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NAJAF, Iraq - The forces of anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada al-Sadr in this holy Shiite city and neighboring Kufa braced Saturday for an American assault, with hundreds of men with assault rifles roaming the streets and guarding makeshift checkpoints. In anticipation of violence and because of a major religious occasion this weekend, most stores in Najaf and Kufa were closed. Some owners emptied shops of goods, storing them at home for fear of looting amid any violence, residents said. No police or coalition troops from the Spanish contingent in charge of security in the two cities could be seen. U.S. commanders...

KARBALA, Iraq (AFP) - A militia leader of radical Shiite Muslim cleric Moqtada Sadr declared a three-day truce for the Arbaeen religious commemoration in Karbala, as the US-led coalition warned thousands of pilgrims flocking there to be alert for terror attacks. "Military operations against Polish and Bulgarian forces stationed here will be ceased until Monday at midnight (2300 GMT)," Sheikh Hamza al-Tai, head of the Mehdi Army militia in the Iraqi holy city, told AFP. He said the ceasefire would hold as long as "occupation forces do not enter inside central Karbala and do not approach the holy sites and...

Bremer Urges Arbaeen Pilgrims in Iraq to Be Vigilant By John D. BanusiewiczAmerican Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, April 8, 2004 – Security conditions in southern Iraq prompted the coalition's civilian administrator to issue a statement today promising the best possible effort to protect Arbaeen pilgrims while urging them to be vigilant and careful. Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims are expected to converge on the southern city of Najaf for Arbaeen that starts April 9, a religious observance that commemorates the martyrdom of a Shiia religious leader. "In light of the current unsettled security conditions in the south, and especially...