Arabs states and Iran called for a halt to fighting in the Iraqi holy city of Najaf on Thursday, as thousands of U.S. and Iraqi soldiers launched a major push to defeat Shiite militia holed up in the city's shrine and cemetery. Egypt urged the Iraqi and U.S. troops to employ dialogue instead of force in Najaf, and Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi said the world should intervene quickly to "prevent the massacre of defenseless Iraqi people." In Cairo, Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa warned that the violation of sacred Muslim places could have "serious repercussions." Hours after Thursday's offensive began, Iraqi health authorities said five civilians had been killed and three wounded. The fighting in Najaf is "a painful and sad shedding of Iraqi blood," Moussa said Thursday. "The violent confrontations going on for days in Najaf are not a positive sign for the near or far future of Iraq, and even beyond Iraq," Moussa added. --MOR 1549 Local Time 1249 GMT
