Shi’ites oppose efforts to convene Iraqi parliament

IRAQ was plunged into political deadlock yesterday as the dominant Shi’ites opposed efforts by President Jalal Talabani to convene parliament amid bickering over who should lead a government of national unity.

The dispute came amid increasing violence, which saw at least 16 people killed in 18 attacks, eight of them car bombs, as two Canadians and a Briton kidnapped in Iraq appeared in a new video message appealing for their release.

And in the south of the country, an Iraqi security official accused British soldiers in Basra of shooting and wounding four Iraqis, among them police officers, after police tried to check their identification.

Mr Talabani, a Kurd, along with Kurdish, Sunni and secular factions, oppose the reselection by the Shi’ite United Iraqi Alliance (UIA) of outgoing Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari to head the national unity government.

The opening of Iraq’s new parliament, which Mr Talabani wanted to convene on Sunday, has fallen victim to the high-stakes political gamesmanship.

“The alliance is going to ask for the opening of parliament to be delayed by a few days to allow for further talks between the parties,” said Redha Jawad Taki, a spokesman for the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, the main alliance party.

“If the president rejects this then we shall boycott the assembly’s inaugural meeting.”

Earlier, a top government official said one of the vice presidents, the Shi’ite Adel Abdul Mahdi, had declined to sign the presidential council order for the assembly to meet.

“All three members of the presidential council have to sign the order announcing the start of the parliament and Mr Mahdi has not yet signed,” the official said.

“Due to this, there is a possibility that the parliament may not convene on March 12 as there is also a strong demand from the Shi’ite leaders to postpone it,” he added.