Al-Sadr fled Iraq for Iran, U.S. officials say

Muqtada al-Sadr, a Shia cleric whose militia has been blamed for fanning the flames of sectarian violence in Iraq, has reportedly fled for Iran.

Unnamed senior U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity,told various American news outlets Tuesday that al-Sadr left Baghdad several weeks ago and is believed to have settled in the Iranian capital of Tehran, where he has family.

At least one U.S. official said it is not clear how the cleric will controlhis Mahdi Army, thought to consist of about 60,000 militants, from abroad.

The officialclaimed fractures in al-Sadr's political and militia operations may be part of the reason for his departure, which is not believed to be permanent.

It is also not clear how al-Sadr's move will affect his relationship with the Iraqi government. He has strong ties to some of the Shia Muslim groups that are key partners in the ruling coalition.

"The question for us is to what extent his organization is going to participate in the political process," the official said, as quoted by the Associated Press.

The Mahdi Army, based out of the Sadr City ghetto in Baghdad, has clashed with U.S., British and Iraqi forces.

Since forming a cabinet in the spring,Prime Minister Nouri al-Malikihas been under increasing pressure from the United States and other countries, who have accused him of not doing enough to stem Sunni insurgents and Shia death squads and in particularof turning a blind eye to violence by al-Sadr's Mahdi Army.

Iraqi troops and the U.S.-led international forces announced in January that they were planning a major military offensive to clamp downon violencein Baghdad.

Border to Iran, Syria shut for 72 hours

News of al-Sadr's alleged departure coincided with Iraq's announcement Tuesday that it will close its borders with Iran and Syria for 72 hours in an attempt to clamp down on the sectarian violence that has been raging.

The Iraqi government also expanded the nightly curfew in Baghdad by an hour and took away the rights of citizens to carry weapons in public.

EarlierTuesday, a suicide bomber drove a truck into a government warehouse in a Shia neighbourhood in Baghdad, killing at least 15 people and wounding 27. That same day,a bomb inside a parked car exploded near a bakery in another Shia neighbourhood, killing four people and injuring four.

The United States claims that Iran and Syria let extremists cross into Iraq from their territories. The Iraq government has echoed the U.S.'s claims about Syria, but rarely makes the same claim about Iran, to which is has close relations.