Lawmaker: Iraq close to partition

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BAGHDAD, March 4 (UPI) -- Political conflicts in Iraq are pushing the country close to partition, says a member of the Iraqi parliament.

Adel Abdullah, of the Kurdistan Alliance, believes "the situation in Iraq is close to partition," IraqiNews.com reported Monday.

He said Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is convinced Iraq is about to be divided into three countries.

The partition won't happen "if the political sides adhere to the dialogue," Abdullah said. "Many of the politicians do not know the concept of the federalism and think tat it leads to the partition."

He was optimistic the discord between the parties would not cause the government to fail as happened in other Middle Eastern and North African countries during the Arab Spring.

"The change that took place in the Arab countries will not take place in Iraq because the regime in Iraq is elected and the power was peacefully changed," Abdullah said.