Baghdad - Radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr on Saturday threatened "open war" with the Iraqi government if its security forces continue to attack members of his militia.

Al-Sadr's said his statement was a "last warning" to the government of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, according to media reports. He urged al-Maliki to choose a "path of peace."

The comments came after clashes broke out Saturday between joint Iraqi-US forces and members of al-Sadr's Mahdi Army in Baghdad and in the Hayaniya district of Basra in southern Iraq. Witnesses reported casualties but there were no reliable figures available. (dpa)