BAGHDAD — The
Iraqi parliament on Tuesday scheduled a March 26 session for deputies to hold a
delayed vote on the country's president.
اضافة اعلان
Parliament also released a final list of 40
candidates for the post, a largely ceremonial role reserved for the Kurds.
Among the frontrunners are Barham Saleh, the
incumbent and member of the
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, and Rebar Ahmed of
the Kurdistan Democratic Party, the PUK's rival.
Lack of a quorum and legal issues have held
up the contest, adding to war-scarred Iraq's political uncertainty because the
president has to name a prime minister backed by the largest bloc in
parliament.
On February 13, the supreme court ruled out
a bid by veteran politician Hoshyar Zebari backed by the KDP to run, after a
complaint filed against him over years-old corruption charges.
Iraqi politics were thrown further into
turmoil following the October 2021 general elections, which were marred by a
record-low turnout, post-election threats and violence, and a delay of several
months until final results were confirmed.
Intense negotiations among political groups
have since failed to form a majority parliamentary coalition to appoint a new
prime minister to succeed Mustafa Al-Kadhemi.
The largest political bloc led by firebrand
Shiite cleric
Moqtada Sadr, had backed Zebari for the presidency.
Tensions rose Sunday with Iranian missile
strikes on Erbil, capital of an autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq.
Tehran said the attack targeted Israeli
sites, but Kurdish authorities denied any such presence.
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