Najaf quiet for second day, adds shops reopening
(29 Aug 2004) 1. Sun rising over Najaf 2. Various street scenes with Iraqi police 3. Pull out from damaged building, to debris littering road 4. Various shots of Iraqi soldiers patrolling streets 5. Sun rising over Najaf, police in pick-up trucks driving past 6. Various shots of streets 7. Shopkeeper cleaning rubble 8. Various shots of people walking the streets 9. SOUNDBITE: (Arabic) Voxpop: Man on the street "We thank the clerics, the Iraqi government, and the Iraqi police for the present situation where we have safety and stability, thank God." 10. Men untangling telephone pole cables 11. Various streets, cars and people 12. Men carry supplies to truck 13. Various people at gas station, filling up cars 14. Red Crescent ambulances arrive 15. Various Red Crescent workers distribute supplies STORYLINE: As dawn broke over Najaf on Sunday, the battle-scarred city remained calm with Iraqi police and troops patrolling the streets as the ceasefire entered its second day. On Friday, militants loyal to radical cleric Muqtada al Sadr, left the Imam Ali Shrine and handed over the keys to Grand Ayatollah Ali Husseini al-Sistani, symbolising their acceptance of a peace deal to end three weeks of fighting. The government had begun to re-establish control over the Old City of Najaf by Friday. The Najaf peace plan presented by al-Sistani, the most revered Shi'ite cleric in Iraq, called for the cities of Najaf and Kufa to be declared weapons free. It also asked that all foreign forces withdraw from Najaf and leave police in charge of security and for the government to compensate those harmed by the fighting. The plan allowed al-Sistani to exercise his considerable authority and prove that he could succeed where other peace emissaries had failed. It gave the interim government control of the city, disentangled US forces from the persistent violence and let al-Sadr and his militants walk away free. However it also allowed al-Sadr to keep his militia. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: / ap_archive Facebook: / aparchives Instagram: / apnews You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...
