BAGHDAD, Iraq – Iraq’s leading Sunni Muslim clerics said yesterday the country’s landmark elections lacked legitimacy because large numbers of Sunnis did not participate in the balloting, which the religious leaders had asked them to boycott.

Emboldened by the elections, which American and Iraqi authorities cited as a victory for democracy, the police chief in Mosul demanded the insurgents hand over weapons within two weeks or he would “wipe out” anyone giving them shelter.

The level of insurgent violence has appeared to drop sharply after the election – similar to a short-duration decline in attacks that occurred after the transfer of sovereignty to the interim Iraqi government in June.

It is unclear whether the drop is due to disillusionment within insurgent ranks, the effects of the stringent pre-election security measures that are being slowly relaxed, or whether the insurgents have paused to reassess their strategy in light of the ballot.

“The coming days and weeks will show whether this retreat will continue or whether it is tactical because of the strike against them,” Prime Minister Allawi told Al-Iraqiya TV.

“I don’t know if what happened is a decrease [in attacks] that will continue or will escalate, but the final outcome is that it is a failure. They will continue for months but this [insurgency] will end. These dark forces will not be able to succeed.”

With the threat of election violence past, the American Army handed over control yesterday of several combat outposts to Iraqi security forces on the west side of Mosul, Iraq’s third-largest city.

Mr. Allawi, meanwhile, hosted a meeting of leaders from 16 of the country’s prominent political factions yesterday, his office said.

The leaders, who included President al-Yawer, Sunni elder politician Adnan Pachachi, and Finance Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi, a Shiite, agreed to pursue the participation of all political, ethnic, and religious groups in the new government, the statement said.

Large numbers of majority Shiite Muslims and Kurds participated in Sunday’s election for a new National Assembly and regional Parliaments. Although no results or turnout figures have been released, American officials say participation appeared much lower in Sunni areas where the insurgency is strongest.

The low turnout has been blamed variously on the clerics’ own boycott call and on fears of insurgent reprisals against those who voted.

In its first statement since the balloting, the Association of Muslim Scholars said the vote lacked legitimacy because of low Sunni participation. The association months ago urged Sunnis to shun the polls because of the presence of American and other foreign troops, and insurgents threatened to kill anyone who voted.