Sadr urges followers to abandon violence

NAJAF / IraqiNews.com: Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr on Wednesday urged his followers to abandon violence and to stand had-in-hand with all Iraqi people, according to a statement released in his office in Najaf. The Shiite cleric also called on his followers to benefit from the science and culture for the good of the Iraqi people, said the statement received by IraqiNews.com news agency. Last August, al-Sadr ordered to turn al-Mahdi army into a peaceful and cultural movement called “ al-Mumahadon”. 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. SH (P) 1