Tribal proposal requires al-Sadr to stand trial

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BAGHDAD -- Coalition officials are looking favorably on a deal proposed by Shi'ite tribal leaders that would see Sheik Muqtada al-Sadr face trial, but allow the radical cleric to save face by surrendering to tribal authorities instead of American forces.

Many see it as a last chance for a peaceful end to the standoff between U.S. forces and the cleric, who has been holed up in the holy city of Najaf since sending his Mahdi's Army militia into battle against the coalition in early April.

The deal, devised without American input, requires Sheik al-Sadr to stand trial in the killing of a rival cleric.

In exchange, the tribal authorities will negotiate their demands with both Sheik al-Sadr and American forces, including withdrawal from Najaf by both sides.

"It's an attempt to solve the legal question, and not just the security question," said Sheik Fatih Kashif al-Ghitta, a top adviser to Iraqi Governing Council member Salama al-Khafaji. "And to solve it in a way that doesn't humiliate Muqtada, that doesn't humiliate the Iraqi people, and that doesn't humiliate the Americans."

Several Iraqi groups are trying to resolve the standoff in Najaf. But a senior official with the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) said the tribal proposal was the most viable prospect for ending the confrontation.

"The Iraqi tribes do have the capability to resolve this situation," said the official, speaking on the condition of anonymity. "This has the best chance of succeeding."

The group has not yet formally approached the coalition, but the tribal leaders say their proposal has the blessing of revered Shi'ite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Husseini al-Sistani, as well as that of exiled Iraqi Ayatollah Kazim al-Ha'eri.

A student of Baqir al-Sadr, Muqtada al-Sadr's father, Ayatollah al-Ha'eri lives in Iran and is widely believed to be Sheik al-Sadr's spiritual mentor.

A month ago, a delegation traveled to Najaf to make its proposal to Sheik al-Sadr. It consisted of about 40 people, including 25 Iraqi tribal leaders or sheiks, five lawyers, five academics and Dr. al-Khafaji, one of two Shi'ite women on the Governing Council.