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BAGHDAD (Reuters)
- Iraqi politicians have decided on a speaker of
parliament and his two deputies, makinga first
decisive step towards forming a government nine
weeks after the country's historic election.
A senior Kurdish official involved in the
negotiations said Hajem al-Hassani, a Sunni Arab who
is currentlyindustry minister, would be named
speaker. His deputies will be Shi'ite politician
Hussain Shahristani andKurdish lawmaker Arif Tayfor.
"Hassani is the agreed candidate," interim deputy
Prime Minister Barham Salih told Reuters on Sunday.
Askedif he was going to be speaker, Hassani replied:
"Yes, God willing."
An official announcement was expected shortly, as
the 275 assembly members gathered for their third
meetingsince the election, amid growing frustration
among many Iraqis that more progress has not been
made since theJanuary 30 vote.
The gathering came hours after insurgents mounted a
brazen attack on Abu Ghraib prison outside
Baghdad,battling U.S. forces for an hour in an
assault that underscored Iraq's profound security
risks. Forty-four U.S. troopswere wounded.
The process of forming a government has been drawn
out by sharp differences between the Shi'ite
alliance thatwon the election, and the more secular
Kurds who came second, over who should get what in
the next cabinet.
Parliament's last meeting on March 29 descending
into chaos after politicians attacked their leaders
for notreaching decisions more quickly. Live
coverage of the event was cut.
While the naming of a speaker is one step towards
ending Iraq's political deadlock, the parliament is
notexpected to go much further on Sunday. Salih said
it was unlikely to name a president and two
deputies, a moreimportant landmark in the
government's formation, because of disagreements
over names.
Senior Iraqi officials have raised concerns that the
longer it takes to form a government the more it
will fuel theinsurgency by making elected
authorities appear indecisive.
There is also anger among ordinary Iraqis, more than
eight million of whom braved the threat of violence
to votein January, only to see politics descend into
squabbling.
POLITICAL INFIGHTING
Once a president and deputies are approved by
two-thirds of the assembly, the presidential council
will havetwo weeks to name a prime minister, who
will decide on a cabinet.
All those positions are already being worked on but
it is involving intense bargaining and brinkmanship.
The standoff threatens to derail the timetable for
drawing up a new constitution, the next major
stepping stone,which is due to be drafted by
mid-August.
It is also incurring the wrath of Sunni Arabs who
are demanding a role in the government despite their
poorshowing at the polls -- only 17 of the 275
parliamentarians are Sunni Arabs, the result of most
Sunnis boycottingthe vote.
Shi'ite and Kurdish leaders fear that if the Sunnis
are not brought into the process, it will exacerbate
theSunni-led insurgency that has roiled the country
for more than two years.
There had been indications in recent days that the
insurgency may be softening, with the number of
dailyattacks down by around 20 percent since the
election.
But Saturday's assault on Abu Ghraib prison, in
which between 40 and 60 insurgents attacked with
suicide carbombs, rocket-propelled grenades, mortars
and small arms fire, was a reminder of the scale of
attacks militantscan still launch.
As well as the 44 U.S. troops wounded, 12 detainees
were hurt, one of them seriously. U.S. troops said
onlyone insurgent was confirmed to have been killed
in the fighting which lasted around an hour and
involved U.S.helicopters and tanks.
It was believed to be the largest and most
determined attack on Abu Ghraib, a prison where more
than 3,000suspected insurgents are held in U.S.
detention and which was at the centre of a prisoner
abuse scandal lastyear.
Reuters
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