Iraqi political and religious leaders trying to end a radical Shia uprising have flown into Najaf where US troops and militia have fought pitched battles near the country's holiest Islamic sites.
Sheikh Hussein al-Sadr
The eight-member delegation flew on US military helicopters, hoping to persuade the firebrand cleric Moqtada al-Sadr to call off a rebellion that has hit eight cities and rattled oil markets.
"This is not a negotiation. This is a friendly mission to convey the message of the national conference," delegation head Sheikh Hussein al-Sadr told reporters at a military camp.
"We want to change the Mehdi Army into a political organisation and to evacuate the Imam Ali shrine with the promise not to legally pursue those taking shelter there. This is what the government and all Iraqis want," he said.
The delegation had put off travelling by road to the southern city after insurgents threatened to ambush them.
Aides to the cleric, who is the icon of Iraq's downtrodden Shia masses, have said he welcomed the idea of sending the team but have not said whether he will meet the mission.
Speaking during a trip to Turkey, interim President Ghazi al-Yawar called on Sadr's Mehdi Army militia to stop fighting.
"We in the government are very keen to save any drop of Iraqi blood. . . . We are still calling on these people to stop this nonsense and join the political process," Yawar said.
The attack in Baghdad's bustling Rasheed street wounded 42 people, and destroyed at least five cars. Some officials said a roadside bomb caused the blast.
It followed a mortar attack near the fortified Green Zone compound where the political and religious leaders were meeting to select a 100-member interim national assembly. Officials said it was unclear if there were any casualties from that attack.