sentences:  Sheikh Wissam al-Hardan was then elected over Abu Risha, in a re-election Abu Risha condemned as being imposed by the government.He has claimed that the Mukhtar Army was created and operates with the government's consent, and that despite government calls for the arrest of the group's leaders, he claims that if the government wanted to arrest the group's leadership they would have acted far sooner.He has denounced the creation of the Mukhtar Army, which claims to exist to protect Shiites, claiming that the Iraqi Army is capable of protecting Iraq's Shiite population, and that instead the aim of the Mukhtar Army is to frighten and intimidate Sunni protesters.