Free Republic

NAJAF, Iraq -- Militants loyal to firebrand cleric Muqtada al-Sadr said Saturday that they had handed over the keys to a revered Muslim shrine in the holy city of Najaf to top Shiite religious leaders, a move that marks a crucial step toward ending two weeks of fighting. The militants, however, remain in control of the Imam Ali Shrine while final details of the transfer are worked out, said al-Sadr aide Ahmed al-Shaibany. Al-Sadr's militia had moved their guns out the shrine on Friday, but the militiamen themselves stayed as negotiators tried to wrangle over getting the militants out of...