National parliamentary elections will be held on Jan. 30, Iraqi officials announced on Monday, sliding the date into next year in a move that could complicate the US timetable for drawing down its forces.
The new parliament will choose a prime minister and Cabinet, a process that could take months. A long and turbulent delay in setting up a new government could force US President Barack Obama to revise his goal of removing most US troops from Iraq by the end of August next year.
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki will be hoping to build on his success in last January’s provincial balloting to form a strong government capable of dealing with the security and economic challenges facing this country as the US role fades.
But a recent spate of deadly bombings in Baghdad has tarnished his image and the threat of more violence could rise as US forces redeploy outside of urban areas by June 30 as scheduled.
The election for the 275-member parliament had been expected in December, four years after the current assembly was chosen.
Deputy Iraqi parliament speaker Khalid al-Attiyah said the Federal Court ruled that the current mandate lasts until March next year and selected a date 45 days before the expiration.
Some Iraqi politicians had suggested delaying the election for up to a year, giving the prime minister’s Shiite and Sunni rivals more time to prepare. Al-Maliki opposed a lengthy delay.
Timing of the election is critical to Obama’s plan to end the US’ combat role in Iraq next year and withdraw most of the 135,000 US troops by September next year.
Iraq’s political parties are deeply fragmented. An inconclusive election outcome, with no party winning a commanding number of seats, could lead to protracted negotiations where the makeup of the new government remains unclear.
In other developments on Monday, Iraqi television aired partial footage of the interrogation of a man it says is Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, leader of the al-Qaeda front group, the Islamic State of Iraq. The government says it arrested al-Baghdadi on April 23.
A speaker who identified himself as al-Baghdadi denied the arrest in an audio message posted last week on a militant Web site.
Past Iraqi claims to have captured or killed al-Baghdadi turned out to be wrong.
Meanwhile, Iraqi government security forces arrested two prominent Sunni leaders in Diyala Province on Monday, according to local security officials, leading to renewed concerns that sectarian tensions in the area could once again erupt into greater violence.
One of those arrested, Sheik Riyadh al-Mujami, is a prominent figure in the local Awakening Council. The other, Abdul Jabbar al-Khazraji, is the head of the leading Sunni bloc of politicians on the Diyala Provincial Council.
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