May 11 (Bloomberg) -- Iraqi Shiite Muslim cleric Moqtada al- Sadr offered to end his insurgency against the U.S.-led coalition in the country if the coalition agrees to negotiations, Agence France-Presse reported.

The offer was contained in leaflets handed out today by his office in the holy city of Najaf, AFP said. Al-Sadr's Mahdi Army has been fighting the coalition over the past month.

The U.S. previously said al-Sadr must turn himself in on an arrest warrant issued by an Iraqi judge for the murder of a rival cleric last year. Earlier today, U.S. Major General Martin Dempsey told a briefing in Baghdad that the U.S. is willing to recruit al-Sadr's militiamen to join an Iraqi security force.

(AFP, 5-11)

To contact the reporter on this story: Julian Nundy in Paris at jnundy@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: May 11, 2004 11:22 EDT