URGENT: Shiite Leader, Muqtada al-Sadr, orders halt of military operations against U.S. Forces in Iraq

NAJAF / IraqiNews.com: The Leader of the Shiite al-Sadr Trend, Muqtada al-Sadr, has ordered the stoppage of military operations against the U.S. forces in Iraq till their complete withdrawal from the country by the end of this year, according to a statement by his office on Saturday.   “Stemming from my keenness for the stability of Iraq and the withdrawal of the American invasion forces from our sacred lands, I find it necessary to stop all the military operations by the honest Iraqi resistance till the complete withdrawal of those forces,” the statement quoted Sadr as saying.   The statement, copy of which landed in IraqiNews.com news agency, said that “in the event of the withdrawal of the last American soldier from Iraq, the the military operations would be stopped till an unlimited time, or else if something opposite to that would occur, the military operations would be restored with a new and powerful course.”   SKH (ST)   625