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Iraq coalition talks break down amid sectarianism claims

Arab World Materials 18 August 2010 16:17 (UTC +04:00)
Coalition talks between Iraq's main political parties remained in disarray Wednesday amid mutual accusations of sectarianism, leaving the country without a government more than five months after elections that were meant to be a test of stability.
Iraq coalition talks break down amid sectarianism claims

Coalition talks between Iraq's main political parties remained in disarray Wednesday amid mutual accusations of sectarianism, leaving the country without a government more than five months after elections that were meant to be a test of stability, DPA reported.

Former premier Ayad al-Allawi has said his Iraqiya List party would not conduct further negotiations with Prime Minister Nuri al-Malaki's State of Law list after the current head of cabinet made alleged remarks of a sectarian nature, in a country where ethnic and religious tensions run high.

According to officials with the Iraqiya party, Malaki, himself a Shiite Muslim, accused their grouping of representing Sunni Muslims.

Allawi, who is also a Shiite, insists his party is formed around a nationalist alliance of various sects in Iraq and should be considered as a secular group.

"This description is not right because it is the list of all Iraqis," said Jamal Batih, a member of Allawi's party.

No group won an outright majority in the March 7 election and attempts to form a coalition have failed, leaving the country in a precarious state ahead of a planned wind down of United States combat troops later this month.

As the Iraqi military prepared to take over security, with the US reducing its presence to 50,000 troops in mostly non-combat roles, Iraqi politics remained deadlocked, with lawmakers unable to draft new bills.

Iraq faces daily bombings and shootings, severe electricity shortages, water issues and challenges to economic stability, with civilian authority seeming to be slipping.

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