Shafaq News/ The National Security Advisor, Qasem al-Araji, and the Iraqi ambassador to UK, Jaafar al-Sadr, are front-runners to succeed incumbent Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, a source revealed on Sunday.

The head of al-Fatah alliance, Hadi al-Ameri, and the chairperson of al-Hashd al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization Forces-PMF), Falih al-Fayyadh, held a meeting with leader of the Sadrist movement, Muqtada al-Sadr, at the latter's headquarters in al-Hannana, near Najaf, yesterday, Saturday.

The meeting attended by the head of al-Siyada bloc, Khamis al-Khanjar, and Iraq's Parliament Speaker, Mohammad al-Halboosi, lasted less than ten minutes, the source said.

"The Framework's delegation then engaged with hours-long talks with al-Sadr's representatives," the source added.

Sources told Shafaq News Agency that the Shiite rivals have agreed on voting for Kurdistan's Minister of Interior, Rebar Ahmed, for the republic's presidency as a part of a comprehensive vision that integrates the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan in the government.

"The next few days will reveal a large set of variables. Further meetings are scheduled to take place in Baghdad to select a head of the upcoming government," the source said, "Jaafar al-Sadr, former Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi, and the National Security Advisor, Qasem al-Araji are the top candidates for the post."

"Al-Abadi's chances shrunk because the Kurds do not approve him. At the moment, al-Araji and al-Sadr are the front-runners," the source stated. 

On Saturday, a source revealed that the Coordination Framework's delegation suggested integrating the Sadrist movement and the Coordination Framework into a single bloc that becomes the largest bloc and designates a Prime Minister. However, al-Sadr was adamant about his commitment to his trilateral agreement with al-Siyada bloc and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP).