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Shiite trio competes for power in Iraq

With upcoming local and parliamentary elections in Iraq, three Shiite leaders are grappling for more control in the next government.
Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr (L) meets with Ammar al-Hakim (R), the leader of Iraq's Shiite Muslim Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council (SIIC), on August 28, 2014 at the latter's house in the holy city of Najaf. Iraq's most influential Shiite cleric Sadr had announced the creation of the Saraya al-Salam armed group, tasked with defending the holy sites of Shiite Islam, in the aftermath of the jihadist Sunni Muslim offensive that began in June 2014. AFP PHOTO / HAIDAR HAMDANI        (Photo credit should read
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BAGHDAD — On Feb. 28, hundreds of pro-Sadrist university students in Kut attacked Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's procession with stones and water bottles. Abadi's security forces fired tear gas and live bullets at the protesters, injuring three. Subsequently, Sadrist leader Muqtada al-Sadr apologized to Abadi for the breaches. Though he called on his followers to stop the protests in Kut until further notice, he accused former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki of being behind the breaches to try to distort the Sadrist movement's image.

The incident reflects the intense competition among Iraq's Shiite leaders. There are currently three main Shiite figures competing for power: head of the Islamic Supreme Council Ammar al-Hakim, head of the State of Law Coalition Maliki, and Sadr himself. Each has his own plan to remain in power and remove the others or limit their influence. 

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