http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/BAK468564.htmBAGHDAD, Aug 24 (Reuters) - Iraq's health minister, an ally of activist Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, said on Wednesday he was suspending his membership in the government following what he called an attack on Sadr's offices in Najaf.
Abdul Mutleb Mohammed Ali said he was suspending his membership "until the government sorts this situation out".
Earlier on Wednesday, fighters loyal to Sadr, a young cleric with a populist urban appeal, clashed with forces linked to the Badr movement, a rival Shi'ite organisation that is allied to the main party in the Shi'ite-led government.
There was also fighting between Sadr's followers, known as the Mehdi Army, and Badr supporters in three areas of Baghdad, including Sadr City, a 2-million-strong Shi'ite district on the eastern outskirts of the city.