"... Maliki's mission to Damascus was part of a series of visits "to different Arab capitals in response to invitations which he has received."
But the visit also comes as Maliki seeks support for his bid to retain the premiership after March 7 elections in which his Shiite bloc finished a narrow second behind the Sunni-dominated Iraqiya group of ex-premier Iyad Allawi.
Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, whose radical movement which controls 40 seats in parliament, has thrown its support behind Maliki, whose party still falls short of the majority in parliament needed to form a government. Maliki also needs the support of the Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council, another Shiite group headed by Ammar al-Hakim, to head a new administration. He hopes that Hakim, who has close ties with Syria, will soften his opposition to his candidacy for prime minister..."
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