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IRAQI
prime minister-designate Ibrahim Jaafari was
expected today to unveil a cabinet based on a broad
coalition of Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds but excluding
supporters of the outgoing premier, a senior
official said.
The government will "in principle" be announced
today "but I don't think they (supporters of
outgoing Prime Minister Iyad Allawi) are likely to
be included," Jawad Maliki, number two in Jaafari's
Shiite Dawa party, told AFP.
"It doesn't look like" they will be taking part,
said Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, a Kurd who is
expected to remain at his post.
"We all tried to encourage them to participate" but
in vain, he added.
Allawi supporters said Friday they would only join a
new government if they were given five cabinet
posts, including a deputy premiership.
"These are our demands and, if they are not
satisfied, we cannot participate in the government,"
said the head of Allawi's negotiating team, Rasem
Awady.
Allawi's Iraqiya list took just 40 of the 275 seats
in parliament in landmark elections on January 30.
The Shiite-led United Iraqi Alliance took 146 seats,
while the main Kurdish bloc took 77.
Jaafari has been striving to include as many
factions as possible in his new government and
last-minute talks involved the level of
participation by members of the Sunni-based National
Front which had demanded at least seven ministerial
posts along with a post of deputy premier.
www.heraldsun.news.com.au
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