US general: Sadr likely to extend Iraq ceasefire

WASHINGTON, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Influential Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr will likely extend a ceasefire that has been credited with helping reduce violence in Iraq, a U.S. general said on Friday.

Army Brig. Gen. Joseph Anderson, chief of staff for the Multi-National Corps-Iraq, said Sadr's August order to his Mehdi Army militia to cease activities for six months had been "helpful" in improving security in Baghdad and elsewhere.

"Clearly, it does help to have that in place and we would like to see it stay in place," Anderson said.

Asked if he was confident Sadr would recommit to the ceasefire, Anderson said: "I think I have to say, yes, now."

"It is viable. It has been viable. It's made a difference," he said.

Violence has fallen sharply across Iraq, with the number of attacks down 60 percent since last June. For much of 2007, U.S. forces said they considered rogue Mehdi Army units to be their greatest threat, but attacks subsided since the ceasefire.

U.S. commanders have been in contact since the ceasefire order with members of Sadr's group through interlocutors, according to senior U.S. officers. (Reporting by Kristin Roberts, Editing by Eric Beech)