The Wire

It will be the fifth election since Saddam Hussein was ousted in 2003. But even from the grave, Iraq’s former dictator casts a shadow over the country’s polls. Iraq’s Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has banned hundreds of people thought to have ties to Hussein’s Baath Party from contesting the March 7 election. The current Shiite leader says he wants a fresh start for Iraq. But critics accuse him of stirring up religious tensions for his own benefit. Does the candidates ban undermine Iraq’s transformation into a peaceful and democratic state?