Allawi caretaker government. The IIP had also been the main force urging Sunni Arabs to participate in the elections scheduled for January, and had been opposed in this stance by the Association of Muslim Scholars. That the Iraqi Islamic Party is now contemplating leaving the Allawi government raises the question of whether a mass Sunni Arab boycott of the elections is in the offing, thus fatally weakening the legitimacy of any new government. Az-Zaman : The Association of Muslim Scholars forbade Iraqis to participate in the attack on Fallujah with the Americans. In a communique, the AMS said that for Iraqis to take part with "raiding forces" in the assault on a city, the population of which is Muslim (such as Fallujah) would be considered the most mortal