(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-05-09 07:56

Jalal Eddin al-Sagheer of the United Iraqi Alliance, an umbrella group in parliament that includes al-Maliki's party, said the committee demands that militants lay down their arms and clear all roadside bombs planted in Sadr City.

"The meeting is about conditions set by security forces to enter the whole of Sadr City," al-Sagheer said. "Gunmen holding weapons will not be allowed, all roadside bombs must be cleared and all wanted criminals must be handed over."

A Shiite lawmaker from al-Sadr's bloc, Gufran al-Saadi, confirmed the meeting took place but insisted U.S. troops must first withdraw from the district before talks can progress.

"We have no problems with the Iraqi army, but the U.S. army is bombing Sadr City," she said. "We demand the withdrawal of U.S. troops an end to U.S. attacks on Sadr City."

So far, the cashes are mostly confined to the southern part of the district where U.S. and Iraqi forces are building a barrier reaching up to 12-feet high to isolate it and disrupt supply and escape routes for militants.

"We really hope to block the north and the south," said Lt. Col. Tim Albers, an intelligence officer with the Multinational Force in Baghdad and the U.S. Army 4th Infantry Division.

The U.S. military said it had nearly completed an operation to build a wall along a main street dividing the southern portion of Sadr City from the northern areas, which are farther from the Green Zone. A primary goal is to put the enclave out of range for militia rockets and mortars.

"Within the next two weeks we should be done with the barrier part of the plan," said Col. Allen Batschelet, the chief of staff for forces in Baghdad.

He added extremists "are not happy because, once the wall, is in they are cut off."

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