New twist in Iraq election crisis: Maliki's enemies latch onto torture allegations

Maliki’s State of Law coalition emerged from the March 7 elections with 89 seats in the 325-seat parliament, two behind that of secular Shiite challenger Ayad Allawi. Leaders of the four main political blocs have been jockeying for position in preliminary talks to form a governing coalition.

An appeals panel last week agreed to Maliki’s challenge of the Baghdad votes – more than 20 percent of the national total. The ruling, coming after statements by UN and US officials that the elections had appeared free of wide-spread fraud, has sparked accusations of political pressure on the judiciary. On Monday, US Ambassador Christopher Hill said the judiciary was being "tested" by political pressure and indicated it may be failing the test.

A copy of the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) ruling obtained by The Christian Science Monitor said the three-member panel decided to order the recount after statements submitted by the prime minister from 10 IHEC employees saying they had witnessed numerous violations not investigated by their superiors.

The panel also said it believed the size and complexity of the election made for a strong possibility of error – another factor in its decision.

Allawi's two-seat lead likely to be affected

Iyad Allawi, whose Iraqiya list is leading in the election results, on Wednesday demanded new elections and an internationally sanctioned caretaker government if winning candidates were barred from taking office.

“We will demand the formation of a temporary government,” he told Sharqiya television.

The same panel has banned a winning Sunni candidate from Iraqiya for taking office for alleged ties to the Saddam Hussein’s Baath party.

IHEC head Faraj al-Haidari today told reporters the Baghdad recount was unlikely to affect the final seat distribution but the banning of winning candidates by the same appeals panel likely would.

“It is not the recount that will affect the results of the elections but the disqualifications of candidates who won seats in the elections. Each winner, if disqualified, will be dismissed, as will all the votes he won. This will have a profound effect upon the results of the elections,” he said, adding that even one disqualified candidate would affect the final distribution of seats.

In addition to the Sunni candidate already disqualified, rulings are expected on at least nine other winning candidates, many of them from Iraqiya.

Sahar Issa contributed reporting.

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