The office of Iraqi religious reference, Ayatollah Sayyed Ali al-Sistani rejected report by al-Arabiya satellite television network that the Ayatollah has voiced opposition to the re-election of premier Nouri al-Maliki.

The office of Iraqi religious reference, Ayatollah Sayyed Ali al-Sistani rejected report by al-Arabiya satellite television network that the Ayatollah has voiced opposition to the re-election of premier Nouri al-Maliki.

The Al-Arabiya television claimed that Ayatollah Sistani has called for changing Maliki and election of a candidate with high popularity in Iraq.

Ayatollah Sistani's office stressed that the Iraqi religious reference has not issued any statement about changing or keeping the current Iraqi prime minister, Fars News Agency reporetd.

On Friday, Ayatollah Sistani called for faster steps by the Iraqi officials to form a new government within the framework of the constitution.

In a statement read by his representative in the Southern city of Karbala Sayyed Ahmad Safi, Ayatollah Sistani asked the political streams to increase efforts to save Iraq from the current crisis as soon as possible, al-Iraqiya TV channel reported on Saturday.

The Iraqi religious leader also voiced regret over the parliament's failure in electing a speaker and his deputies.

Also in a statement in June, Ayatollah Sistani asserted his support for the Iraqi army and called on its soldiers to be patient and steadfast in the face of the insurgency waged by terrorist group, the so-called “Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant” (ISIL).