IRAQ: Shia politicians said yesterday they had finalised an electoral alliance of Iraq's main Shia parties, but that it excluded the followers of Moqtada al-Sadr, the former insurgent leader.
The United Iraqi Alliance, backed by Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the senior Shia cleric, includes figures from the al-Dawa party and the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq (Sciri).
Alliance members said it also contained the Iraqi National Congress of Mr Ahmed Chalabi, the maverick Shia politician, the largely Sunni National Democratic party, and Kurdish and Turcoman figures.
The absence of Mr al-Sadr's followers, however, dampens hopes that a movement which plunged much of southern Iraq into rebellion over the summer had committed itself to peaceful electoral politics.
Since negotiations about the list became public two months ago, al-Sadr loyalists have issued contradictory messages about whether they would participate, but politicians associated with Mr Sistani expressed confidence that the radical movement could be brought on board. Mr Hussein al-Shahristani, a nuclear scientist involved in compiling the list, said that al-Sadr supporters were not included for bureaucratic reasons, but would back the list.
"The Sadr movement is not registered as a political entity, and therefore is not part of the alliance. But they are supporting the Marjaiya [ Shia clergy] in its call for elections, and they are asking their followers to vote for this list," Mr Shahristani said.
However, a leading al-Sadr loyalist politician was quoted by the al-Hayat newspaper as saying Mr Sadr's followers would "suspend" their participation in the elections, and denied reports of support for Mr Sistani's list.