BAGHDAD — Iraq's top Shiite cleric Ali Al-Sistani, a leading advocate of reform, on Friday urged the government to speed up the pace of change. "We hope that the reform measures will be carried out at a faster pace," Sistani said in a sermon at weekly prayers in Karbala, south of Baghdad, read out by his representative Abdul Mahdi Al-Karbalai. Sistani, who is revered by millions, has since last month stepped up calls for reform that have helped spur a wide-ranging anti-corruption drive by Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi and provided him with key political cover. The reclusive cleric previously told AFP that: "Today, if true reform is not realized by fighting corruption without mercy and realising social justice on different levels, it is expected that circumstances will become worse than before." — AFP