Foreign Correspondence

[otraque]

Powell praises Najaf peace agreement, role of U.S. troops
By Associated Press, 8/27/2004 12:30

http://www.boston.com/dailynews/240/wash/Powell_praises_Najaf_peace_agr:.shtml

WASHINGTON (AP) Secretary of State Colin Powell on Friday praised the peace deal that ended fighting in Iraq's holy city of Najaf and said the presence of U.S. forces in the area helped make it possible.

Powell, speaking on the Tony Snow Radio Show, said the agreement has led to some improvement in the situation and that it demonstrated good cooperation between U.S. and Iraqi forces in confronting radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

Powell's comments were somewhat more upbeat than the State Department's initial response Thursday night.

The deal was cut largely through the intervention of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq's top Shiite cleric.

Powell said he attached significance to the way in which Iraq's interim government ''has started to show leadership and potential in working with Ayatollah Sistani to resolve the situation in Najaf as we see it being resolved over the last 24 hours.''

With the nearby presence of coalition troops, especially U.S. troops, ''it was clear to Sadr that he had to yield to Sistani and the government,'' he said.

Sadr ''took huge losses'' during three weeks of fighting, leaving the capability of his forces diminished, Powell said, adding, ''We want to keep that capability diminished.''

He predicted forces opposed to the election processes in both Iraq and Afghanistan will fail.

''They can't be allowed to win and they will not win,'' Powell said.