BAGHDAD,
May 11 (IslamOnline.net) - Iraqi political factions preparing for a
national conference to fill the post-Saddam vacuum tend to put Kurdistan
Democratic Party leader Jalal Talabani at the helm of the country's
interim government, said a party leader on Sunday, May 11.
"Talbani
will be chosen by the six-member committee given his close links to the
two sides of the political process here," the Iraqi Islamic Party
Politburo chief Eyad al-Samra’i told IslamOnline.net, in reference to
the United States and the members of the committee, tapped by Washington
to oversee the birth of a democratic government after the fall of
Saddam.
Talabani's
KDP, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), the Supreme Council for
Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI), the Dawa party and the Iraqi
National Congress are the members of the committee.
Samra'i
said intensive talks are under way in the committee to add the Iraqi
Islamic Party to its ranks.
"All
political and sectarian trends should be represented in the congress
expected within coming few days," he added.
The
leader of one of the six groups, Ahmad Chalabi, from the U.S.-backed
INC, said they had reached a deal with the Americans "to cooperate
on security and information about the Baath party membership in order to
eradicate the remains of the Saddam leadership which is still in
Iraq."
Samra'i
stressed that the committee should "put into mind the new
developments on the Iraqi scene," such as the rising popularity of
group of Muqtada al-Sadr, a key Shiite cleric, and the increasing number
of his followers.
"Such
these trends should also be represented in the committee if it wants to
crown its work with success," Samra'i mused.
Talabani
was sentenced to death during the Saddam regime. He is known for his
close relations with the United states and he took part in all Iraqi
opposition conferences including the London gathering and the latest
conference held in Iraq.
The
formation of an interim government is as important since "the U.S.
forces wants to avoid any clashes with the Iraqis' calls for an end to
occupation, and the opposition wants to put the situation in Iraq under
control" in preparation for holding general and presidential
elections, Samra'i said.
