BAGHDAD — Nearly 100 people died and at least 300 others were injured Monday in a series of attacks that crisscrossed Iraq, targeting security forces, factory workers and shoppers on what authorities called the deadliest day of the year. The violence – a combination of explosions and drive-by shootings at checkpoints – occurred against a backdrop of political stagnation since the March parliamentary elections, which pitted Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki against secular rival Ayad Allawi in a race so close that the outcome is still disputed. The political stalemate has given rise to fears of renewed sectarian violence, a potential hindrance to the full withdrawal of U.S. forces as scheduled for the end of next year. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks. With a steady stream of bombings and security leadership in flux, some Iraqi politicians have called for the formation of an interim monitoring system until a new parliament is seated. That idea appeared to gain traction Monday, as the death toll rose throughout the day with bombings in Baghdad as well as the mainly Shiite Muslim south and Sunni Muslim west. ‘The parliament is in limbo, so who is there to […]