, in which he said his group's former militia was ready to help with election security. "If Baathists regain power, we will take up arms against them just as we did against Saddam Hussein," warned Hadi al-Amiri, head of the Badr, that many say still wields weapons.His comment was aimed at Iyad Allawi, a former member of Saddam's ruling Baath Party who later broke with the movement and plotted a failed CIA-backed coup against the then dictator. Making a last campaign stab, Hakim warned against possible fraud, while meeting with tribal chiefs from the south. Hakim also said "the Badr Organization is ready to mobilize 200,000 of its men in all parts of Iraq so they can play a role in defending Iraq and Iraqis."
Tuesday marked the end of a campaign marred by assassinations, the latest of which was the murder of Sunni candidate Mizher al-Dulaimi in the troubled western city of Ramadi. Allawi is seen as the candidate most likely to draw off Shiite votes from the SCIRI-dominated United Iraqi Alliance, the main Shiite choice in the election. Allawi, who heads a largely secular list that encompasses Shiites, Sunni Arabs and Kurds, is appealing for the middle ground, urging Iraqis away from a religious vote. Allawi has accused militias, mainly Badr, of trying to assassinate him and of being behind abductions and torture uncovered by discoveries of secret police jails.