Parliament approves Sudani regime in Iraq – Worldakkam.com

Iraqi parliamentarians approve the new government. This is an important step forward after violent infighting between multiple factions and deadly violence following contested elections.

In a statement after Thursday's vote, the office of Prime Minister Mohammed Shire al-Sudani said, “Our team of ministers will take responsibility at this critical time as the world witnesses political and economic change and conflict. I will lose,” he said.

These changes “add new challenges to a country that has already suffered from accumulated crises and has had economic, social, humanitarian and environmental impacts on its citizens,” it added.

The Sudanese government said it had gained the trust of parliament, but did not provide a breakdown of the votes by show of hands.

However, he added that 253 parliamentarians out of the parliament's 329 members attended the meeting.

Sudani's 21-member cabinet is expected to face myriad challenges.

The oil-rich but war-torn country is plagued by endemic corruption, rampant unemployment and declining infrastructure.

Sudani, 52, was elected to form a new government on October 13 after months of infighting between key factions that plunged the country into a political deadlock.

Election “within 1 year”

The movement of cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, Sudani's rival in Iraq's Shia majority camp, has refused to join the government.

But Sudani had the backing of the National Executive Coalition, which includes the Coordination Framework, an alliance of powerful pro-Iranian factions that hold 138 of the 329 seats in parliament.

Other members include a Sunni group led by parliamentary speaker Mohamed al-Harbussi and two major Kurdish political parties.

Of the 21 ministries appointed, 12 posts are for Shiites supported by the Coordinating Framework, 6 are for Sunni leaders, 2 are for Kurds, and 1 is for a Christian woman ( (one of three women in the new government).

Some analysts say the inauguration of the new government does not mean the end of the power struggle between the Sadr and Coordination Framework camps, which erupted into a deadly clash in August.

Sudani's president promised to hold early elections “within a year.”

Source: AFP