Hundreds Demonstrate In Al-Najaf, Urge Al-Sadr To Go

As marchers passed by al-Sadr's office, fighters from the cleric's Imam Al-Mahdi Army fired their weapons in the air. But there were no clashes and the march continued without incident.

Al-Sadr and members of his militia are in Al-Najaf in a stand-off with U.S. forces who have surrounded the city, demanding his surrender.

The new U.S.-appointed governor of Al-Najaf, Adnan al-Zurufi, said today legal proceedings against al-Sadr over the murder of a rival would be delayed until after 30 June, when Iraq is due to gain sovereignty, if the cleric disbands his militia.

(AFP/AP)