Iraqi political talks boost al-Maliki

Iraq's politicians are trying to stitch together a new majority alliance in parliament that would leave Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in power and freeze out backers of a powerful Shiite cleric who is leading a political standoff, officials said Thursday.

The apparent dealmaking comes amid increasing pressure from Washington for Iraqi lawmakers to end their impasses and move ahead with reforms _ including a key law on sharing Iraq's oil wealth _ considered essential to bring together the country's divided factions and ease the Sunni-Shiite bloodshed.

Iraq's political leadership has been locked in feuds for months with radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. The disputes have cast doubt on al-Maliki's ability to stay in office.

In April, six cabinet ministers loyal to al-Sadr quit the government to protest his refusal to call for a timetable for American troops to leave. Then last week, al-Sadr's 30-member parliament bloc began a boycott after accusing the government of failing to protect an important Shiite shrine in Samarra that was hit again by suspected Sunni bombers linked to al-Qaida.

Lawmakers and aides familiar with the negotiations said the goal is to keep al-Maliki, a Shiite, and possibly reach out to more Sunni groups to form a new governing majority in the 275-seat parliament. They also said al-Maliki may try to broaden his circle of close advisers to include President Jalal Talabani, a Kurd who holds a mostly ceremonial position.

The parliament members and aides spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the negotiations.

Al-Maliki's supporters would like to marginalize both al-Sadr's bloc and a small group of radical Sunnis _ which were needed to form a workable majority coalition after elections in 2005. But such a new political alignment could inspire more sectarian violence.

So far, the talks have included Iraq's two largest Shiite parties _ al-Maliki's Dawa Party and the Supreme Islamic Council of Iraq _ and the two main Kurdish parties, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and the Kurdistan Democratic Party.

The Iraqi Islamic Party, the country's largest Sunni Arab group, has been approached to join the bloc, along with independent Shiite legislators.

Shiites and Kurds, with expected defectors from the Islamic Party, should manage a majority.

Islamic Party lawmaker Salim Abdullah confirmed attempts to build a new "bloc of moderates," with U.S. approval. He declined to say whether the Islamic Party was approached to join.

Al-Maliki spoke this week of a "comprehensive" makeover in government, chipping away at the sectarian, power-sharing formula that has dictated power-sharing in Iraq since Saddam Hussein was ousted in 2003.

If formed, the new bloc would command a majority of at least 160 seats, enough to secure the adoption of draft laws on the distribution of Iraq's oil wealth, reinstating junior members of Saddam's Baath party to government jobs and the scheduling of local elections.

Also at stake are constitutional amendments demanded by minority Sunni Arabs.

Washington has said its four-month-old security operation in Baghdad was partly an effort to give al-Maliki's government some room to move ahead with political reforms. The crackdown has not significantly eased sectarian violence in the capital, but al-Maliki still has come under sharp criticism for not pushing ahead with the U.S.-backed political changes.

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AP writer Qassim Abdul-Zahra contributed to this report.