Bremer is holds up peace in Najaf He knows better the Iraqis

Deal to end standoff in Iraq fails


BAGHDAD, Iraq -- As fighting escalated between followers of Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and U.S. forces Wednesday, a deal to end the cleric's standoff in Iraq's holiest city appeared to have fallen through.

Iraqi and U.S. officials said an agreement reached Tuesday between Shia leaders and senior al-Sadr aides, under which the cleric would have disbanded his militia in exchange for a delay in a court case against him, was not acceptable to Iraq's U.S. administrator, Paul Bremer.

The proposal was hammered out after the new U.S.-appointed governor of Najaf, the holy city where al-Sadr has been holed up since early April, offered to defer requiring al-Sadr to stand trial in the assassination of a rival cleric until after the United States hands sovereighty to an interim Iraqi government on June 30.

"It is unacceptable to delay bringing Muqtada al-Sadr to justice until after June 30," said a senior U.S. official who asked not to be named. "The offer from the Najaf governor was made without consultation with the coalition."

Several Iraqi leaders who have been negotiating with al-Sadr said his legal case should be resolved before the new government takes office.

"If we wait until after June 30 to begin a trial, it could cause security problems that would weaken the new government," said Sheik Fatih Kashif al-Ghitta, a member of a prominent Najaf religious family who has negotiated with al-Sadr. "There is too much potential for instability."

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know they are leaders of exactly nothing?