Talabani: Muqtada Welcome in Transitional Government

Muqtada al-Sadr, the heretofore radical Shiite cleric of Kufa, would be welcome in the Iraqi government, according to Interim Governing Council president Jalal Talabani. So reports Howard LaFranchi of CSM. Al-Sadr had earlier been a harsh critic of the US and had urged nonviolent resistance to the occupation (though sometimes recently his followers came into violent confrontation with US troops). Muqtada has moderated his tone, apparently in part because of threats by the American military that he risked being arrested. Some have speculated that the religious authorities in Najaf have also exercised pressure on him.