THE Shi’ite Muslim cleric tipped to become prime minister after next Sunday’s election in Iraq has said it will be the duty of the new government to demand the withdrawal of American forces “as soon as possible”.

“No people in the world accepts occupation and nor do we accept the continuation of American troops in Iraq,” said Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, leader of the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq.

“We regard these forces to have committed many mistakes in the handling of various issues, the first and foremost being that of security, which in turn has contributed to the massacres, crimes and calamities that have taken place in Iraq against the Iraqis.”

In comments certain to raise eyebrows in the United States, al-Hakim spoke of a role for Iran and Syria — both regarded in Washington as enemies in the war on terror — along with Iraq’s other neighbours, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Kuwait, in the security of the country.

“These countries have past experiences and good security forces and with good relations we can solve this problem together,” he said.

“Should the security problem continue, it will not end at the border of Iraq but extend to their countries.”

Al-Hakim, who heads a list of 228 candidates representing the United Iraqi Alliance — a coalition of the main Shi’ite factions — refused to be drawn into specifying a timetable for American withdrawal, saying that the details had to be worked out after the election.

However, speaking slowly and emphatically, he added: “Iraq can rely on itself and its people and it does not want foreign troops in its country.”

President George W Bush’s administration has said that an Iraqi request for the removal of the 173,000 American and other foreign troops in the country would be honoured but declined to give any indication of timing.

Britain does not want to keep troops in Iraq for “a moment longer than we need to”, the Foreign Office said yesterday. “It’s a matter of staying sufficiently long for the Iraqis to be sufficiently robust to achieve security.”

The powerful alliance headed by al-Hakim was formed on the initiative of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq’s most revered spiritual leader. It is expected to win a majority of seats in the 275-member transitional national assembly, from which the prime minister will be chosen.

The election is being boycotted by most Sunni political parties, both secular and religious. Although outnumbered by the Shi’ite majority, the Sunnis dominated Iraq under Saddam Hussein but will emerge from the election with their influence sharply reduced.

Bush has heralded the election as the first test of his hopes for the spread of democracy to the Middle East but the administration appears increasingly concerned about the Shi’ite-dominated government that it is now expected to produce.

Further cause for pessimism has emerged with an American intelligence report warning that the elections will be followed by more violence, with an increased likelihood of clashes between Shi’ites and Sunnis that could lead to civil war.

It is all a far cry from Bush’s earlier vision of a secular Iraq that would become a crucial ally in the Middle East.

Al-Hakim, who works from the opulent Baghdad home of Tariq Aziz, Saddam’s urbane foreign minister, insisted that despite his close relationship with Iran, where he spent most of his years in exile, his objective was not the creation of an Islamic Republic of Iraq.

Iraq’s demography, history, culture and people were different from those of Iran, he said.

“Iran is a friendly neighbouring country that stood by Iraqis of all sects in the past, something that will not be forgotten by the Iraqi people,” al-Hakim added, apparently disregarding the bitter war that the two countries fought from 1980-88.

“However, this does not entitle it to interfere in Iraq and its people or to impose itself on us. We even told the Iranians this when we last visited them and got their reassurance that they, too, believe in the principle of non-interference.”

The Americans are not alone in worrying about Tehran’s influence. Many secular Shi’ite members of Iraq’s current government, headed by Ilyad Allawi, and neighbouring Sunni countries are also watching warily. Hazim Shalan, Allawi’s defence minister, has called al-Hakim’s alliance “an Iranian list” and fears of a takeover by Shi’ite clerics have prompted speculation that Washington might have been trying to strike a deal with al-Sistani to keep Allawi as prime minister after the election.

Allawi, a secular Shi’ite, is heading a coalition of political groups called the Iraqi List, which is expected to do well in the election. Despite heavy advertising on Arab language television and the offers of $100 “hospitality” gifts to journalists who turn up to its press conferences, the Iraqi List is nevertheless expected to finish well behind the United Iraqi Alliance.

Asked to comment on the idea of stepping aside for Allawi, al-Hakim merely smiled and replied: “One should not predict intentions in advance.”

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