Iraq's top Shiite cleric yesterday gave his support to the new government battling the Islamic State group as militants unleashed a wave of attacks on the country's majority Shiite community, killing at least 43 people.

The blitz by the militants this summer plunged Iraq into its worst crisis since US troops left at the end of 2011. While there was no claim of responsibility for the attacks, they seemed likely calculated by the group to sow fear among Iraqis and keep pressure on the new Shiite-led government in Baghdad.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who took office last month, met yesterday with top Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani in the southern city of Najaf. He said after their talks that al-Sistani welcomed the recent formation of the government that Al-Abadi now leads.

The spiritual leader wields considerable influence among Iraq's Shiite majority, and the meeting carried symbolic significance because al-Sistani has shunned politicians.

“We have a long and hard mission ahead of us,” al-Abadi told reporters after emerging from the meeting with the cleric.

“One of the missions is related to security. We need arms and we need to reconstruct our security forces.”

The day's attacks killed dozens in Baghdad and the Shiite holy city of Karbala.

In the capital, the bomber blew himself up among Shiite worshippers as they were leaving a mosque in a central commercial area after midday prayers. That blast killed at least 17 people and wounded 28, a police officer said.

In Karbala, four separate car bombs went off simultaneously, killing at least 26 people and wounding 55, police said. The city, 90 kilometers south of Baghdad, is home to the tombs of two revered Shiite imams.

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