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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Key Sadr aide shot dead in Iraq | Key Sadr aide shot dead in Iraq |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| A relative and key follower of radical Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr has been shot dead in the Iraqi city of Najaf. | A relative and key follower of radical Shia cleric Moqtada Sadr has been shot dead in the Iraqi city of Najaf. |
| Riyad al-Nuri, the director of the cleric's office in Najaf, was killed by unidentified gunmen near his home as he returned from Friday prayers. | Riyad al-Nuri, the director of the cleric's office in Najaf, was killed by unidentified gunmen near his home as he returned from Friday prayers. |
| Police imposed an indefinite curfew in the city following the shooting. | Police imposed an indefinite curfew in the city following the shooting. |
| The Sadr movement was involved in violent clashes with government forces after PM Nouri Maliki ordered a crackdown on militias last month. | The Sadr movement was involved in violent clashes with government forces after PM Nouri Maliki ordered a crackdown on militias last month. |
| Hundreds have died in clashes, mainly in the capital Baghdad and in Basra in the south. | Hundreds have died in clashes, mainly in the capital Baghdad and in Basra in the south. |
| Air strikes | Air strikes |
| An aide to Moqtada Sadr, Haider al-Turfi, told AFP news agency: "When [Mr Nuri] arrived from the prayers, they opened fire on him, killing him instantly." | An aide to Moqtada Sadr, Haider al-Turfi, told AFP news agency: "When [Mr Nuri] arrived from the prayers, they opened fire on him, killing him instantly." |
| Najaf police chief Maj Gen Abdul Karim Mustafa said an indefinite curfew had been imposed in the city. | Najaf police chief Maj Gen Abdul Karim Mustafa said an indefinite curfew had been imposed in the city. |
| Police have set up blockades and ordered shops to close. | Police have set up blockades and ordered shops to close. |
| Moqtada Sadr's spokesman in Najaf, Salah al-Obeidi, said the continued US presence in Iraq was to blame for the killing. | |
| He said the cleric's message was to stay calm and not be "dragged into other's plots". | |
| Mr Nuri was the cleric's brother-in-law. | |
| Earlier, US forces said they had used an unmanned drone aircraft to kill six Shia militant fighters in a missile strike in the Sadr City area of Baghdad. | Earlier, US forces said they had used an unmanned drone aircraft to kill six Shia militant fighters in a missile strike in the Sadr City area of Baghdad. |
| The US said the group had rocket-propelled grenade launchers and mortars. | The US said the group had rocket-propelled grenade launchers and mortars. |
| In Basra, the British military said a further six people were killed in an air strike. | In Basra, the British military said a further six people were killed in an air strike. |
| Spokesman Maj Tom Holloway said a US aircraft had identified a group of militants in the northern al-Hayaniyah district. | Spokesman Maj Tom Holloway said a US aircraft had identified a group of militants in the northern al-Hayaniyah district. |
| Basra saw the first of the clashes after Mr Maliki ordered his crackdown. | Basra saw the first of the clashes after Mr Maliki ordered his crackdown. |
| It has been quieter since Moqtada Sadr ordered his Mehdi Army militia off the streets. | It has been quieter since Moqtada Sadr ordered his Mehdi Army militia off the streets. |
| In contrast, Baghdad has seen increasing violence this week, particularly in Sadr City. | In contrast, Baghdad has seen increasing violence this week, particularly in Sadr City. |
| Sadrists have said they are under siege from Iraqi and US forces and have threatened to break the general ceasefire Moqtada Sadr ordered last August. | Sadrists have said they are under siege from Iraqi and US forces and have threatened to break the general ceasefire Moqtada Sadr ordered last August. |
| On Monday, Mr Maliki threatened to exclude the radical Shia cleric's movement from politics unless he disbanded the Mehdi Army. | On Monday, Mr Maliki threatened to exclude the radical Shia cleric's movement from politics unless he disbanded the Mehdi Army. |
| In other violence on Friday, a rocket struck the Palestine Hotel in central Baghdad, killing three civilians and wounding a number of others, Iraqi security officials said. | |
| The hotel became famous as a journalists' centre during the 2003 US-led invasion but is now largely empty. |