IRAQ: Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr yesterday called for a halt to attacks on Spain's 1,400 troops near Najaf after Madrid's new government said it was withdrawing from the US-led coalition as soon as possible.
"The attacks on Spanish troops should be stopped since they are returning to their country and as long as they don't carry out aggressions against the Iraqi people," said a statement from Sadr's office in the southern city.
Meanwhile, the US-led administration said US forces would not resume an offensive against Sunni guerrillas in Falluja if they turned in their heavy weapons. Negotiators had agreed after three days of talks to work towards a real and lasting ceasefire in Falluja, west of Baghdad, said Mr Dan Senor, the administration's chief spokesman.
It was unclear how much influence Falluja officials have on the estimated 1,000-2,000 guerrillas as flare-ups of fighting have occurred during a shaky truce over the past 10 days.
"The parties agreed that (US-led) coalition forces do not intend to resume offensive operations if the persons in the city turn in their heavy weapons," Mr Senor said.
US forces launched a crackdown in Falluja after a spate of violence, including the killing and mutilation of four US contractors in the town on March 31st.
Brig Gen Mark Kimmitt, US military spokesman in Iraq, said the 24 hours to Monday evening had been "remarkably" quiet in the country, with no troops killed and attacks well below the average of some 50 over the last two weeks.
Several explosions occurred in Baghdad yesterday, one of them in the grounds of the Swedish embassy, unstaffed since 1991. There were no reports of any casualties.
US-funded Iraqiya Television said two of its staff were killed by US forces while working north of Baghdad. The US army had no immediate information.
New Pentagon figures showed 110 US soldiers had been killed in action since March 31st - more than in the three-week war that ousted Saddam Hussein.
Since US-led forces invaded Iraq in March last year, 509 US soldiers have been killed.
Hundreds of Iraqis, many civilians, have been killed since March 31st.
The commander of 2,500 US troops outside Najaf, a holy city to Iraq's Shi'ite majority, said he would allow time for talks before any attempt to enter the city to seize Sadr - which could spark a wider and bloodier uprising.
"Because of where negotiations are right now, we can wait," Col Dana Pittard said. "We still want Iraqis to solve the problem." The US military has said it wants to kill or capture Sadr, who is holed up in Najaf, and destroy his Mehdi Army militia.