Iraq govt asks militias to halt attacks

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BAGHDAD, Aug 31 (Agencies): The Iraqi government called on armed groups to follow the lead of the biggest Shiite militia and freeze their operations, while the US military Friday reported the deaths of two more American service members in fighting against Sunni insurgents
A statement by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's office welcomed Wednesday's decision by anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr to freeze attacks by his Mahdi militia for up to six months as a step toward "affirming security and stability."
The statement, issued late Thursday, said al-Sadr's move offered "a good chance" to "suspend the work of other militias" to restore "the integrity and sovereignty of Iraq."
Al-Sadr issued the order after his fighters were suspected of a role in this week's gunfights during a religious festival in Karbala that killed up to 51 people.
The order appeared to have had a calming effect in Baghdad, where police on Thursday found only five bodies of bullet-riddled victims of sectarian death squads.
In Sadr City, the Shiite slum in northeast Baghdad, residents said there was no sign of Mahdi militiamen, who normally cruise the streets in cars and converge on al-Sadr's office in the evening.
The Mahdi Army has been accused by Sunni Arab politicians of massacring thousands of Sunni Arabs. The US military believes Iranian-backed splinter groups from the organization have been responsible for most of the recent attacks in the Baghdad area that have caused American casualties.
Mahdi militiamen have been locked in a bitter struggle with other armed Shiite groups for supremacy in the Shiite southern heartland of southern Iraq, which includes major religious shrines and the bulk of the country's vast oil wealth.
The two US service members - a Marine and an Army soldier - were killed Wednesday in fighting in Anbar province, the Sunni Arab stronghold west of Baghdad, the military said.
That brings the total US troop deaths in Iraq to at least 79 this month, one more than the July total, which was the lowest monthly figure this year.
However, the military said Marines from the 5th Regimental Combat Team killed 12 suspected al-Qaida in Iraq fighters and destroyed two vehicles in fighting Wednesday near the Anbar city of Fallujah.
Marine AV-8B Harrier jets dropped two precision-guided bombs, and Marines also called in artillery strikes against the insurgents during the battle, the military said.