Shafaq News- Baghdad

On Monday, the Coordination Framework (CF), a coalition of Iraq’s ruling Shiite political forces, agreed to delay deciding its nominee for prime minister until after the ongoing regional war involving the United States and Israel against Iran, despite maintaining former Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki as its official candidate.

A source within the CF told Shafaq News that the Framework’s leadership continues to hold consultations and meetings to discuss the political, economic, and security situation, adding that they granted caretaker PM Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani limited authority to manage crises and make necessary decisions, while requiring him to refer some decisions back to the alliance’s leadership.

The CF formally nominated Al-Maliki on January 24. However, the process stalled amid ongoing disputes over electing Iraq’s president, a constitutional step that must precede assigning the largest parliamentary bloc’s nominee to form the cabinet. Al-Maliki’s nomination also faced opposition from some Sunni political forces as well as factions within the Shiite camp, in addition to strong rejection from the US administration, whose president, Donald Trump, warned at the time that Washington would suspend assistance to Iraq if Al-Maliki returned as prime minister.

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