Shafaq News- Baghdad
Iraq's parliament released on Thursday the final list of nominees for ministerial posts and deputy prime minister positions.
The list includes 16 names, four of them for deputy prime minister and the rest for vacant and newly created ministries.
Parliament is expected to hold a session to vote on completing the cabinet between 6:30 and 8:30 PM.
The nominees are:
1. Deputy Prime Minister: Mohsen Ali Akbar al-Mandalawi
2. Deputy Prime Minister: Laith Hadi Sayyid al-Khazali
3. Deputy Prime Minister: Mohammed Ali Tamim
4. Deputy Prime Minister: Faris Siddiq Nouri al-Barifkani
5. Interior Minister: Yasser Abd Sukhail Mohammed al-Maliki
6. Defense Minister: Nayef Mukayyif Shanan al-Shammari
7. Planning Minister: Qutaiba Ghazi Majeed Hameed
8. Higher Education and Scientific Research Minister: Haider Bahaa Saheb al-Husseini
9. Culture Minister: Yassin Mohammed Hamad al-Aithawi
10. Construction, Housing and Public Municipalities Minister: Rebaz Mohammed Abdullah Hamlan
11. Labor and Social Affairs Minister: Mohammed Raad Jawid al-Mousawi
12. Youth and Sports Minister: Safaa Mahdi Saleh al-Kinani
13. Digital Economy and Governance Minister: Mohammed Saheb al-Daraji
14. Tourism Minister: Ali Abdul Hadi Mohammed al-Dakhili
15. Migration and Displacement Minister: Roaa Amer Salem
16. Minister of State: Mohammed Samaan Kanaan Yousef
Who The Nominees Represent
The nominees reflect the blocs that negotiated the deal. Among the deputy prime ministers, Mohsen al-Mandalawi heads the Al-Asas Coalition. Mohammed Tamim, a former planning minister, was put forward by the Sunni Taqaddum Party, led by Mohammed al-Halbousi. Faris al-Barifkani is from the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP).
Laith al-Khazali is the brother of Qais al-Khazali, leader of the Iran-aligned armed faction Asaib Ahl al-Haq, and the US objected to his nomination. The US Treasury sanctioned him in 2019 over the killing of protesters during Iraq’s anti-government demonstrations, and the State Department designated him a terrorist in 2020.
For the security portfolios, interior nominee Yasser al-Maliki was put forward by the State of Law Coalition of former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, which also nominated Haider Bahaa for higher education.
Defense nominee Nayef al-Shammari, a lawmaker from Nineveh, was nominated by the Sunni al-Hasm al-Watani Alliance, led by former Defense Minister Thabit al-Abbasi. Rebaz Hamlan, the housing nominee, is from the KDP.
Two of the new ministries are linked to armed factions. Ali Al-Dakhil was nominated for a tourism portfolio reportedly allocated to the Muntasiroon bloc, the political wing of Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada. The digital economy ministry was claimed by the Khadamat Alliance, a bloc linked to Kataib al-Imam Ali, which gave up its demand for a deputy prime minister post in exchange, and former minister Mohammed Sahib al-Daraji was among its candidates.
Five Months Of Deadlock
Parliament approved al-Zaidi’s government on May 14 but confirmed only 14 of his 23 ministers, leaving nine portfolios vacant amid disputes over how to share them among the political blocs.
Talks dragged on through the summer. In September, a lawmaker from the Badr bloc told Shafaq News that the main disagreements centered on the defense, interior, and migration and displacement ministries. By late September, most political forces had authorized al-Zaidi to choose candidates for the vacant posts himself, and a government source said he could submit them to parliament as a “single package” if the blocs failed to agree.
A session planned for early October was postponed as disputes over several nominees persisted.
Leaders of the ruling Shiite Coordination Framework agreed with al-Zaidi and other blocs on Monday to hold today’s vote, including a proposal for four deputy prime ministers.