Shafaq News- Baghdad

Deep disagreements among the Shiite Coordination Framework's constituent blocs over the distribution of sovereign and security ministries are blocking Prime Minister-designate Ali al-Zaidi from finalizing his cabinet, with Thursday now emerging as a hard deadline, one that, if missed, could end his mandate entirely.

The disputes center on the oil, interior, and finance portfolios, according to Shaker Abu Turab al-Tamimi, a member of parliament from the Badr bloc within the Framework, the Shiite-dominated political alliance that holds a parliamentary majority and nominated al-Zaidi to form the government. Al-Tamimi told Shafaq News that the unresolved allocations have directly delayed submission of the cabinet lineup to parliament.

The interior ministry —claimed by the Badr bloc as its political entitlement— was ultimately conceded, al-Tamimi said. In exchange, Badr accepted the communications and transport portfolios, though neither appointment had been confirmed as of Tuesday. "We took two ministries below our political due," he said.

If al-Zaidi does not present his cabinet to parliament on Thursday, al-Tamimi warned, he will have failed to form the government. A parliament session to hold the confidence vote on the same day is not assured, and its absence, according to al-Tamimi, would indicate that political factions are actively working to block the designation.

Earlier, Shakhwan Abdullah, head of the Kurdistan Democratic Party's (KDP) parliamentary bloc, said that the announcement of the federal cabinet may slip to next week due to “regional and international interference.”

Members of parliament representing Basra province also signed a petition on Tuesday demanding the province's "ministerial entitlement," specifically the oil, transport, and water resources portfolios. The lawmakers, in a statement, warned they would boycott the confidence vote session if their demands were ignored.

Al-Zaidi was tasked with forming the government on April 27, succeeding Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. Political leaks shared with Shafaq News indicated he had intended to present approximately 14 ministerial portfolios to parliament for the confidence vote, amid continuing disagreements over sovereign and security ministries, particularly oil and defense. Parliamentary sources had also reported a political agreement to advance al-Zaidi's government this week following the submission of the ministerial program to the parliament speaker's office.

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