Talk:Iraqi List

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Division in the Sunni Bloc and Alliance between Al Sadr and Al Hakim Printer friendly Division in the Sunni Bloc and Alliance between Al Sadr and Al Hakim 	Baghdad – Two days before the end of the time limit for submitting the names of blocs and alliances to the High Electoral Commission, the political map started to witness sudden wide-scale developments.

While the Shiaas are attempting to create a unified block that includes the Sadri Trend, the Sunni arena is witnessing division in its lines that might lead to creating two slates; one representing the Islamic Party, the Iraqis Conference and three leading figures in the National Dialogue Council (Khalaf Al Elayan, Abel Nasser Al Janabi and Hareth Al Mash'hadani), while the other represents the rest of the parties and the blocks under the Dialogue Council, headed by Saleh Al Mutlaq, in addition to some academic and technocratic figures.

The Kurdish bloc maintains its constituents, despite the withdrawal of the Kurdistani Islamic Party and its decision to create an independent slate. Despite its continuous confirmation of participating in the elections with an independent slate called the Sadri Slate, some reports declare wide-scale attempts for attracting the trend to join the other Shiite parties and trends, which come under the tent of 'The United Iraqi Coalition.'

Knowledgeable sources confirm to Al Hayat the existence of an initial agreement between Al Sadr and Al hakim for entering the coming elections with one slate, in which Al Sadr stipulated guaranteeing that the role of his supporters would not be marginalized after the coalition wins the elections, in addition to joint leadership of the slates.

Kareem Al Bakhati, spokesman for the Sadri Trend, referred to the competition among 200 academic figures and scientific cadres on the Sadri Slate. He said to Al Hayat, "The Sadris have initiated a wide-scale process of revision and screening for selecting the names that would be included on their slate." He confirmed the existence of "attempts on behalf of Al Hakim for gaining Al Sadr's intimacy."

Observers believe that Al hakim's attempts arise from his worries of not achieving success, similar to what the Coalition Bloc accomplished during the past elections, in case Al Sadr's slate monopolizes the votes of his supporters in Shiite cities, or Al Sadr's early withdrawal of any support for him. There are also worries that emerged from the last referendum on the draft constitution, which confirmed medium participation in voting in most Shiite cities, in addition to the general political status that presses towards accord, especially after the creation of the National democratic Bloc, headed by Iyad Allawi, former Prime Minister, which represented a new challenge for the coalition.

While some small political parties and entities have preferred to join the three big parliamentary blocs (Allawi's bloc), some other small parties that did not make their decision preferred to participate with independent slates, despite their tight chances in winning seats in the coming parliament.

The Sunnis are suffering from deep divisions, immediately after the failure of the deliberations among the parties under the tent of the national Dialogue Council in reaching an agreement on excluding the Islamic Party because of its supporting situation for the constitution.

Ali Al Sa'dun, a leading member in the council, confirms the existence of two blocs, due to the insistence of leading figures on joining the National Gathering, which includes the Islamic Party and the General Conference of Iraqi People. This forced the three entities in the 'Dialogue', which are represented in the Free National Front, headed by Hassan Al Luhaibi, the Arab Socialist Front, headed by Fehran Hawwas Al Sadid and the Iraqi National Front, headed by Saleh Al Mutlaq, to create a new coalition and participate with slates separate from the Sunni Coalition, under the name of the National Front, headed by Hatem Mahmoud Mukhles, and the Christian Democratic Party, in addition to a number of technocratic political figures.

Analysts believe that the Sunni division of religious and tribal trends, technocrats, and the distribution of some small parties to the other big blocs, became a clear indication for the lack of a Sunni bloc that can compete with the three big blocs.

Al Hayat http://www.almendhar.com/english_7236/news.aspx