BAGHDAD (AP) -- Officials in the southern province of Basra say they are lifting a four-month-old ban on alcohol.

The spokesman for the Basra provincial council, Hashim Aleibi, says the decision Tuesday came after opponents argued the ban violated rights for personal freedoms and denied non-Muslims the ability to buy and consume liquor.

The booze ban took effect in August in Basra province, which includes Iraq's second-largest city. Even prior to the ruling, though, alcohol was difficult to obtain.

In October, alcohol also was outlawed in the province of Najaf, which has some of the holiest Shiite sites in Iraq.

Alcohol is available in most Iraqi cities in stores generally owned by Christians. But some liquor stores have been attacked by religious extremists.