Iraqi PM rejects calls to form unity government

Baghad. jun 25 – Iraq 's Shiite prime minister on Wednesday rejected calls to form an interim "national salvation government" that critics say would allow the country's squabbling sects to quickly present a unified front in the face of a growing threat by Sunni militants who have seized several cities this month.

U S. officials have pressed for the next Iraq i government to be more inclusive, seeking to draw Sunni support away from the militants led by an al-Qaida breakaway group that seeks to carve out a purist Islamic enclave across both side of the Syrian- Iraq border.

Several politicians, including Ayad Allawi, a secular Shiite who has been named as a possible contender to replace al-Maliki, have called on him to step down and form a so-called national salvation government that could provide leadership until a more permanent solution can be found.

Al-Maliki, however, insisted the political process must be allowed to proceed, saying the formation of a "national salvation" government would amount to a "coup against the constitution."

Instead he called on "political forces" to close ranks in the face of a growing threat by Sunni militants who have seized a large chunk of the country's north and west, but took no concrete steps to meet U.S. demands for greater political conclusiveness for minority Sunnis.

Al-Maliki's coalition, the State of the Law, won the most seats in that vote — 92 of the 328-seat chamber. In office since 2006, al-Maliki needs the support of a simple majority in the chamber to hold on to the job for another four-year term. The legislature is expected to meet before the end of the month, when it will elect a speaker. It has 30 days to elect a new president, who in turn will select the leader of the majority bloc in the chamber to form the next government.

"We desperately need to take a comprehensive national stand to defeat terrorism, which is seeking to destroy our gains of democracy and freedom, set our differences aside and join efforts," said al-Maliki. "The danger facing Iraq requires all political groups to reconcile on the basis and principles of our constitutional democracy."

"We, despite the cruelty of the battle against terrorism, will remain loyal and faithful to the will and choices of the Iraq i people in bolstering their democratic experiment," he said.

He added that "rebels against the constitution" — a thinly veiled reference to Sunni rivals — posed a more serious danger to Iraq than the militants.

Al-Maliki's remarks were his first public statement since President Barack Obama challenged him last week to create a more inclusive government or risk his country descending into sectarian civil war.

Al-Maliki's government is struggling to repel advances led by militants of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, a well-trained and mobile force thought to have some 10,000 fighters and allies inside Iraq . The insurgency has also drawn support from disaffected Sunnis who are angry over perceived mistreatment and random detentions by the Shiite-led government. AP