Nuri Maliki

An ever more isolated Nuri al-Maliki again protested his removal as Iraqi prime minister on Wednesday as his former sponsor in Iran publicly endorsed a successor who many in Baghdad hope can halt the advance of Sunni jihadists.

Iraq moved closer to ending Nuri al-Maliki's stubborn grip on power when his own political clan spurned him for another prime minister called to save the country from breakup.

Special forces loyal to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki were deployed in strategic areas of Baghdad on Sunday night after he delivered a tough speech indicating he would not cave in to pressure to drop a bid for a third term, police sources said.

State television is working overtime to persuade Iraqis to help Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki confront an al Qaeda offshoot that has seized wide tracts of the country, but its unifying call has been blunted by his sectarian reputation.

The United States on Thursday threw its weight behind the newly elected president of Iraq, Fuad Masum, and urged him to form a "cohesive government" to help fight Islamic militants.

Iraq's Kurds said on Thursday Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki was "hysterical" and not fit to run the country, further dimming the prospect of a new leadership uniting to face jihadist fighters.

Newly elected Iraqi lawmakers convene on Tuesday, under pressure to name a unity government to keep the country from splitting apart after an onslaught by Sunni Islamists who have declared a "caliphate" to rule over all the world's Muslims.

U.S. intelligence agencies have repeatedly warned top government officials that Iraq's Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al Maliki and his policies were gravely antagonizing his country's Sunni population, two U.S. security officials said on Friday.

Iraqi premier Nuri al-Maliki, accused by domestic opponents and, increasingly, by once firm American allies of "sectarianism" that has fuelled a Sunni insurgent onslaught, is a political survivor whose time may be up.

France on Friday called for the formation of a unity government in Iraq with or without Shiite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to fight Sunni jihadists advancing towards Baghdad.

Iraqis head to the polls on Wednesday in their first national election since US forces withdrew from Iraq in 2011 as Prime Minister Nuri Maliki seeks a third term amid rising violence.

The Obama administration is considering expanding its support to Iraqi forces as they fight off a renewed al Qaeda threat, but Washington's ability to significantly increase security assistance to Baghdad will remain limited.

An ever more isolated Nuri al-Maliki again protested his removal as Iraqi prime minister on Wednesday as his former sponsor in Iran publicly endorsed a successor who many in Baghdad hope can halt the advance of Sunni jihadists.

Iraq moved closer to ending Nuri al-Maliki's stubborn grip on power when his own political clan spurned him for another prime minister called to save the country from breakup.

Special forces loyal to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki were deployed in strategic areas of Baghdad on Sunday night after he delivered a tough speech indicating he would not cave in to pressure to drop a bid for a third term, police sources said.

State television is working overtime to persuade Iraqis to help Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki confront an al Qaeda offshoot that has seized wide tracts of the country, but its unifying call has been blunted by his sectarian reputation.

The United States on Thursday threw its weight behind the newly elected president of Iraq, Fuad Masum, and urged him to form a "cohesive government" to help fight Islamic militants.

Iraq's Kurds said on Thursday Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki was "hysterical" and not fit to run the country, further dimming the prospect of a new leadership uniting to face jihadist fighters.

Newly elected Iraqi lawmakers convene on Tuesday, under pressure to name a unity government to keep the country from splitting apart after an onslaught by Sunni Islamists who have declared a "caliphate" to rule over all the world's Muslims.

U.S. intelligence agencies have repeatedly warned top government officials that Iraq's Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al Maliki and his policies were gravely antagonizing his country's Sunni population, two U.S. security officials said on Friday.

Iraqi premier Nuri al-Maliki, accused by domestic opponents and, increasingly, by once firm American allies of "sectarianism" that has fuelled a Sunni insurgent onslaught, is a political survivor whose time may be up.

France on Friday called for the formation of a unity government in Iraq with or without Shiite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to fight Sunni jihadists advancing towards Baghdad.

Iraqis head to the polls on Wednesday in their first national election since US forces withdrew from Iraq in 2011 as Prime Minister Nuri Maliki seeks a third term amid rising violence.

The Obama administration is considering expanding its support to Iraqi forces as they fight off a renewed al Qaeda threat, but Washington's ability to significantly increase security assistance to Baghdad will remain limited.