Leader of Iraq's largest Shiite party in Iran for lung cancer treatment

Iraqi Shiite leader has lung cancer

By HAMZA HENDAWI and QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA, Associated Press Writers
Sun May 20, 2:35 PM ET

BAGHDAD - Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, the leader of Iraq's largest Shiite party and a key figure in the country's political reform process, was diagnosed with lung cancer and traveled immediately to Iran to seek medical treatment, officials said Sunday.

The development was expected to create disarray in the Supreme Islamic Council in Iraq, the powerful political organization the U.S. has counted on to help push through reforms such as a revenue-sharing oil law, constitutional amendments and expanded political opportunities for Sunnis.

Hours earlier, President Jalal Talabani flew to the U.S. for a medical checkup and a three-week-long vacation, sidelining another key Iraqi politician at a critical time.

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Al-Hakim flew to the U.S. on Wednesday for tests after doctors at a hospital in Baghdad detected signs of cancer in one of his lungs. The diagnosis was confirmed at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, officials in the al-Hakim organization said.

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Al-Hakim's absence could last several months or longer, said the officials, thus robbing Iraq from a key political player who has been a major partner in U.S. efforts to build a democratic system following Saddam's ouster in 2003, despite his ties to Iran.

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