Iraq election 'tainted by fraud'

Sunni Arabs and a key secular party charged that parliamentary elections were tainted by fraud, and demanded an inquiry into preliminary results showing the governing Shiite religious bloc with a larger than expected lead.

With politicians barely containing their hostility toward each other yesterday, the bitter climate raised questions about US hopes that the December 15 vote will lead to a more inclusive government involving Sunni Arabs, the minority group that formed the core of Saddam Hussein’s government and is now the backbone of the insurgency.