BAGHDAD (AP) - Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, whose coalition won the largest number of seats in Iraq's parliamentary elections, says the next government will be "inclusive."

The May 12 vote did not produce a single bloc with a majority, raising the prospect of weeks or even months of negotiations to agree on a government.

Speaking late Saturday after talks with Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi - their first postelection meeting - al-Sadr said no one will be excluded from the next government, without elaborating.

FILE - In this Monday, May 14, 2018 file photo, supporters of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, carry his image as they celebrate in Tahrir Square, Baghdad, Iraq. Al-Sadr, the influential maverick Shiite cleric whose political coalition beat out Iran's favored candidates to come in first in national elections, says he wants to form a government that puts Iraqis first.(AP Photo/Hadi Mizban, File)

Al-Sadr, whose followers fought U.S. forces in Iraq following the 2003 invasion, won 54 of the chamber's 329 seats. Al-Abadi's "Victory" bloc finished third with 42 seats in a surprisingly poor showing. </s> Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, whose coalition won the largest number of seats in Iraq's parliamentary elections, says the next government will be "inclusive."

The May 12 vote did not produce a single bloc with a majority, raising the prospect of weeks or even months of negotiations to agree on a government.

Speaking late Saturday after talks with Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi — their first postelection meeting — al-Sadr said no one will be excluded from the next government, without elaborating.

Al-Sadr, whose followers fought U.S. forces in Iraq following the 2003 invasion, won 54 of the chamber's 329 seats. Al-Abadi's "Victory" bloc finished third with 42 seats in a surprisingly poor showing. </s> Influential Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's political coalition has won the most seats in Iraq's national parliamentary elections, according to complete results released by Iraq's electoral commission.

The announcement came nearly a week after Iraqis cast their votes on May 12 and put Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi in third place, according to seat allocations.

An alliance of candidates with close ties to mostly Iranian-backed paramilitary forces came in second.

Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr speaks during a press conference in Najaf, 100 miles south of Baghdad, Iraq.

"Your vote is an honour for us," Mr al-Sadr said in a statement released on Twitter just moments after the official announcement.

"We will not disappoint you," he continued, adding "the blame, all the blame is on those who failed Iraq."

The election win marks the most significant victory of Mr al-Sadr's political career.

Partial results were announced earlier in the week, but allegations of irregularities and fraud delayed the complete count.

The vote was marked by record low turnout that benefited Mr al-Sadr who maintains loyal supporters who made it out to the polls when apathy kept many millions away.

No one alliance won an outright majority and negotiations over forming the government are expected to drag on for months as parties try to form a bloc large enough to gain a majority in parliament.

While Mr al-Sadr's coalition won the largest number of seats, it is yet unclear if the next prime minister will come from his camp.

Prolonged negotiations could result in a compromise candidate from a rival coalition.

Following the 2003 US-led overthrow of Saddam Hussein, Mr al-Sadr burst onto the scene as a renegade champion of poorer Shiites, leading militant fighters who carried out deadly attacks on American forces and were notorious for sectarian killings of Sunni Muslims.

In recent years, Mr al-Sadr has gained popularity as a nationalist voice, opposing Iranian influence and waging a public campaign against corruption.

For this election, he ran a non-sectarian campaign focused on issues of social justice, allying with secularists and Iraq's communist party, and broadening support beyond his traditional base. </s> A storage site housing half of Baghdad's ballot boxes from Iraq's parliamentary election in May has caught fire, just days after parliament demanded a nationwide recount of votes.

The fire has drawn calls for the election to be re-run.

An Interior Ministry spokesman said later the fire was confined to one of four warehouses at the site, and state television said the ballot boxes were being moved to another location under heavy security.

Authorities did not say whether they believed the fire was deliberately set, but its timing undermined the results of an election whose validity was already in doubt.

Fewer than 45 per cent of voters cast a ballot, a record low, and allegations of fraud began almost immediately after the vote.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, whose electoral alliance came third in the election, said on Tuesday (local time) a government investigation had found serious violations and blamed Iraq's independent elections commission for most of them.

The Independent High Elections Commission had used electronic vote-counting devices to tally the results.

A recount could undermine nationalist cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, a long-time adversary of the United States who also opposes Iran's sway in Iraq.

Mr Sadr's bloc won the largest number of seats in the election.

One of Mr Sadr's top aides expressed concern that some parties were trying to sabotage the cleric's victory.

Salim al-Jabouri, the outgoing speaker of parliament, said the fire showed the election should be repeated.

Mr Jabouri narrowly lost his seat in May and had been one of the strongest proponents of a recount before the fire.

His call was seconded by Vice-President Iyad Allawi, the leader of the electoral alliance Mr Jabouri ran as part of.

Top Sadr aide Dhiaa al-Asadi said the fire was a plot aimed at forcing a repeat of the election and hiding fraud.

"Whoever burned the election equipment and document storage site had two goals: either cancelling the election or destroying the stuffed ballots counted amongst the results," he tweeted.

The fire took place at a Trade Ministry site in Baghdad where the election commission stored the ballot boxes from al-Rusafa, the half of Baghdad on the eastern side of the Tigris river.

Baghdad is Iraq's most populous province, accounting for 71 seats out of the Iraqi parliament's 329.

The site was divided into four warehouses, Interior Ministry spokesman Major General Saad Maan said.

Only one — housing electronic equipment and documents — had burned down, he said.

Firefighters were trying to stop the fire from spreading to the remaining three warehouses, where the ballot boxes were stored, he said.

The law mandating a manual recount also mandated the board of the election commission be replaced by judges.

Earlier on Sunday, the Supreme Judicial Council, Iraq's highest judicial authority, named the judges to replace the commissioners.

The council also named judges to replace the commission's local chiefs in each of Iraq's 18 provinces, another measure mandated by parliament.

The board of commissioners has said it would appeal against the law forcing the recount. </s> Iraq’s outgoing Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and radical Shiite cleric Moktada al-Sadr have said they have become political allies in an effort to form a new government in the wake of a widely discredited May elections. The announcement, made in the Shiite holy city of Najaf in a meeting between American ally Abadi and a long-time US foe Sadr on Saturday, came as a surprise to many political observers, the New York Times reported.

This was especially because Sadr-the top vote-getter-had already announced an alliance with a pro-Iranian Shiite leader, Hadi al-Ameri. Ameri was second in the polls, while Abadi was third. “This is a call for an alliance that is nonsectarian and rejects ethnic politics in order to include all of the Iraqi people,” Sadr said at a joint news conference with Abadi, who is still the Prime Minister until the new parliament sits on July 1 and elects his replacement. “We want to speed up the process of coming to a political agreement to send a positive message to the citizens that we are serious about moving forward,” Abadi said.

Sadr scored an upset victory as the leading vote-getter in the May 12 national parliamentary elections, which were marred by the lowest voter turnout since the 2003 fall of Saddam Hussein. But no party won enough seats in parliament to govern without forming alliances with several of the many parties. The results were also contested on grounds of fraud, with the outgoing parliament ordering a manual recount of the votes, a decision upheld by Iraq’s highest court. It was unclear, however, whether the new parliament would carry out that decision, the New York Times report said. </s> Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption It is not clear if voting papers have been destroyed

A fire has been brought under control at Iraq's biggest ballot paper storage depot days after an election recount was ordered.

Votes for the eastern district of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, were being held in the depot.

Officials say some ballot boxes could have been in a warehouse that burnt down but most were safe.

Last month's legislative elections were won by an alliance headed by Shia Muslim cleric Moqtada Sadr.

Amid allegations of fraud, the outgoing parliament ordered a recount of about 10 million votes.

The depot housed ballot boxes from the city's al-Rusafa district.

An interior ministry spokesman told Reuters news agency the blaze had been confined to one of four warehouses.

Iraqi authorities have not commented on whether they think the blaze was caused deliberately.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi warned that security agencies had evidence of "unprecedented" violations during the elections.

He said the main issue was with the electronic vote-counting machines that were used for the first time on 12 May.

Fire 'plot'

Though the cause of the fire was not reported, Mr Abadi described it as a "plot to harm the [Iraqi] nation and its democracy".

He said the government would "take all necessary measures and strike with an iron fist against those who undermine Iraq's security".

The outgoing speaker of the Iraqi parliament has said the election should be repeated as a result of the fire.

Salim al-Jabouri, who lost his seat in May's election, said the fire was "a deliberate act, a planned crime, aimed at hiding instances of fraud and manipulation of votes".

Image copyright Reuters Image caption Mr Sadr - who once led a militia which fought occupying US troops - led an alliance that won the most votes

Mr Sadr's nationalist grouping formed an alliance with a number of secular parties.

It won 54 of the 328 seats in parliament - making it the largest bloc in the post election landscape.

The cleric, who has ruled himself out of becoming Iraq's prime minister, once led a militia which fought US troops.

One of Mr Sadr's aides, Dhiaa al-Asadi, said on Twitter (in Arabic) that he thought the fire was carried out "to cancel the election or destroy the stuffed ballots counted amongst the results".

A bloc linked to Iranian-backed paramilitaries that have battled the jihadist group Islamic State (IS) over the past four years came second with 47 seats.

The election, the first held since the government declared victory over IS in December, saw a turnout of 44.5% - much lower than in previous polls. </s> A political bloc led by Shia leader Muqtada al-Sadr has won the country's parliamentary election, the electoral commission said, ahead of internationally favoured Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's bloc.

Al-Sadr himself cannot become prime minister as he did not run in the election, but his bloc's victory puts him in a position to have a strong say in negotiations.

His electoral list captured 54 parliamentary seats, according to the results released on Saturday.

The Fatah bloc led by Hadi al-Amiri, who has close ties with Iran, came in second with 47 seats.

The Nasr Coalition, headed by incumbent al-Abadi, took third place with 42.

Al-Sadr, who made his name leading two violent uprisings against US occupation troops, was sidelined for years by Iranian-backed rivals.

His bloc's performance represented a rebuke to a political elite that some voters blame for widespread corruption and dysfunctional governance.

Al-Sadr's alliance - an unconventional one with communists and secular Iraqis - has announced it is fiercely opposed to any foreign interference in Iraq - whether Tehran's or Washington's.

It has promised to help the poor and build schools and hospitals in Iraq, which was battered in the war to defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) and has suffered economically as a result of low oil prices.

Before the election, Iran publicly stated it would not allow al-Sadr's bloc to govern.

In a tweet shortly after results were announced, al-Sadr said: "Reform is victorious and corruption is diminishing."

Winning the largest number of seats does not automatically guarantee that al-Sadr will be able to hand-pick a prime minister. The other winning blocs would have to agree on the nomination.

In a 2010 election, Vice President Iyad Allawi's group won the largest number of seats, albeit with a narrow margin, but he was blocked from becoming premier, which he blamed on Tehran.

The election dealt a blow to al-Abadi, but he could still emerge as a compromise candidate palatable to all sides because he has skillfully managed the competing interests of the US and Iran - unwitting allies in the war against ISIL - during his term in office.

Al-Amiri is regarded as one of the most powerful figures in Iraq, having spent two decades fighting against Saddam Hussein from his exile in Iran.

Iranian Major General Qassem Soleimani, commander of foreign operations for Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards and a highly influential figure in Iraq, has been holding talks with politicians in Baghdad to promote the formation of a new cabinet that would have Iran's approval.

Negotiations are expected to drag on for months.

The government should be formed within 90 days of the official results. </s> NAJAF, Iraq, June 23 (Reuters) - Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and cleric Moqtada al-Sadr said on Saturday that their political blocs, which came in third and first place in a May parliamentary election respectively, would enter into an alliance.

The alliance between Abadi’s third-placed Victory Alliance and Sadr’s Saeroon which won the largest number of seats would cross sectarian and ethnic divisions, the leaders said at a news conference in the Shi’ite holy city of Najaf where Sadr lives.

Earlier in June, Sadr and second-placed Hadi al-Amiri, a Shi’ite militia commander with close ties to Iran, had announced an alliance between their blocs. It was not immediately clear if Saturday’s announcement meant the top three blocs had now entered into one larger alliance. (Reporting by Ahmed Saeed; writing by Ahmed Aboulenein; editing by Raya Jalabi) </s> Supporters of powerful leader Muqtada al-Sadr are demanding that the electoral commission be reformed.

Iraqi security forces fired tear gas and rubber-coated bullets at thousands of supporters of an influential Shia leader demonstrating near Baghdad's Green Zone to press for electoral reform.

One police officer was killed during Saturday's protests, according to police and hospital officials who said seven other policemen were injured along with dozens of protesters.

The Associated Press news agency quoted hospital officials as saying that the officer died of a bullet wound.

Muqtada al-Sadr, the Shia leader, accused the elections commission of being corrupt and called for the commission's members to be changed, according to a statement from his office.

Rising to his call to protest, demonstrators had gathered near the Green Zone - a cluster of embassies and government buildings - to demand an overhaul of the commission that supervises elections before a provincial vote due in September.

Riot police fired tear gas when the crowd tried to move towards the zone, which also houses international organisations and the homes of prominent politicians.

Shots rang out in central Baghdad as security forces used live fire and tear gas to disperse the crowds.

"We will not give in to threats," said the head of the electoral commission, Serbat Mustafa, in an interview with a local Iraqi television channel Saturday afternoon.

Mustafa said he would not offer his resignation and accused Sadr of using the commission as a political "scapegoat."

Sadr has been a vocal critic of Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, and last year protests that included many of his followers breached the highly fortified Green Zone twice.

An Associated Press news agency team at the scene witnessed ambulances rushing away protesters suffering from breathing difficulties.

The protest organisers said about two dozen demonstrators had choked on the gas.

Live TV footage showed young men running away as white smoke filled Tahrir Square in downtown Baghdad.

Sadr's supporters stormed the Green Zone last year after violent clashes with security forces.

Sadr suspects that members of the electoral commission are loyal to his Shia rival, Nouri al-Maliki, former prime minister, one of the closest allies of Iran in Iraq.

Prime Minister Abadi called on the demonstrators to remain peaceful and to "abide by the law".
The electoral commission announces the results of the May 12 elections. Muqtada al-Sadr's list wins most seats, followed by Hadi al-Amiri and Haider al-Abadi's groups.