Posted on 12/10/2004 11:17:59 AM PST by crushelits
Cleric With Iranian Ties Leads Shiite Group
BAGHDAD, Iraq — A cleric with links to Iran leads the candidate list of a powerful coalition of Iraq's mainstream Shiite Muslim groups for next month's election, an aide said Friday. The list also includes former Pentagon favorite Ahmad Chalabi (search) and some followers of radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.
Abdel-Aziz al-Hakim — the head of Iraq's largest Shiite party, the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution — would stand to take a central position in the assembly that will create Iraq's next government and constitution, if the coalition takes most of the parliament seats in the Jan. 30 vote.
Backed by Iraq's top Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani (search), the coalition — called the United Iraqi Alliance — hopes to draw the bulk of the vote from Iraq's Shiite majority. U.S.-backed interim Prime Minster Ayad Allawi, also a Shiite, has not joined the group and is drawing up his own candidate list.
The coalition's platform, which has not been finished, will include a call for working toward the withdrawal of U.S. and other foreign troops in Iraq, members said.
"There must be a timetable for this," said Hussein al-Mousawi, an official of the Shiite Political Council, an umbrella group that has some parties represented in the alliance.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Surprising!
< /sarcasm >
It really pisses me off that the Shiites kept Allawi's name off the list. Iran has been trying to buy this election by funneling millions of dollars to the Shiites.
It's no surprise, as Iran is mostly Shia. This is a good thing, as long as the Iraqis have a fair chance at freely choosing him. Democracy's all about different points of view, and not all Iranians are nasty, just the ones currently in power. There are may pragmatic moderates there -- inside and outside the government -- and it might be good to have an inside edge. Also, it means different blocs are forming peacfully. The challenge will be to keep the peace AFTER the elections, when sore losers could wreck the whole thing.
Yes, I'm hoping these people are smart enough to understand they will have the option of voting out winner after his term and you don't have to kill him. My only fear is the winner of the first election won't step down if defeated.
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