LONDON, Aug 20 (AFP) - Militiamen loyal to Shiite radical leader Moqtada Sadr handed the keys of Najaf`s Imam Ali shrine to representatives of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani Friday, a spokesman for the top Shiite cleric said.
"The keys were handed to the office (in Najaf)," Sistani spokesman Sayed Murtadha al-Kashmiri told AFP in London where the cleric has been receiving medical treatment.
Earlier Friday, a spokesman for Sadr said Sistani had agreed to take the keys of the shrine, paving the way for a resolution to the bloody 16-day standoff with US-led forces in the central Iraqi holy city.
"We went to Sistani`s office this morning to agree on giving up the keys to the mausoleum. His office called Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani in London, who agreed to take the keys," Sheikh Ahmed al-Shaibani told AFP in Baghdad.
"The visitors, human shields and militiamen will then leave the shrine," he added.
Sadr has repeatedly baulked at demands from Iraq`s US-backed caretaker government that he hand control of the mosque compound to Iraqi police.
Ceding control to the Shiite religious hierarchy offers him a face-saving way out.
Despite a reputation for moderation that has won plaudits from the US-led coalition, Sistani still commands enormous respect among Iraqi Shiites from across the political spectrum.