Alliance between Shias and Kurds under discussion

IRAQ: The leader of Iraq's largest party, Abdel-Aziz Hakim, yesterday met the country's president Jalal Talabani, to discuss the revival of the alliance between Shias and Kurds forged after last year's election.

Their encounter coincided with an announcement by UN official Craig Jenness that Iraq's December 15th parliamentary election was credible and there was no justification for a rerun at locations where vote rigging and intimidation allegedly took place. His statement is certain to elicit criticism from Sunni and secular parties which have been calling for a new round of voting in Baghdad, Irbil, Nineveh, Kirkuk and Dyala provinces.

On Tuesday Mr Hakim, who heads the Shia religious coalition, United Iraqi Alliance(UIA), discussed the prospects for co-operation with Masoud Barzani, president of the Kurdish regional council.

Although Mr Barzani expressed concern over the exclusion of Sunni Arabs from the political process, Mr Hakim rejected restaging votes or calling for an international investigation of irregularities.

Sustained US pressure on the Shias and Kurds to establish a "national government" has failed to compel the alliance to make concessions for the sake of unity. Even repeated calls from Iraq's senior Shia cleric, Ayatollah Ali Sistani, have had no effect.

Mr Hakim agreed to negotiate "with those who have a clear position on essential national issues", which he listed as the "struggle against terrorism", uprooting the Baath Party and proceeding with the trial of ousted president Saddam Hussein.

But these points signal that he is not prepared to work with the secular National Dialogue Council or the secular Iraqiya party led by former premier Ayad Allawi, because both groups contain former Baathists.

This leaves the Sunni religious National Accord Front, which Mr Hakim might also wish to exclude because some members are tied to resistance groups.

The Shias expect to win 130 seats in the 275-seat assembly. Combined with eight seats secured by allies and 50 seats the Kurds are likely to win, the Shias could count on 188, the narrow majority needed to choose a president who, in turn, will select a prime minister and his deputies.

Although the final election result is not out, Mr Talabani is slated to retain his post, while Adil Abdul Mahdi, a senior figure in the United Iraqi Alliance, and the current premier, Ibrahim Jaafari, have been mentioned as candidates for the premiership.

The victory of the Shia alliance has prompted secularists to demand the ministries of interior and defence, held by Shia and Sunni figures at present. These ministers are accused of using police and military units staffed by Shias and Kurds to murder and abuse Sunnis. However, since secularists may have only 20 seats in parliament, their demands could be dismissed.

Aware that goodwill generated by the poll has dissipated, exacerbating sectarian divisions, Dubai has called a meeting to work out a formula for co-operation. This gathering is to be attended by the alliance's Muwaffaq Rubae, Iraqiya's Adnan Pachachi, Shia cleric Muhammad Bahr Ulum and a Kurdish representative.