Word: sistani
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...Allawi government is reported to be trying to cobble together an agreement for the interim government parties to compete as a single list, to create a kind of force-multiplier for groupings such as his own Iraqi National Accord that have limited political standing. Shiite spiritual leader Ayatollah Ali Sistani has expressed unhappiness at the idea of a slate of mostly former-exile parties dominating the election in this way, and his boycott threat may yet pressure the major Shiite parties to avoid standing on Allawi's ticket. Among Shiite political groups, the most important questions are whether Sistani gives...
...allow Iraq's transition to proceed on its current terms. That's not a goal that Washington and its Iraqi allies can achieve on their own, no matter how great their effort and investment. It will depend, ultimately, on the extent to which they can persuade others, from Sistani to Iraq's neighbors and the wider international community, of the bona fides of the planned election. That may be why Allawi and the U.S. last week quietly launched an effort to hold a high-level international conference on the Iraqi election next month. Rather than confining it to President Bush...
...rebellious cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and his Mahdi Army. Slowly but surely, Iraq is becoming a Shi'ite theocracy like that of Iran. There is absolutely nothing the U.S. can do about it. That change is due in part to the ever growing influence of Grand Ayatullah Ali Husaini Sistani, to whom the Iraqi government turned in order to broker an end to the rebellion in Najaf. Isn't that ironic, since it was Iran and not Iraq that sheltered al-Qaeda operatives? The so-called axis of evil will only be strengthened by the shortsighted actions...
...rebel-held population centers also have a habit of turning the neutral civilian population against the U.S. and its Iraqi allies, as the experience of Najaf and Fallujah have shown. Then again, the risk of not holding the election on schedule may be even greater, since Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, spiritual leader of the majority Shiite community, has made clear he'll tolerate no further delay...
...polling booth. One way around this problem being touted by those around Allawi is to put forward a single list of candidates among all of the parties involved in the provisional government. Such an arrangement would certainly improve Allawi's chances of making a good showing, although Sistani's having none of it. He views such a plan as an attempt to manipulate the election, and has warned he will call for a boycott if it goes ahead. Given the fact that the most influential body of Sunni clerics has already signaled its own intention to boycott, an election opposed...