Around the World: Iraq

Baath party ban supported

Iraq's Shi'ite-led government said yesterday a decision by an appeals panel to suspend a ban on candidates with alleged ties to Saddam Hussein's outlawed Baath party until after an election was illegal.

Political wrangling is heating up ahead of the March vote, seen as a crucial test for Iraq as it emerges from years of conflict unleashed by the 2003 US invasion and tries to make peace between once dominant Sunnis and the Shi'ite majority.