RIYADH (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah invited Iraq's political parties on Saturday to attend talks in the kingdom to overcome the 7-month political gridlock that followed an inconclusive election, state news agency SPA said.

The talks would be held in the Saudi capital Riyadh under the auspices of the 22-nation Arab League after the annual Muslim haj pilgrimage ending around November 18, SPA said.
Iraq has been without a new government since a March 7 election that failed to produce a clear winner, leaving Shia, Sunni and Kurdish politicians jockeying for power and position.
Iraqiya, the cross-sectarian Iraqi political bloc that received the most votes in the election, welcomed the Saudi initiative and said Turkey and Iran should also be invited.
The lack of a government has sparked concerns among neighbors of a rise in violence just as the sectarian strife triggered after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion recedes and U.S. forces start to withdraw.
“Everyone believes that you are at a crossroad that requires doing the utmost efforts to unite, get over traumas and conflicts and get rid of sectarianism,” SPA quoted the king as saying, addressing Iraqi leaders.
Photo: Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah
-