BAGHDAD – A secular coalition challenging the Iraqi prime minister in the country’s historic parliamentary elections has narrowly pulled ahead for the first time in the overall vote count, although it still trails in the crucial province-by-province count.

The Iraqiya coalition, led by former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi, seemed to be gaining momentum, taking a 9,000 vote lead nationwide, according to new totals released late Tuesday. But with about 20 percent of the votes still to be counted from the March 7 election, it was unclear whether that margin would give Allawi more seats in parliament, which will determine who will lead the government.

The news came as Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and his State of Law coalition accused election officials of manipulating vote counts and called for a re-count, a candidate from his bloc said. It was the prime minister’s first challenge to the results, and his bloc drew a link between its accusations and Allawi, accusing some electoral commission staff of having allegiances to groups backing al-Maliki’s rival.

Iraq’s vote counting has been winding and chaotic, with ballot results being portioned out piecemeal by election officials and almost immediately subject to fraud accusations. The winner will be tasked with forming a government that will oversee the country as U.S. forces go home.

Crucially, with 79 percent of votes counted, al-Maliki’s coalition was still winning in seven of Iraq’s 18 provinces — including all-important Baghdad — compared with five for Allawi. That could prove important since parliament seats are apportioned mainly by how well coalitions do in the provinces, not according to overall vote total.

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KARACHI, Pakistan – Two Pakistani officers and a government official said Sunday that an American charged with treason for working with al-Qaida had been captured, a development that could deliver another significant blow in the U.S.-led battle against the terror network.

U.S. defense, intelligence and law enforcement officials could not immediately verify the reported detention of Adam Gadahn, a 31-year-old spokesman for al-Qaida who has appeared on videos threatening the West, including one that emerged earlier Sunday.

The reported arrest of Gadahn follows the recent detention of several Afghan Taliban commanders in Karachi, including the group’s No. 2. Those detentions have been seen as a sign that Pakistan, which has been criticized as an untrustworthy ally, was cooperating more fully with Washington.

Some observers were cautious about giving credence to the claim that Gadahn was in custody as reports emerged that the man arrested might instead be a Taliban militant leader. There was no way of independently verifying the arrest or identity, and detentions of terror suspects in Pakistan are often surrounded by conflicting reports.

“If this is him, it’s a big capture and a morale-booster,” said Patrick Rowan, the former top anti-terrorism official in the Bush Justice Department.

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Some basic information about Iraq’s parliamentary elections on Sunday:

• Eligible voters: About 19 million.

• Polling places: About 10,000 centers containing 52,000 actual voting booths.

• Candidates: More than 6,200.

• Voting Hours: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

• Size of new parliament: 325 seats

• Size of previous parliament: 275 seats

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BAGHDAD — On Sunday, Iraqis will vote in parliamentary elections that will shape their country’s future. Here are some of the major questions along with answers culled from United Nations , U.S. and other international and Iraqi sources.

Q: Why are elections for parliament so important?

A: Unlike the U.S., Iraq has no presidential election. The president has largely a ceremonial role, and the real power lies with the prime minister. Iraqi voters will cast votes for one of many political parties (they can also vote for some individuals). Those political parties have formed political alliances with other blocs. The alliance that gets the most votes will get to choose the prime minister and will have greater say in forming a Cabinet and could have more legislators in parliament. So, the government formed by a nationalist, pro-Western slate could look very different from a government formed by a religious-based, Iranian-backed slate.

Q: Is there just one Election Day ?

A: The main Election Day is March 7 . However, March 4 will be a special voting day for members of Iraq’s security forces and some medical workers because people in those fields will be securing the country on Election Day . And there will be three days of special voting — March 5,6 and 7 — in 16 countries for voters living outside Iraq as refugees or immigrants. The U.N. says the out-of-country vote could range from 300,000 to 3 million.

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