Iraqi prime minister says he will not allow US to meddle in dispute over ban on candidates
By APFriday, February 5, 2010
Iraqi PM says he won’t allow US to meddle in vote
BAGHDAD — Iraq’s prime minister says he will not allow the U.S. ambassador to meddle in an effort to bar hundreds of candidates from running in March parliamentary elections because of suspected ties to Saddam Hussein’s regime.
Nouri al-Maliki says Ambassador Christopher Hill will not be allowed to overstep his position as a diplomat. His comments appeared to be in response to U.S. praise for a court decision Wednesday lifting the ban on more than 450 candidates.
Sunni political leaders viewed the blacklist as a way for al-Maliki’s Shiite-led government to undercut Sunni efforts to expand their political clout in the March 7 vote.
Al-Maliki said Friday that the ban on the candidates should be implemented and that Iraq must not bow to U.S. pressure.
