Their election over, Iraqis pondered the likely shape of a future government on Friday, hoping it would lead to a withdrawal of US troops and an end to the bloodshed of the past three years.

At least five loud blasts echoed across central Baghdad, a reminder to Iraqis that some militants plan to fight on, regardless of Thursday's largely smooth election.

The blasts, near the heavily militarized Green Zone which houses the US Embassy and government offices, sounded as if they could have been mortar rounds. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

Election officials counted and recounted millions of ballots as Iraqis celebrated the largely peaceful election, in which the country's Sunni Arabs participated for the first time since the fall of Saddam Hussein, pushing turnout to around 70 percent.

Cities were mostly quiet on the final day of a security lockdown that has sealed borders, banned traffic and put tens of thousands of police and soldiers on the streets, backed up discreetly by US troops.

Muslims walked to mosques for Friday prayers and politicians kept out of sight. With definitive results not expected for at least another two weeks, no senior members of the main parties were ready to claim victory.

"It's going to take them about three months to form a government and I'm sure the negotiations will be tough," said Salaam Ali, a 35-year-old Shi'ite shopkeeper on the unusually calm streets of central Baghdad.

"We hope the elections will bring all Iraqis together Shi'ites, Sunnis and others," he said, citing a good electricity supply as his most pressing need.

An informal polling around the country showed the ruling Shi'ite Islamist Alliance still dominant in the south and its Kurdish allies controlling their northern stronghold.

There also seemed to be strong support for former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, a Shi'ite who heads a secular, cross-sectarian slate and has sought to split the Shi'ite vote.

"He's a strong man and has the ability to tackle difficult issues. He's the right man in the right place," said Kamal Abdulathim, 35, who voted for Allawi in the central city of Baquba, where there is a mixed Shi'ite and Sunni population.

The first stage in establishing a new government will be the election in parliament of a new presidency council a president and two deputies.

The council will then ask the biggest bloc in parliament to nominate a prime minister who needs to win a simple parliamentary majority to take office.

Negotiations over the shape of a cabinet will offer an indication of how far parliament will be able to produce a workable government that can meet popular demands for security, prosperity and curbs on corruption. Failure and disappointment may well unleash more violence from Sunni Arabs, who were dominant under Saddam, if they do not get the influence they want after their participation in the election.

(China Daily December 17, 2005)