No peace in Basra despite Sadr call

[Nitrogenica]

Source: The Austrailian

HOPES for a ceasefire in Iraq's developing Shia civil war were swiftly undermined yesterday when the Government said it would not stop attacking outlaw militia members, despite an offer from militia leaders to freeze the conflict.

Fierce fighting went on in areas of Basra loyal to Moqtada al-Sadr, despite the rebel cleric's call to his militiamen to put down their weapons.

Sadr's statement was hammered out in elaborate negotiations over the past few days with senior Iraqi officials, some of whom travelled to Iran to meet the Shia cleric, according to several officials involved in the discussions.

In Baghdad, mortars continued to slam into the Green Zone government compound.



Read more: http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23461871-2703,00.html