Palestinian Militant Groups Pledge Support For Iraq Militia Leader

GAZA CITY, Aug 24 (AFP)- The Palestinian militant groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad proclaimed their "total support" Tuesday for Moqtada Sadr, condemning the US offensive against the Shiite militia leader in the Iraqi holy city of Najaf.
Hamas "totally supports Moqtada Sadr and his brothers in arms in their resistance against the American occupation," the Islamist movement said in a statement.
The movement "strongly condemns the American aggression against the Iraqi people and their holy places, in particular Najaf."
"All Iraqis -- Sunnis and Shiites, Arabs and Kurds -- should continue their resistance against the aggression targeted against them."
Mohammad al-Hindi, a leader of the smaller Islamic Jihad movement, also told AFP that his group supported Sadr and his Mehdi Army militia and "firmly condemned the aggression against Najaf."
The Mehdi Army has occupied Najaf's Imam Ali complex, one of Shiite Islam's holiest shrines, since April.
US forces unleashed Tuesday a fresh wave of raids on positions held by Sadr's militia in Najaf.