wrebiejo
04-08-2010, 06:44 AM
BAGHDAD --The secular party of Ayad Allawi, a former interim prime minister once derided as an American puppet, won a wafer-thin victory in Iraq's election, setting the stage for a protracted period of political uncertainty and possible violence that could threaten plans to withdraw American troops.
The outcome, announced Friday, was immediately challenged by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and his mostly Shiite supporters, who hurled accusations of fraud and made vague references to the prime minister's power as commander in chief.
Ayad Allawi
Ayad Allawi
Nouri al-Maliki
Nouri al-Maliki
Western observers and an independent election commission said they saw no signs of widespread fraud.
Allawi galvanized the votes of millions of Sunnis -- who boycotted the last parliamentary elections in 2005 -- to build his edge of 91 to 89 seats over his nearest rival, al-Maliki. That falls far short of the majority of 163 of the 325 seats in parliament that he needs to form a government.
Iraqi political experts doubt that Allawi would succeed in assembling a governing coalition. But even if he did, they said, it would take at least until July, possibly even longer, a potentially destabilizing stretch in which a disgruntled al-Maliki would serve as caretaker prime minister.
In a statement that seemed to reflect American concerns about the potential for violence, U.S. Ambassador Christopher Hill and Gen. Ray Odierno, the top American military commander in Iraq, praised "the overall integrity of the election" and called on political parties to "refrain from inflammatory rhetoric or action."
There had been hope that the election would spell an end to Iraq's sectarian politics. And though the balloting shattered the sectarian political template that brought al-Maliki to power in 2005, when an alliance of Shiite parties dominated the election, the outcome re-emphasized the country's sectarian and regional divides and the deepening schism between Arabs and Kurds.
The vote in part reflected dissatisfaction with al-Maliki's ability to provide security, government services, and jobs. Allawi appealed to Iraqis tired of the past domination of Iraqi politics by religious parties; others responded to his image as the sort of strongman they have lacked since Saddam Hussein was ousted.
A jubilant Allawi said he would work with any group that was willing to join him in forming a government. "We will not exclude anyone," he said. "Our coalition is open to all."
But to accomplish that goal, Allawi will have to overcome deep-seated enmity not only from al-Maliki but the other two biggest vote-getting blocs: the Kurds, with 43 seats; and the Iraqi National Alliance, a Shiite party that gained 70 seats and is led in part by the anti-American cleric, Muqtada al-Sadr, who emerged as a possible kingmaker.
Allawi's buoyant mood contrasted sharply with the atmosphere in the prime minister's camp on Friday evening, where al-Maliki angrily vowed to challenge the vote as fraudulent. "No way we will accept the results," al-Maliki said. "These are preliminary results."
Tale of survival
BAGHDAD -- He has fought off a machete-wielding assassin believed sent by Saddam Hussein, spent much of his life in exile and was rumored to have shot a number of insurgents.
Ayad Allawi is a survivor, and he showed it more than ever in Iraq's parliamentary elections.
Allawi does not easily conform to the sectarian boundaries so often associated with Iraq's fragile postwar experiment with democracy.
A Shiite by birth and a surgeon by training, he is seen by many as the man who can bridge Iraq's sectarian divide after years of bloodshed.
At the same time, he's also been jokingly referred to as "Saddam without a mustache" by Iraqis who feel the country needs a strong ruler.
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2010/mar/27/iraqs-premier-loses-close-race/?partner=RSS
The outcome, announced Friday, was immediately challenged by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and his mostly Shiite supporters, who hurled accusations of fraud and made vague references to the prime minister's power as commander in chief.
Ayad Allawi
Ayad Allawi
Nouri al-Maliki
Nouri al-Maliki
Western observers and an independent election commission said they saw no signs of widespread fraud.
Allawi galvanized the votes of millions of Sunnis -- who boycotted the last parliamentary elections in 2005 -- to build his edge of 91 to 89 seats over his nearest rival, al-Maliki. That falls far short of the majority of 163 of the 325 seats in parliament that he needs to form a government.
Iraqi political experts doubt that Allawi would succeed in assembling a governing coalition. But even if he did, they said, it would take at least until July, possibly even longer, a potentially destabilizing stretch in which a disgruntled al-Maliki would serve as caretaker prime minister.
In a statement that seemed to reflect American concerns about the potential for violence, U.S. Ambassador Christopher Hill and Gen. Ray Odierno, the top American military commander in Iraq, praised "the overall integrity of the election" and called on political parties to "refrain from inflammatory rhetoric or action."
There had been hope that the election would spell an end to Iraq's sectarian politics. And though the balloting shattered the sectarian political template that brought al-Maliki to power in 2005, when an alliance of Shiite parties dominated the election, the outcome re-emphasized the country's sectarian and regional divides and the deepening schism between Arabs and Kurds.
The vote in part reflected dissatisfaction with al-Maliki's ability to provide security, government services, and jobs. Allawi appealed to Iraqis tired of the past domination of Iraqi politics by religious parties; others responded to his image as the sort of strongman they have lacked since Saddam Hussein was ousted.
A jubilant Allawi said he would work with any group that was willing to join him in forming a government. "We will not exclude anyone," he said. "Our coalition is open to all."
But to accomplish that goal, Allawi will have to overcome deep-seated enmity not only from al-Maliki but the other two biggest vote-getting blocs: the Kurds, with 43 seats; and the Iraqi National Alliance, a Shiite party that gained 70 seats and is led in part by the anti-American cleric, Muqtada al-Sadr, who emerged as a possible kingmaker.
Allawi's buoyant mood contrasted sharply with the atmosphere in the prime minister's camp on Friday evening, where al-Maliki angrily vowed to challenge the vote as fraudulent. "No way we will accept the results," al-Maliki said. "These are preliminary results."
Tale of survival
BAGHDAD -- He has fought off a machete-wielding assassin believed sent by Saddam Hussein, spent much of his life in exile and was rumored to have shot a number of insurgents.
Ayad Allawi is a survivor, and he showed it more than ever in Iraq's parliamentary elections.
Allawi does not easily conform to the sectarian boundaries so often associated with Iraq's fragile postwar experiment with democracy.
A Shiite by birth and a surgeon by training, he is seen by many as the man who can bridge Iraq's sectarian divide after years of bloodshed.
At the same time, he's also been jokingly referred to as "Saddam without a mustache" by Iraqis who feel the country needs a strong ruler.
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2010/mar/27/iraqs-premier-loses-close-race/?partner=RSS