Sadr orders militia not to evict Iraqis from their homes [View All]

[ECH1969]

Radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, one of the most influential figures in Iraq, called on his followers to stop driving people from their homes.

Sadr founded the Mahdi Army, one of the most powerful militias in the country, but it appears to be only nominally under his control.

The militia has been repeatedly implicated in sectarian-motivated attacks that have left the morgues of the nation choked with bodies.

On Friday he issued a statement saying that if the rumors about his followers taking part in such killings were true, he would denounce them.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20061016/wl_mideast_afp/iraqunrestshiite_061016152911