Iraq's Sadr followers may reconsidering ceasefire

By Khaled Farhan

NAJAF, Iraq (Reuters) - Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr's Mehdi Army militia might not renew its six-month ceasefire, a key cause of the decline in violence in Iraq, unless attacks against it stop, a Sadr aide said on Saturday.

Salah al-Ubaidi, a senior official in Sadr's political movement in the holy Shi'ite city of Najaf, accused "criminal elements" inside Iraqi security forces of attacking Sadr's followers and Mehdi Army fighters.

"If the government security forces do not stop their campaigns of detention and arresting our followers, we may reconsider our decision to freeze the Mehdi Army," Ubaidi told Reuters.

The six months of the declared ceasefire run out next month.

Sadr announced it after clashes between his followers and police during a pilgrimage in Kerbala, another holy Shi'ite city in southern Iraq, in August.

The fighting, in which scores were killed and hundreds were wounded, sparked outrage and prompted a police investigation. Police this month freed 51 Sadr followers held since the August violence.

Ubaidi, however, said thousands of Sadrists were still being held by the security forces.

"The government must release all of our people who were arrested, especially after the events of Kerbala last year," Ubaidi said.