Reply #1: Juan Cole covers the negotiations as well

[gottaB]

http://juancole.com

He reports:

Az-Zaman says that the Grand Ayatollahs in Najaf called on Muqtada to tell his people to lay down their arms. This is the most direct intervention of Sistani and his colleagues in the crisis yet. (Muqtada's militiamen paid no heed to the call). It is not clear to me whether it is referring to the document signed by 150 notables, at a conference arranged by Muhammad Bahr al-Ulum, to which Sistani representatives were sent; or whether this is actually a fatwa.

Hmmm.

Adding link to Christian Science Monitor coverage:

http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0507/p06s01-woiq.html