Iraq: Parliament elects Barham Salih as new president
The Kurdish moderate politician has named veteran Shia politician Adel Abdul Mahdi as prime minister-designate.
Iraq‘s legislators have elected veteran Kurdish politician Barham Salih as the country’s new president, the state television reports.
Salih is a former prime minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government and a former deputy prime minister of the Iraqi federal government.
Widely seen as a moderate, Salih was chosen on Tuesday after a dispute between the two main Kurdish parties delayed the vote, eventually forcing them to choose among 20 nominees.
Keep reading
list of 4 itemsTurkey hits 71 targets in Iraq, Syria in retaliation for soldiers’ deaths
Turkey says bombers came from Syria, threatens more cross-border strikes
‘Iraqis love life’: In conversation with Ala Talabani
Salih routed his main rival, Fuad Hussein, with 219 votes to 22.
Shia legislator Hamid al-Moussawi said the session was delayed because the Kurdistan Democratic Party and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan were unable to agree on a single candidate.
The new president will have 15 days to task the nominee of the largest parliamentary bloc with forming a new government.
Under an unofficial agreement dating back to the 2003 US-led invasion, Iraq’s presidency – a largely ceremonial role – is held by a Kurd, while the prime minister is Shia and the parliament speaker is Sunni.
New Prime Minister-designate
Salih has named veteran Shia politician Adel Abdul Mahdi as prime minister-designate and tasked him with forming a new government, two legislators told the Reuters news agency.
According to Iraq’s constitution, Abdul Mahdi now has 30 days to form a government and present it to parliament for approval.
Abdul Mahdi was named by Salih less than two hours after he was elected president.
Tuesday’s poll follows a weekend parliamentary election in the Kurdish autonomous region, mired in economic crisis and still in shock from the fallout of the referendum which sparked a punishing response from Baghdad.