al-Jaafari faces strong opposition

Iraq's non-Shiites challenge Shiites over leader

"Leaders of Sunni, Kurdish and a secular political party decided Wednesday to ask the Shiite alliance to withdraw its nomination of Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari for another term, political officials said. The move is expected to draw sharp opposition from radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, whose support enabled al-Jaafari to win the nomination by a single vote in a Feb. 12 caucus of Shiites who won election to the new parliament Dec. 15. A political battle over al-Jaafari could further complicate efforts to form a national unity government — a key step in the U.S. plan to begin withdrawing its troops this year".

What a mess. And George Bush thinks we can avoid getting involved in their civil war...