Iraq's interim leader called on his countrymen yesterday to set aside their differences after the weekend's historic election. But a US official acknowledged that participation by Sunni Arab voters was low -- raising fears that the group that drives the insurgency could grow ever more alienated.
"Starting from [yesterday], I will begin a new national dialogue to ensure all Iraqis have a voice in the new government," interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi said, speaking at a conference center once used by former president Saddam Hussein and his officials.
"The whole world is watching us. As we worked together yesterday to finish dictatorship, let us work together towards a bright future -- Sunnis and Shiites, Muslims and Christians, Arabs, Kurds and Turkmen," Allawi said.
A day after the vote, jubilant Iraqis sifted through ballots, tallying the results of an election that millions hoped would lead to democracy and hasten the departure of 150,000 American troops. In the Shiite holy city of Najaf, election workers counted ballots by the glow of an oil lamp.
In his first news conference since the elections, Allawi called on Iraqis to join together to build a society shattered by decades of war, tyranny, economic sanctions and military occupation.
"The terrorists now know that they cannot win," he said yesterday.
Final results of Sunday's election aren't expected for days, but the country is already focusing on goals almost as challenging as the election itself: Forming a new governing coalition, then writing a constitution and winning trust. Some fear the vote outcome could further alienate the once-powerful Sunni Muslim minority -- many of whom apparently stayed away from the polls.
Although turnout figures were unavailable, a US diplomat, briefing reporters on condition of anonymity, said "good anecdotal information" indicated that "Sunni participation was considerably lower than participation by the other groups, especially in areas which have seen a great deal of violence."
The electoral commission said it believed that turnout overall among the estimated 14 million eligible Iraqi voters appeared higher than the 57 percent, or roughly 8 million, that had been predicted before the vote. But it would be some time before any precise turnout figure was confirmed, they said.
"Now I feel that Saddam is really gone," said Fatima Ibrahim, smiling as she headed home after voting in Irbil, in the Kurdish northern region.
She was 14 and a bride of just three months when her husband, father and brother were rounded up in a campaign of ethnic cleansing under Saddam. None have ever been found.
The absence of any catastrophic single attack on Sunday seemed at least partly a result of the heavy security measures, including a ban on most private cars.
Yesterday, vehicles again wove their way down Baghdad's streets, and most of the nation was calm. But most traffic was still being blocked from crossing the city's main bridges, indicating security was still in place.
It was still unclear if the successful vote would deal a significant blow to the insurgents, or rather lead to a short-term rise in violence. The militants might need time to regroup after the spate of attacks they launched in the weeks before the vote.
The election was hailed as a success around the globe, with US President George W. Bush declaring: "The world is hearing the voice of freedom from the center of the Middle East."
Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said Iraqis showed "the courage to stand up to [violence] and we should support them."
France and Germany, two of the strongest critics of the US-led mission in Iraq, also welcomed the seemingly strong election turnout. A statement sent out by the German government described it as a sign of "the firm determination of the majority of Iraqis" to take charge of their nation's future.
But some cautioned that it was too early to declare the election a total success. New Zealand Foreign Minister Phil Goff said a low Sunni turnout could still impact the new government's ability to bring the frail nation under its control.
"Ways must be found to involve Sunnis in the drafting of the constitution, which will define power among Iraq's disparate groups, and to give them a stake in the new government," he said.
Much of the vote's success -- and even tensions in the region -- will be measured by Sunni turnout. The Iraq vote will almost certainly bring to power the country's long-suppressed Shiite Muslims, boosting the sect's influence in this Sunni Muslim-dominated area and worrying countries with Shiite minorities.
The 275-member National Assembly, elected for an 11-month term, will draft a permanent constitution, and if the document is approved, Iraqis will vote for a permanent government in December. If the document is rejected, Iraqis will repeat the whole process again.
Uncertain Sunni turnout, a string of insurgent attacks and suicide bombings that killed 44 people, and the crash of a British military plane drove home that chaos in Iraq isn't over yet.
The ticket endorsed by the Shiite Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani was the pre-voting favorite, while Interim Prime Minister Ayad Allawi's slate was also considered strong. Once results are in, it could take weeks of backroom deals before a prime minister and government are picked by the new assembly.
If that government can draw in the minority Sunni Arabs who partly shunned the election, the country could stabilize, hastening the day when 150,000 US troops can go home.
With the polls barely closed, international debate immediately turned to just that issue. Yesterday, Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid planned to call on Bush to outline an exit strategy for Iraq. And Downer said his country will keep troops only if the country's newly elected government wants them.
Iraq's interior minister, Falah al-Naqib, told Britain's Channel 4 News he expected there would be no need for US troops any longer than 18 months because that's when he anticipates Iraq's security forces will be trained well enough to handle the job themselves. But Allawi said recently that it was premature to know when Iraqi troops would be ready.
And in comments to CBS' Face The Nation, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice would not say whether US forces would leave the country in great numbers now that the vote is complete. Bush also did not mention any US military withdrawals in his statement.
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