Baghdad, Iraq - In a bid to stop sectarian bloodshed, Shiite and Sunni religious figures met in Mecca, Islam's holiest city, and issued a series of edicts Friday forbidding violence between Iraq's two Muslim sects.
It is uncertain whether the edicts, or fatwas, will find resonance among the country's Sunni and Shiite militants whose tit-for-tat attacks have created a deadly cycle of violence.
Previous attempts to reconcile Iraq's rival sects have failed.
Shiites and Sunnis in Iraq usually abide by fatwas issued or endorsed by their top clerics. However, the sectarian violence is largely perpetuated by militants who abide only by the strict interpretations of the Quran and Hadith that are offered by radical clerics outside Islam's mainstream.
A final communique after the meeting contained 10 points, most of which were edicts forbidding kidnappings, incitement of hatred, attacks on mosques and Shiite places of worship, and forcing members of the other sect from their homes.
The signing ceremony was carried live on Iraqi TV.