In Baghdad Monday, tens of thousands of Shiite Muslims marched through the streets demanding direct elections be organized to choose a new government. The Washington Post said the demonstration was the largest in Iraq since the U.S. began 10 months ago. A similar rally was held in Basra last week. The demonstration came as U.S. and Iraqi officials met at the United Nations with Secretary General Kofi Annan and other UN leader to discuss how the UN could take a greater role in the transfer of power in Iraq. Annan suggested that he would send UN election experts to Iraq to give recommendations on transferring authority to an Iraqi-led government. According to the New York Times, a representative from the Shiite Ayaltaloh Sistani was involved in the meetings and said Sistanti would go along with the UN’s recommendations on transferring power. Sistani has been the lead critic of the U.S. plan for indirect elections. On Sunday, a massive bomb outside the gates of the U.S. occupation headquarters killed at least 31 people and wounded about 120. Most of the dead and injured were Iraqis.