Sunni nationalist group claims victory in Iraq

BAGHDAD – An Iraqi lawmaker claims his Sunni Arab nationalist party has won a majority of votes in last weekend's provincial council race in the area around Mosul where ethnic tensions run high.

Official results from Saturday's vote for the government of Ninevah province, which includes Mosul, haven't been released but early returns are trickling out.

Sunni lawmaker Osama al-Nujaifi said Tuesday the National Hadba Gathering won 60 percent of the vote. He says the Kurdish list that previously dominated the council got less than 20 percent.

Al-Nujaifi didn't give a basis for his claim, which couldn't be confirmed, but political parties have monitored the counting process.

The Sunni group opposes Kurdish influence and the American military in Iraq.