Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, the leader of Iraq's Shia party, is in Iran for lung cancer treatment after being diagnosed at a Texas hospital, officials close to the cleric say.
The development is expected to create disarray in the SIC in Iraq, the political organisation the US has counted on to help push through reforms.
Al-Hakim flew to the US on Wednesday for tests after doctors at a US-run hospital in Baghdad detected signs of cancer in one of his lungs.
The diagnosis was confirmed at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, officials in the al-Hakim organisation said on Sunday.
Al-Hakim, leader of the SIC since 2003, will undergo chemotherapy treatment in Iran, according to the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
His party, formerly known as the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, was founded there with Iranian help in the early 1980s.
Smoking
Al-Hakim, who gave up a 30-year smoking habit last year, has been coughing and suffering from high blood pressure for months, the officials said.
Talabani to US for ‘checkup’
News of al-Hakim's diagnosis came only hours after another Iraqi leader, Jalal Talabani, 73, Iraq's president, flew to the US for a checkup.
He was hospitalised in Jordan three months ago after collapsing. Doctors said he was suffering from exhaustion and dehydration from lung and sinus infections.
Talabani, a Kurd and an ally of al-Hakim, was expected to be away from Iraq for three weeks.
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 US efforts to build a democratic system regardless of his ties to Iran.
Al-Hakim's son, 35-year-old Amar, has for years been groomed to succeed his father, but there were no plans for him to assume a leadership role for another decade, SIC official said.
PHOTO CAPTION
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, left, President Jalal Talabani, center, and Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, leader of the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council (SIIC) are seen during a meeting on Wednesday, May 16, 2007 at Talabani's office in Baghdad, Iraq. (AP)
Al-Jazeera