Iraq premier claims coalition majority

BAGHDAD, Oct. 1 (UPI) -- Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki announced a coalition deal Friday that he says will keep him in power after months of stalemate.

Maliki made a pact with followers of Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, The New York Times reported. With the Sadrists' 40 seats, Maliki now has the backing of at least 149 lawmakers in the new 325-member Parliament to form a government, just short of a majority.

After Friday's announcement, the Kurds indicated they, too, would support his re-election, though with certain concessions on territorial, economic and political issues.

A member of a rival Shiite party, Ali Shubar, said its members would oppose Maliki because "we won't vote for another failed government." Former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi's bloc also vowed to oppose the nomination, but despite winning more seats than Maliki, 91 to 89, he and his supporters did not appear to have enough votes to do so.

The pact came with political costs, splintering a broad Shiite alliance and threatening to raise tensions among Sunnis who largely supported Allawi, a secular Shiite leader.

The United States also opposes including the Sadrists, who are closely allied with Iran and oppose the presence of American troops.