Iraqi parliament resumes session to elect new speaker amid talks about a top contender's withdrawal

Shafaq News/ The Iraqi parliament resumed its session on Saturday to elect a new speaker in lieu of Mohammad al-Halboosi who was dismissed from office after a fallout with a fellow lawmaker.

The session began at 8:00 PM Iraq time with the candidates, Shaalan al-Kareem and Salem al-Issawi, leading the race. However, the session was delayed for several hours amid profound disagreement among the council members and talks about al-Issawi's withdrawal.

The session was marked by accusations of procedural violations by the acting speaker of parliament, Muhsen al-Mandalawi. Several lawmakers, including Hanan al-Fatlawi, accused al-Mandalawi of delaying the session and of violating the parliament's internal regulations.

Al-Fatlawi said in a tweet that the delay in the session was a "blatant disregard for the MPs and a regrettable violation of the internal regulations."