PM arrives in Najaf to meet top Shiite cleric

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki arrived in Najaf on Friday morning to meet top Shiite Cleric Sayyid Ali al-Sistani, a senior source in the province said. “Al-Maliki arrived in Najaf this morning to meet top Shiite cleric Ali al-Sistani to update him with the latest political developments in Iraq, mainly the security agreement between Iraq and the U.S.,” Ahmed Daabil, director of the Najaf deputy governor, told IraqiNews.com. “He will hold a press conference after the meeting,” he added, without giving more details. Najaf, about 160 km south of Baghdad, has an estimated population of 900,600 in 2008, though this has increased significantly since 2003 due to immigration from abroad. The city is one of the holiest cities of Shiite Islam and the center of Shiite political power in Iraq. Najaf is renowned as the site of the tomb of Ali ibn Abi Taleb (also known as “Imam Ali”), whom Shiites consider to be the righteous caliph and first imam. The city is now a great center of pilgrimage from throughout the Shiite Islamic world. It is estimated that only Mecca and Medina receive more Muslim pilgrims. The Imam Ali Mosque is housed in a grand structure with a gilded dome and many precious objects in its walls. SH (S) 1