All Stories: Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani

BAGHDAD: Iraq's most influential Shi'ite cleric said on Friday corruption in the armed forces had enabled Islamic State to seize much of northern Iraq, criticism that will add to pressure for reforms in the face of an insurgency.

BAGHDAD: Nuri al-Maliki finally bowed to pressure within Iraq and beyond on Thursday and stepped down as prime minister, paving the way for a new coalition that world and regional powers hope can quash a Sunni Islamist insurgency that threatens Baghdad.

BAGHDAD: Iraq's most influential Shi'ite cleric urged political leaders on Friday to refrain from clinging to their posts - an apparent reference to Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, who has defied demands that he step aside.