BAGHDAD: Top Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali Al-Sistani, has warned that Iraq faces dire consequences including possible “partition” if real reform is not carried out.

Al-Sistani, who is revered by millions and has unmatched prestige in Iraq, has made several calls for reforms this month that have played a major role in a wide-ranging anti-corruption drive by the government.

“Today, if true reform is not realized by fighting corruption without mercy and realizing social justice on different levels, it is expected that circumstances will become worse than before,” Al-Sistani said. Iraq could be “dragged to... partition and the like, God forbid,” he said. It was Al-Sistani’s most direct warning yet on the possible consequences if reforms he has advocated are not carried out. Al-Sistani said that corruption had already cost Iraq dearly in the conflict with Daesh.

Without rampant corruption, especially in the security forces, and misuse of power by top officials, “the Daesh terrorist organization would not have been able to control a large part of the territory of Iraq,” he said.

Many Iraqi politicians, Al-Sistani said, “did not take the overall interest of the Iraqi people into consideration, and were instead concerned with their personal interests...”