he had been wounded in a bombing raid, though his injuries were not life-threatening. Interior Minister Falah al-Naqib said Sadr was unhurt and that a truce took effect in Najaf last night.

Gunmen also kidnapped a British journalist in the southern city of Basra and threatened to execute him within 24 hours if U.S. forces did not pull out of Najaf.

A spokesman for Sadr appealed to the captors of Sunday Telegraph reporter James Brandon to release him.

A video grab taken from Reuters television footage released on August 13, 2004, shows British journalist James Brandon (R) having a cloth wrapped around his head by a hooded militant in Iraq. [Reuters]

The nine-day rebellion in Najaf has killed hundreds and threatened to undermine the rule of Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, who is walking a tightrope trying to crush a radical Shi'ite rebellion across seven cities that has hit vital oil exports.

Speaking on Thursday after U.S. marines backed by aircraft and tanks launched a major assault on Sadr's Mehdi fighters around the Imam Ali Mosque and an ancient cemetery -- both militia strongholds -- Allawi urged the fighters to surrender.

Sadr spokesman Ahmad al-Shinabi said the cleric was wounded at 4.30 a.m. (8:30 p.m. EDT) in the cemetery.

"He was in the cemetery at the time. He was wounded in the chest, arm and leg," Shinabi told Reuters in Najaf.

Minister Naqib denied the claims and said a truce had been in force since last night, although residents said there were sporadic clashes overnight from the city center. Witnesses said U.S. forces had allowed several ambulances to enter the area and take out at least eight wounded Mehdi fighters.

"Sayyed Moqtada will not be touched if he leaves the shrine peacefully...," Naqib said.

RAID IN NEARBY KUFA

Brigadier General Erv Lessel, the top U.S. military spokesman in Iraq, said "clearing" operations to isolate the militia were under way in Najaf, throwing doubt on the truce.

Iraqi civilians walk past an American armored vehicle patroling the holy city of Najaf in southern Iraq, Friday Aug. 13, 2004. [AP]

Lessel also said he could not confirm Sadr had been wounded, adding U.S. forces were under instructions not to pursue him.

In the southern city of Kufa, 10 km (6 miles) from Najaf, Iraqi security forces killed several people in a raid on a Sadr stronghold, U.S. Marine Captain Carrie Batson told CNN.

Despite the government denial about Sadr's condition, the news could trigger outrage from the majority Shi'ite community, where there is growing anger at the U.S. assault near Iraq's holiest Shi'ite sites even from those who scorn Sadr's views.

Thousands of Sadr supporters protested in front of the Green Zone compound housing the Iraqi government and the U.S. embassy in Baghdad. Several Iraqi police took part, holding up posters of the cleric and putting them on their vehicle windows.

TERRIFIED JOURNALIST

Witnesses said gunmen seized the British journalist from a hotel in mainly Shi'ite Basra early on Friday morning.

The kidnappers instructed a freelance cameraman working for Reuters to film their terrified captive. The video tape showed a hooded militant standing next to the bare-chested journalist, who wore a head bandage.

The militants threatened to kill Brandon if the United States did not withdraw its forces from Najaf.

"I'm a journalist. I just write about what's happening in Iraq," said Brandon.

U.S. marines captured Najaf's city center on Thursday. They also stormed Sadr's home, only to find it empty.

They blocked off entry to the Imam Ali Mosque -- from where Mehdi fighters have launched attacks during the rebellion -- but have kept out of the sacred Shi'ite Muslim shrine.

The assault on Thursday drove world oil prices to new highs. Iraqi oil exports were flowing normally from southern fields on Friday and on the markets, U.S. light crude slipped 15 cents to $45.35 a barrel, below Thursday's record of $45.75 for oil futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The Mehdi militia has warned the offensive could trigger more attacks on Iraq's oil infrastructure.

Sadr's spokesmen have said he is leading the defense and has urged his militia to keep fighting even if he is killed.

Analysts have warned of a backlash even if the Imam Ali Mosque is undamaged and the militia beaten in Najaf. They said resentment could pose long-term consequences for Allawi.

Some 2,000 U.S. servicemen and 1,800 Iraqi security men are deployed around Najaf, a city of 600,000 about 100 miles south of Baghdad.

U.S. forces say they have killed more than 360 Sadr fighters so far in Najaf. Sadr's spokesmen say far fewer have died in what is the second rebellion by the militia in four months.

Gunmen have kidnapped scores of foreigners in Iraq since April to press foreign forces and companies to leave Iraq. Many have been released but around nine have been killed.

Some 20 foreign hostages are still being held.

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