URGENT - Aides say Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr calls off mass rally in Baghdad
ABDUL-HUSSEIN AL-OBEIDI, Associated Press Writer
April 8, 2008 4:50 AM
NAJAF, Iraq (AP) - Aides to Muqtada al-Sadr say the anti-American Shiite cleric is calling off a mass rally in Baghdad Wednesday.
Iraqi security forces are blocking al-Sadr's followers from traveling to the capital from the southern Shiite heartland where he enjoys wide support.
Two aides in al-Sadr's office in the holy city of Najaf told The Associated Press that the rally had been canceled. They spoke on condition of anonymity pending an official announcement.
Al-Sadr had called for a ''million-strong'' protest to mark the fifth anniversary of the capture of Baghdad by U.S. troops. It was seen by many observers as a show of force in his confrontation with the government over calls to disband his Mahdi Army militia.
AP-WS-04-08-08 0730EDT
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