FOXNews.com - Top Stories - U.S. Closes Down Roads to Baghdad : "U.S. forces at Najaf appear to be holding back their firepower to allow moderate clerics to bring pressure against al-Sadr, avoiding an assault on Najaf.
Negotiations outside Fallujah focused on strengthening a fragile truce, allowing residents access to hospitals and arranging the return of tens of thousands who have fled the city.
The two sides are also working on a way to carry out the handover of the killers of four American civilians, whose slaying and mutilation sparked the Marine assault on Fallujah, launched on April 5, a representative of the Iraqi Governing Council at the talks said.
'We have a mechanism for that, and when we conclude our talks we will announce that,' Hashem al-Hassani told reporters after six hours of negotiations ended.
If the cease-fire holds and talks continue, negotiators have suggested they could move on to tackle more extensive moves sought by the Americans: the surrender of masses of weapons in the hands of insurgents, the return of police and Iraqi security forces to their posts and the handover of 'terrorists and foreign militants.'
'We are going to stabilize Fallujah,' U.S. coalition spokesman Dan Senor said. 'Those individuals must depart and in most cases they must be turned over to us.'
In the first round of talks Friday, U.S. officials agreed to reposition troops to allow Fallujah residents better access to hospitals."
Negotiations outside Fallujah focused on strengthening a fragile truce, allowing residents access to hospitals and arranging the return of tens of thousands who have fled the city.
The two sides are also working on a way to carry out the handover of the killers of four American civilians, whose slaying and mutilation sparked the Marine assault on Fallujah, launched on April 5, a representative of the Iraqi Governing Council at the talks said.
'We have a mechanism for that, and when we conclude our talks we will announce that,' Hashem al-Hassani told reporters after six hours of negotiations ended.
If the cease-fire holds and talks continue, negotiators have suggested they could move on to tackle more extensive moves sought by the Americans: the surrender of masses of weapons in the hands of insurgents, the return of police and Iraqi security forces to their posts and the handover of 'terrorists and foreign militants.'
'We are going to stabilize Fallujah,' U.S. coalition spokesman Dan Senor said. 'Those individuals must depart and in most cases they must be turned over to us.'
In the first round of talks Friday, U.S. officials agreed to reposition troops to allow Fallujah residents better access to hospitals."
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