This article is from the source 'washpo' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/iraq-parliament-to-meet-again-amid-protest-deepening-crisis/2016/04/14/05c9dec4-020d-11e6-8bb1-f124a43f84dc_story.html
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Version 0 | Version 1 |
---|---|
Iraq parliament to meet again amid protest, deepening crisis | Iraq parliament to meet again amid protest, deepening crisis |
(35 minutes later) | |
BAGHDAD — Iraq’s parliament is to convene again on Thursday amid a deepening crisis roiling the house where dozens of legislators have been holding a sit-in protest for the third consecutive day. | |
The session was scheduled after parliament speaker, Salim al-Jibouri, formally called for the chamber to be dissolved as scuffles broke out inside the parliament on Wednesday. | |
Lawmakers resorted to throwing water bottles and punching each other in heated arguments over a delayed vote on a new Cabinet. | |
The chaotic scenes reflected a growing political crisis in Iraq, even as the country wages war against the Islamic State. Eventually the scuffles subsided and no one was seriously hurt. | |
Lawmakers staging the sit-in, both Sunni and Shiite from across Iraq’s entire political spectrum, have demanded Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and the country’s top leadership resign. | |
On Tuesday, parliament delayed voting on new Cabinet ministers proposed by al-Abadi in an attempt to push through reforms, nearly nine months after he first proposed austerity measures that he claimed would also tackle corruption. | |
The postponement prompted dozens of legislators to begin the sit-in. | |
If the parliament is dissolved, as house speaker al-Jibouri proposed, the move would push new elections. | |
Sunni lawmaker Raad al-Dahlaki said Thursday he doubts this would happen. | |
“I’m guessing that it’s just a maneuver to buy time,” he told The Associated Press. But if it does, he added, “a new government may help solve the corruption problems.” | |
Many Iraqis blame their lawmakers for entrenched corruption that has exacerbated an economic crisis engulfing the country. | |
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. | Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |