Prime Minister Allawi makes a plea for calm in the face of ongoing violence in Iraq: -- Protected by 100 guards, Iraq's interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi visited the war-shattered city of Najaf on Sunday, calling on Shiite militants to lay down their weapons after days of fierce clashes with U.S. forces. But even as Allawi met with Najaf's governor, police and the Mahdi Army militia loyal to Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr battled nearby. Gunfire and explosions could be heard as U.S. helicopter gunships circled overhead. Two Iraqi national guardsmen were killed, and 13 people wounded. ``We think that those armed should leave the holy sites and the (Imam Ali Shrine compound) as well as leave their weapons and abide by the law,'' Allawi said during a one-hour visit for talks with Najaf Gov. Adnan al-Zurufi. Clashes continued in other Shiite communities for the fourth straight day.