Iraq's Sadr tells supporters to withdraw after violent clashes

Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr told his followers to leave their protests in central Baghdad on Tuesday and apologized to the Iraqi people after nearly two days of violent clashes between rival Shi'ite Muslim groups.

"This is not a revolutionary (anymore) because it has lost its peaceful character," Sadr said in a televised address. "The spilling of Iraqi blood is forbidden," he added.