Sistani returns

Iraq's top Shi'ite cleric made a sudden return to the country yesterday and said he had a plan to end an uprising in the "burning city" of Najaf, where fighting is creeping ever closer to its holiest shrine.

Aides to Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani said the cleric, the most powerful voice of moderation in the tormented country, would unveil an initiative to get Shi'ite rebels out of the revered Imam Ali mosque. They gave no details.

Sistani also called for Iraqis to march on Najaf to save it, a move that could escalate passions among majority Shi'ites.

Dressed in a black robe and turban, with a flowing white beard and dark rings under his eyes, the reclusive cleric arrived in the southern city of Basra from Kuwait, having undergone heart treatment in London. He plans to head to Najaf, his adopted home, today.

His return came as US and Iraqi forces tightened their grip around Mehdi Army militants loyal to radical Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr holed up in the mosque, advancing to within 300 metres of the rebel-held shrine.

"We ask all believers to volunteer to go with us to Najaf," Sistani said in a statement read out in Basra by his aide Hayder al-Safi. "I have come for the sake of Najaf and I will stay in Najaf until the crisis ends."

Sistani's aides said he would depart for Najaf at 7 a.m. (0300 GMT) today with his supporters. They urged US forces encircling the gold-domed mosque to leave.

Sistani, 73, reached Basra in a convoy of more than a dozen vehicles led by police cars with sirens wailing.

His hospitalisation in London three weeks ago coincided with the outbreak of the revolt by Sadr, a young cleric who has challenged the collegiate leadership of the Najaf clergy headed by Sistani.

The call to march could be an attempt by the reclusive Iranian-born cleric to reclaim some of the political ground captured during the uprising by Sadr, who has painted himself as the face of anti-US resistance and icon to the poor masses.

"The Americans have been surrounding the shrine for days and Sadr's followers stay barricaded and determined. This march is the only way for both sides to save face," said independent Shi'ite cleric Mohammad Bahr al-Uloum.

"The march will make history. It could be decisive in keeping Iraq united. We can talk politics later."

Sadr has also called for his own followers to march on Najaf.

But rival marches could become a new flashpoint for violence.

Yesterday, police opened fire on Shi'ite marchers west of Najaf, killing two, witnesses said. Police had no immediate comment and it was not clear whether they were Sistani or Sadr supporters.

Sadr aide Mahmoud al-Soudani told Al Arabiya television the Mehdi militia were prepared for talks to halt the fierce fighting, which has killed hundreds, undermined interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi and rattled world oil markets.

Other aides said the Mehdi militia would stop fighting in southern Iraq in honour of Sistani's return.

In the heart of Najaf's old city, US tanks fired shells and troops advanced closer to the mosque as US helicopters strafed militia targets. Gunfire rocked the area and smoke rose.

Asked if the US military would suspend operations following Sistani's return, US Rear Admiral Greg Slavonic said the Iraqi government would decide the course of action.

In a statement, Mr Allawi welcomed Sistani's return, but did not call on the cleric to play any role in the crisis.

Iraqi Defence Minister Hazim al-Shalaan had warned the Mehdi fighters they would be wiped out unless they left the mosque by Tuesday evening. US and Iraqi officials have said only Iraqi forces would storm the mosque.

Some 500 Iraqi troops have been deployed around the shrine. Police also arrested senior Sadr aide Ali Smeisim in Najaf, and said they had captured a number of Sadr supporters who had stolen sacred items from the mosque. Sadr's aides denied the accusation, saying it was part of a smear campaign.

In a BBC interview earlier yesterday, one of Sistani's aides called on the militia to leave the shrine.

Sayyed Mohamed Musawi said the situation could be solved only by the Iraqi government alone.

"We always say that the Americans should be very far from the holy places," he said.