Iraqi Shiite lawmakers try to rebuild their coalition in parliament

~ Influential cleric will not support inclusion of Kurds and Sunnis in the alliance.

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Iraq's most revered Shiite cleric withheld support Saturday for a U.S.-backed plan to build a coalition across sectarian lines, Shiite lawmakers said, jeopardizing hopes that such a show of political unity could help stem the country's deadly violence.

Members of the United Iraqi Alliance, the Shiite coalition that dominates parliament, met with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani in Najaf after traveling to the holy city over the past few days. Al-Sistani holds no political post and rarely emerges from his home and adjacent office, but he has strong influence over Shiite politics.

Some members of the Shiite alliance have sought a coalition that would include Kurds and Sunnis, and sideline Muqtada al-Sadr, the radical Shiite cleric whose militia is blamed for much of Iraq's sectarian violence. Lawmakers who attended the meeting with al-Sistani said the cleric opposed any move that would divide Shiites.

Obstacles to coalition

"There are obstacles in the face of forming this coalition, because al-Sistani does not support it. So we will work to strengthen the [Shiite] alliance," said Hassan al-Sunnaid, of the Dawa Party of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

Ali al-Adib, also a Dawa Party member, said al-Sistani "does not support such blocs because they will break Shiite unity."

An official close to al-Sistani, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media, said the cleric "will not bless nor support any new bloc or front. He only supports the unity of the Shiites."

Such a development could frustrate U.S.-backed efforts to persuade Iraq's political leaders to set aside sectarian interests and work together for the sake of national unity. Without progress in Iraqi politics, some observers say, the security situation in the country is likely to remain tenuous.

Al-Maliki, the Shiite prime minister, had relied heavily on the support of al-Sadr, whose 30 loyalists in the 275-seat parliament and six ministers in the 38-member Cabinet boycotted politics after al-Maliki met Bush in Jordan recently.

Political deadlock

Al-Sadr's walkout revealed the depth of division within the 130-seat Shiite bloc in parliament, where some lawmakers who are viewed as moderate have grown weary of the radical cleric's confrontational tactics. Al-Sistani is also believed to be uncomfortable with the younger al-Sadr, a firebrand whose fighters waged battles against American troops that left parts of Najaf in ruins.

After meeting al-Sistani, the Shiite lawmakers visited al-Sadr. The cleric has agreed to allow his supporters to rejoin the government, officials close to him have said. Their walkout had prevented the government from passing laws, creating a political deadlock alongside a deteriorating security environment.

"Our meeting with Muqtada al-Sadr was successful and fruitful. There were common points of understanding between us, and we assured the unity of the [United Iraqi] Alliance," said Khaled al-Attiya, an independent who is parliament's deputy speaker.

"He will give his final decision to rejoin the government and parliament after Eid al-Adha," al-Attiya said, referring to the Islamic calendar's most important holiday, which Iraq's Shiites will celebrate from Dec. 31 to Jan. 4.

However, the meeting ended with one Dawa party participant saying only that it was "constructive."

Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who spent three days in Iraq meeting with military and political leaders, met Saturday with President Bush to offer advice on transforming U.S. policy in Iraq.

Bush is considering whether to quickly send thousands of additional U.S. troops to the country to control the violence. There are 140,000 American troops in Iraq.

Before leaving Baghdad, Gates declined to say whether he plans to recommend a short-term increase in U.S. troop levels, but said he believes there is "a broad strategic agreement between the Iraqi military and Iraqi government and our military."

On Friday, the U.S. military announced five more American troop deaths, making December the second deadliest month for U.S. servicemen in 2006.

In more violence Saturday, six civilians were killed when a mortar shell hit a house in Baqouba, and an Iraqi military intelligence officer was slain in a drive-by shooting south of Baghdad, police said.

U.S.-led forces raided a militant hideout in Ramadi, west of Baghdad, killing one person and detaining nine, and Iraqi forces targeting a cell of the extremist al-Qaida in Iraq group captured seven people in Baghdad, the U.S. military said.