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BAGHDAD, Oct. 27 (AP) The Iraqi parliament on Thursday held a confidence vote in the new cabinet, breaking a year-long political stalemate and marking the first time since 2005 that there is no member of a powerful Shiite cleric bloc .
A majority of the 253 lawmakers in attendance voted to appoint 21 ministers, two of which – construction and housing and the environment – remain undecided. Despite these two outstanding appointments, the approved cabinet line-up constitutes a quorum.
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The cabinet, led by Prime Minister Mohammad Shia Sudani, is the first since 2005 to exclude a seat from the influential Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr’s bloc.
Iraq held snap elections more than a year ago due to massive anti-government protests that began in Baghdad and southern Iraq in October 2019, calling for an overhaul of the political system established after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.
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After the election, where Sadr’s coalition won a majority, political infighting delayed the formation of a government for more than a year, largely due to a political rivalry between Sadr and Iran-backed former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
Sadr’s bloc withdrew from parliament in deadlock. In July, al-Sadr’s followers stormed the heavily guarded Green Zone and Iraq’s parliament after an Iran-backed party nominated Mohammad al-Sudani as prime minister.
The following month, street fights between al-Sadr’s followers and members of the rival Popular Mobilization Forces left at least 30 dead and dozens injured. After the clashes, Sadr asked his followers to withdraw from parliament.
After their withdrawal, Sadr’s rivals in the coordination framework group led by al-Maliki were able to forge alliances with Kurdish and Sunni parties in government formation.
On October 13, Iraqi lawmakers elected former minister Abdul Latif al-Rashid as president, the first step in forming a government, following a spate of rocket attacks earlier in the day.
Thursday’s vote was preceded by anxiety over more potential violence, but the capital’s streets remained quiet.
Independent lawmaker Rad Maliki said he expected Sadr to wait to observe the public reception of the new government before reacting.
“I expect that if this government is unsuccessful, street protests will begin,” he said, noting that the new cabinet will face “significant challenges in reform, fighting corruption, climate change and unemployment.”
In addition to the cabinet appointments on Thursday, parliament approved a government plan that includes changes to electoral laws within three months of being sworn in and snap elections a year after that.
The document also calls for measures to fight corruption, speed up reconstruction in areas devastated by armed conflict and return displaced people to their homes. It also called for the elimination of “uncontrolled weapons” held by non-state actors.
Al-Sudani said before the vote that the new government would combat “an epidemic of corruption that affects every aspect of life…it is the root of many economic problems, weakening state authority, increasing poverty, unemployment and poor public services.” “
He also promised that the cabinet would work to build the capacity of local governments and “find sustainable solutions to the outstanding issues of the Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government through genuine partnership based on rights and obligations”.
Former prime minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, speaking after the vote, defended his government’s record and urged all political blocs to “support the new government’s commitment to stability and growth and the defence of democracy and human rights. All the hard work on the road.” (Associated Press)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from the Syndicated News feed, the body of the content may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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